International Journal of Application or Innovation in Engineering& Management (IJAIEM)

Web Site: www.ijaiem.org Email: editor@ijaiem.org

Volume 3, Issue 9, September 2014 ISSN 2319 4847

Volume 3, Issue 9, September 2014 Page 80

ABSTRACT
This paper investigates an optimization of various machining parameters of the electrical discharge machining (EDM) processes
on AISI D2 tool steel using a hybrid optimization method. Combination of Grey Relational Analysis and Taguchi Method has
been proposed to evaluate and estimate the effect of machining parameters on the responses. . The major responses selected for
this analysis are material removal rate (MRR) and tool wear rate (TWR), and the corresponding machining parameters
considered for this study are pulse current (Ip), pulse duration (Ton), duty cycle (Tau) and discharge voltage (V). The
experimental results obtained are used in grey relational analysis, and the weights of the responses are evaluated by using
Taguchi Method. The results indicate that the grey relational grade (GRG) was significantly affected by the machining
parameters considered and some of their interactions. These results provide useful information on how to control the machining
parameters and thereby responses and ensure high productivity and accuracy of the EDM process.
Keywords:- Component, formatting, style, styling, insert.
1. INTRODUCTION
EDM is a thermal process of eroding electrically conductive materials with a series of successive electric sparks and the
complex phenomenon involving several disciplines of science and branches of engineering. EDM is one of the most
important manufacturing processes extensively useful in the die and mould making industry to generate intricate shape,
mould cavity, complex shapes. Its distinctive attribute of using thermal energy to machine electrically conductive
materials, regardless of hardness, has been an advantage in the manufacturing of mould, die, surgical, automotive and
aeronautic components. It is essential especially in the machining of super tough, hard and electrically conductive
materials such as the new space age alloys. It is better than other machining processes in terms of precision, SQ and the
fact that hardness and stiffness of a work piece material is not important for the material removal. Though EDM has
become an established technology, and commonly used in manufacturing of mechanical works, yet its low efficiency and
poor SQ have been the vital matter of concern. Hence, the investigations and improvements of the process are still going
on, since no such process exists, which could replace the EDM successfully.
1.1 Working Principle
In EDM, there are two electrodes that are separated by a dielectric fluid. One of the electrodes is called the tool-electrode,
or simply the tool or electrode, while the other is called the work piece-electrode, or work piece. Material removal is
based upon the electrical discharge erosion effect of electrical sparks (or discharges) between the two electrodes that are
separated at a particular. A series of voltage pulses of magnitude about 5-120 V and frequency of the order of 5 KHz is
applied between two electrodes which are separated by a small gap, typically between 0.01 to 0.5 mm. At this small gap,
the intensity of the electric field in inter electrode volume become greater than the strength of dielectric, which breaks,
allowing the currents to flow between the two electrodes. The intensity of discharges (between the two electrodes) is high
enough to generate extremely high temperature (of the order of 8000-12000C) that melts and evaporate both the
electrodes.
.



Optimization of Various Machining Parameters
of Electrical Discharge Machining (EDM)
Process on AISI D2 Tool Steel Using Hybrid
Optimization Method
Dr. M.Indira Rani
1
, Ketan
2

1
Professor
2
M.Tech Student
Mechanical Engineering Department, J NTUH College of Engineering, Hyderabad

International Journal of Application or Innovation in Engineering& Management (IJAIEM)
Web Site: www.ijaiem.org Email: editor@ijaiem.org
Volume 3, Issue 9, September 2014 ISSN 2319 4847

