Study On The Establishment Of A Novel ICP Fast Polishing System Andits Uniform Process

Non-contact atmosphere pressure plasma polishing(APPP) method is an effective approach for the precision manufacturing of hard-to-cut materials. Large aperture optical components commonly used in space scopes and laser systems demand critical surface quality. The manufacturing of such parts has been a problem for decades. Inductively coupled plasma(ICP) polishing is one branch of the AP PP family. And it is the ideal finishing method for the fast processing of large aperture components because of its high material removal rate. Therefore, the study of ICP fast polishing apparatus and its manufacturing process is the essential part to accurately control the profile of finished surfaces.In this paper, the first five-axis atmosphere pressure plasma polishing machine based on ICP is developed, including the establishment of plasma generating systems, the integration of the processing unit and the mechanical structures. A series of polishing experiments are carried out to find out the reasons of some defects, including the local non-uniform etching phenomenon and the edge effect commonly found in plasma polishing.Firstly, the generating principles of ICP is introduced. The dry e tching mechanism of plasma under atmosphere pressure condition is briefly analyzed. And based on these theories, the overall structure of the fast plasma polishing system is designed.After that, according to the requirements of the polishing system, the detailed design of the plasma unit is finished and the establishment of these related hardware. The integration of the plasma unit to the processing system is also discussed in this paper.Finally, the commonly found defects are introduced and the reasons for these phenomenon are analyzed. Surface defects caused by local non-uniform etching are examined and the corresponding solution to avoid this problem is proposed. Then the edge effect in plasma polishing is studied both theoretically and experimentally. An effective approach is developed to accurately control the surface profile.