Volume 3, Issue 9, September 2014 Page 81

Fig.1 Schematic of EDM tool Fig.2 Schematic of Spark generated
Once the current stops, dielectric is flushed into inter electrode volume enabling the solid particles (debris) to be carried
away and the insulating properties of dielectric to be restored. This process is repeated very fast as the sparks are
generated for a very short duration (between 0.1 to 2000 s) and thus the machining or material removal takes place. The
frequency of discharges or sparks usually varies between 500 and 500,000 sparks per second.
1.2 Parameters of Electro Discharge Machining: There are varieties of parameters that can be used as factor in order to
operate EDM Machine the corresponding machining parameters considered for this study were pulse current (Ip), pulse
duration (Ton), duty cycle (Tau) and discharge voltage (V).
Pulse Current: Pulse current is the amount of power used in discharge machining, measured in units of amperage. In
both vertical and wire applications, the maximum amount of amperage is governed by the surface area of the cut the
greater the amount of surface area, the more power or amperage that can be applied. Higher amperage is used in roughing
operations and in cavities or details with large surface areas. During EDM process, the average current is the average of
the amperage in the spark gap measured over a complete cycle. This is read on the ammeter during the process. The
theoretical average current can be measured by multiplying the duty cycle and the peak current (maximum current
available for each pulse from the power supply or generator). Average current is an indication of the machining operation
efficiency with respect to material removal rate.
Pulse Duration Time/Pulse ON time (s): The whole machining process is carried out during one time. The spark gap is
bridged, current is generated and the work is accomplished. The longer the spark is sustained more is the material
removal. Consequently the resulting craters will be broader and deeper. Therefore, the surface finish will be rougher.
Obviously with shorter duration of sparks the surface finish will be better. With a positively charged work piece the spark
leaves the tool and strikes the work piece resulting in the machining. More sparks produce much more wear. Hence, this
process behaves quite opposite to normal processes in which the tool wears more during finishing than roughing.
Pulse Off-time (pulse interval time) (s): It is the duration of time ( s) between the sparks (that is to say, on-time).
This time allows the molten material to solidify and to be wash out of the arc gap. This parameter is to affect the speed
and the stability of the cut. Thus, if the off-time is too short, it will cause sparks to be unstable.Arc gap (or gap): It is the
distance between the electrode and the part during the process of EDM. It may be called as spark gap
Duty Cycle (Tau): It is a percentage of the on-time relative to the total cycle time. This parameter is calculated by
dividing the on-time by the total cycle time (on-time plus off-time). The result is multiplied by 100 for the percentage of
efficiency or the so called duty cycle.
1.3 Measurement of Responses: Material Removal Rate (MRR): MRR is calculated by using the volume loss from the
workpiece divided by the time of machining. The calculated weight loss is converted to volumetric loss in cubic
millimetre per minute as per Eq. 1:

Where Vw is the volume loss from the workpiece, Ww is the weight loss from the workpiece, T is the duration of the
machining process and wis the density of the workpiece. Tool wear rate:TWR is expressed as the volumetric loss of tool
per unittime, expressed as

Where Vt is the volume loss from the electrode, Wt is the weight loss from the electrode, T is the duration of the
machining process and t=8,960 kg/m3 is the density of the electrode.
1.4 Material Selection: There are various combinations of material used for EDM research recently. These researches
are using advance material such as super alloy, ceramic, metal matrix composite and etc., on EDM machining. Cost
International Journal of Application or Innovation in Engineering& Management (IJAIEM)
Web Site: www.ijaiem.org Email: editor@ijaiem.org
Volume 3, Issue 9, September 2014 ISSN 2319 4847

Volume 3, Issue 9, September 2014 Page 82
expenditure for these kinds of materials is very high and low availability. Hence, the materials selection for this project is
tool steel (AISI D2) for the work piece and Copper electrode will be used.
Table.1 The Physical Properties of Copper Electrode









Various electrode materials used are graphite, copper, copper graphite, brass, zinc alloys, steel copper tungsten, silver
tungsten, tungsten, etc. power supplies. Metallic electrodes, Such as Copper, Brass, Copper, Tungsten, etc. were the only
electrode materials that would perform effectively with an R-C (Resistor Condenser) EDM. Besides graphite, copper also
has the qualities for high stock metal removal. It is a stable material under sparking conditions. Its wear can be
comparable with graphite. Indeed with some work piece materials, it yields a finer surface finish. Copper is easily
obtainable, consistent in quality and low in cost. Copper has melting point which is only about 1100C.
Tool Steel (AISI D2): AISI D2 is one of the most popular high-chromium and high-carbon steels of D series and it is
characterized by its high compressive strength and wear resistance, good through - hardening properties, high stability in
hardening and good resistance to tempering - back. Cold work tool steels of Series D, also known as die steels, are high
alloy steels Fe Cr -C-base. This alloy has the ability to preserve its desirable mechanical properties intact upon cycling
over a range of temperatures, which can be an advantage for applications including, piercing and blanking dies, punches,
shear blades, spinning tools, slitting cutters, as well as variety of higher end wood working tools.
Table.2 AISI D2 steel composition

2. LITERATURE SURVEY
Kumar et al. [1] compared the performance of copper-chromium alloy with copper and brass as EDM electrode materials
for machining OHNS die steel using kerosene and distilled water as dielectric media. Keeping all other machining
parameters same, the hardened work material was machined with the three electrodes at different values of discharge
current. It was found that copper-chromium alloy shows better results than copper and brass in terms of material removal
rate, dimensional accuracy (lateral overcut) and surface finish in both the dielectric media. Tool wear rate of this alloy
was lower which results in better accuracy and trueness of the machined profiles because the mirror image of the tool
electrode was reproduced in the work piece. Regarding the use of distilled water as a dielectric medium, though material
removal rate was low and tool wear rate was high, but hardness and finish of the machined surface showed a marked
improvement [1]. Rao et al. [2] Optimized the metal removal rate of die sinking electric discharge machining (EDM) by
considering the simultaneous effect of various input parameters. The experiments are carried out on Ti6Al4V, HE15,
15CDV6 and M-250. Experiments were conducted by varying the peak current and voltage and the corresponding values
of metal removal rate (MRR) were measured. Multi-perceptron Neural Network Models were developed using Neuro
solutions package. Genetic algorithm concept was used to optimize the weighting factors of the network. It was observed
that the developed model was within the limits of the agreeable error when experimental and network model results were
compared for all performance measures considered. It was further observed that the maximum error when the network
was optimized by genetic algorithm reduced considerably. Sensitivity analysis was carried out to find the relative
influence of factors on the performance measures. It was observed that type of material is having more influence on the
performance measures. Pradhan and Biswas [3] investigated the relationships and parametric interactions between the
three controllable variables on the material removal rate (MRR) using RSM method. Experiments were conducted on
AISI D2 tool steel with copper electrode and three process variables (factors) as discharge current, pulse duration, and
pulse off time. To study the proposed second-order polynomial mode for MRR, the authors used the central composite
experimental design to estimation the model coefficients of the three factors, which are believed to influence the MRR in
Physical properties Value
Electrical resistivity (/cm) 1.96
Electrical conductivity compared with silver (%) 92
Thermal conductivity ( W/mK) 268-389
Melting point ( C ) 1083
Specific heat ( cal/g C) 0.092
Coefficient of thermal expansion ( x 10-6 C-1) 6.6
Element C MN Si Cr Ni Mo V Co Cu P S
Weight % 1.4-1.6 0.6 0.6 11-13 0.3 0.7-1.2 1.1 1 0.25 0.03 0.03
International Journal of Application or Innovation in Engineering& Management (IJAIEM)
Web Site: www.ijaiem.org Email: editor@ijaiem.org
Volume 3, Issue 9, September 2014 ISSN 2319 4847

Volume 3, Issue 9, September 2014 Page 83
EDM process. The response was modelled using a response surface model based on experimental results. The significant
coefficients were obtained by performing analysis of variance (ANOVA) at 5% level of significance. It was found that
discharge current, pulse duration, and pulse off time significant effect on the MRR.
3. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN
The general scenario in an experiment is that there is an output variable (generally quantitative in nature), which depends
on several input variables, called factors. Each factor has at least two settings, called levels. A combination of the levels of
all the factors involved in the experiment is called a treatment combination. Design of Experiments (DOE) is a statistical
technique used to study the effects of multiple variables on performance measures simultaneously. It provides an efficient
experimental schedule and statistical analysis of the experimental results. The optimization procedure for the
characteristics features of electric discharge machining of AISI D2 Tool steel through experimental studies. Taguchi-grey
relational based multi response optimization technique has been employed for analysis of experimental results. The
parameters and levels which have been investigated during the study are given in table 3. The resultant data obtained
after performing experimentation is reported in table 4. As the investigation is done on four parameters at four different
levels, L16 array is used which means 16 experiment runs have to be conducted for determining optimal set of process
parameters.
Table.3 Input variables used in the experiment and their levels




Table.4 L9 Orthogonal array with experimental values















Table.5 S/N Ratios Table
Expt. No
Current
(Amps)
Pulse On
Time
(Ton) (s)
Duty
Cycle
(Tau)
Voltage MRR EWR
(V) (mm3/min) (mm3/min)
2 4 200 85 50 6.485 0.028
3 4 300 90 60 3.13 0.011
4 7 100 85 60 6.87 0.089
5 7 200 90 40 16.169 0.07
6 7 300 80 50 13.755 0.05
7 10 100 90 50 26.662 0.647
8 10 200 80 60 24.42 0.208
9 10 300 85 40 21.97 0.06
Variable Unit
Levels
1 2 3
Discharge current
(Ip)
A 4 7 10
Pulse on time (Ton) s 100 200 300
Duty cycle (Tau) % 80 85 90
Voltage (V) Volt 40 50 60
Expt.
No.
Current
(Amps)
Pulseon Time
(Ton)(s)
Duty Cycle
(Tau)
Voltage
(V)
Overall
Grey
Relationa
l Grade
Rank
1 4 100 80 40 0.4487 7
2 4 200 85 50 0.4122 8
3 4 300 90 60 0.3333 9
4 7 100 85 60 0.4739 6
5 7 200 90 40 0.5798 4
6 7 300 80 50 0.5305 5
7 10 100 90 50 1 1
8 10 200 80 60 0.7830 2
9 10 300 85 40 0.6540 3
International Journal of Application or Innovation in Engineering& Management (IJAIEM)
Web Site: www.ijaiem.org Email: editor@ijaiem.org
Volume 3, Issue 9, September 2014 ISSN 2319 4847

Volume 3, Issue 9, September 2014 Page 84
Calculating S/N ratios: The S/N ratios are determined by characteristics of the machining process. The categories of
larger the better, smaller the better and nominal the better are being used to increase material removal rate and to reduce
the electrode wear rate.
Normalizing S/N ratios:The S/N ratios obtained from the Taguchi analysis have to be normalized. The original sequence
is transferred to a comparable sequence, where the original data normalize to a range of 0 and 1.
Table.6 Normalized values of S/N ratios Table.7 Grey Relational coefficient of MRR and SR ( =0:5.)
Generating Grey relational coefficient: After normalizing the data, usually grey relational coefficient is calculated to
display the relationship between the optimal and actual normalized experimental results.
Table.8 Grey Relational Grades












Generating Grey Relational Grade: The grey relational grade , indicates the level of association between the reference
sequence and the comparability sequence. A higher grey relational grade value infers a stronger relational degree between
the comparative and referential (ideal) sequence.
4. RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
Based on the above discussion, the optimal operational conditions established by grey analysis approach are as follows: a
pulse current 10 A, pulse duration 100 s, duty cycle 90 % and discharge voltage 50 V. Therefore, experiment 7 shown in
Table 4 fits the optimal process conditions. The effect of each machining parameter on the GRG at different levels can be
independent. The mean of the GRG for each level of the EDM process parameters is presented in Table 9.
Table.9 Main Effects of process parameters on the Grey Relational Grade









Expt.
No.
Normalized
S/N ratios of
MRR.
Normalized
S/N ratios of
EWR

Expt.
No.
Current
(Amps)
Pulse on
Time
Ton (s)
Duty
Cycle
(Tau)
Voltage
(V)

S/N
ratio
of
MRR

S/N
ratio
of
EWR
1 0.2851 0.4711 1 4 100 80 40 15.2175 22.4988
2 0.3400 0.2293 2 4 200 85 50 16.2382 31.0568
3 0 0 3 4 300 90 60 9.9109 39.1721
4 0.3699 0.5131 4 7 100 85 60 16.7391 21.0122
5 0.7665 0.4541 5 7 200 90 40 24.1737 23.0980
6 0.6910 0.3716 6 7 300 80 50 22.7692 26.0206
7 1 1 7 10 100 90 50 28.5179 3.7819
8 0.9589 0.7214 8 10 200 80 60 27.7549 13.6387
9 0.9096 0.4163 9 10 300 85 40 26.8366 24.4370
Expt.
No.
Grey Relational
coefficient of MRR
Grey Relational
coefficient of EWR
1 0.4115 0.4859
2 0.4310 0.3934
3 0.3333 0.3333
4 0.4412 0.5066
5 0.6816 0.4780
6 0.6180 0.4431
7 1 1
8 0.9240 0.6421
9 0.8468 0.4613
Level
Curren
t
Pulse on Time Duty Cycle Voltage
1 0.3980 0.6408 0.5874 0.5608
2 0.5280 0.5916 0.5133 0.6475
3 0.8123 0.5059 0.6377 0.5300
Delta 0.4143 0.1349 0.1244 0.1175
Rank 1 2 3 4
International Journal of Application or Innovation in Engineering& Management (IJAIEM)
Web Site: www.ijaiem.org Email: editor@ijaiem.org
Volume 3, Issue 9, September 2014 ISSN 2319 4847

Volume 3, Issue 9, September 2014 Page 85
Fundamentally, the larger the GRG, the better is the multiple performance characteristics. Conversely, the relative
importance among the EDM process parameters for the multiple performance characteristics still needed to be
investigated so that the optimum combination of the EDM process parameter levels can be decided more correctly. Fig.3
displays the variance of GRG throughout the experimental runs. Wherever there is a large slope in the figure, it could be
inferred that the parameter has a significant influence on the EDM process. In this study, it can be visually understood
and found that Ton and Ip have a significant effect. Figures 3 to 4 depict the plots of the main effects on GRG, and those
can be used to graphically assess the effects of the factors onthe response. It Indicates that Ton and Ip have a significant
effect on GRG; however, Ip is the most influencing machining parameter.
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
1.0
0.9
0.8
0.7
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
Experiment Run
G
r
e
y

r
e
la
t
io
n
a
l
g
r
a
d
e
Scatterplot of Grey relational grade vs Experiment Run

10 9 8 7 6 5 4
0.8
0.7
0.6
0.5
0.4
Current
G
R
G
(
c
u
r
r
e
n
t
)
Scatterplot of GRG(current) vs Current


Fig.3 Grey Relational Grades for Maximum Fig .4 Grey relational grades for each level of Current
MRR and MinimumRa

300 250 200 150 100
0. 64
0. 62
0. 60
0. 58
0. 56
0. 54
0. 52
0. 50
Pulse on Time
G
R
G
(
P
u
ls
e

o
n

t
im
e
)
Scatterpl ot of GR G( Pul se on time) vs Pul se on Time

90 88 86 84 82 80
0.64
0.62
0.60
0.58
0.56
0.54
0.52
0.50
Duty Cycle
G
R
G
(
D
u
t
y
C
y
c
le
)
Scatterpl ot of GRG(Duty Cycle) vs Duty Cycl e


Fig.5 Grey relational grades for each level of pulse on time Fig.6 Grey relational grades for each level of duty cycle

60 55 50 45 40
0.66
0.64
0.62
0.60
0.58
0.56
0.54
0.52
Voltage
G
R
G
(
V
o
lt
a
g
e
)
Scatterplot of GRG(Voltage) vs Voltage

Pu ls e o n Time ( Ton )
C
u
r
r
e
n
t
(
a
m
p
s
)
3 00 25 0 2 00 15 0 100
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
>






< 0. 4
0. 4 0. 5
0. 5 0. 6
0. 6 0. 7
0. 7 0. 8
0. 8 0. 9
0. 9 1. 0
1. 0
g r ad e
r ela ti o n al
G r ey
C o ntou r P l o t of Gr e y r el a ti on al v s C ur r ent( a mps ) , P ul s e on T i me( T o

Fig.7 Grey relational grades for each level of Voltage Fig.8 Two-dimensional contour plots for GRG
Effect of a pulse current and pulse on tim
With GRG as the response, the contour plots of the model keeping two variables at their mean levels and varying the
other two within the experimental ranges are, separately, shown in Fig.11. The shapes of the contour plots may be
curvature with circular, elliptical or saddle implying whether the interactions between the variables are significant or not.
The contour plot in Fig.8 shows that the interactive effects of Ip and Ton on GRG were significant. The surface plot of the
significant factors are also exhibited in Figs.9,10&11, respectively, for the interactive effect of IpTon, IpV and TauV,
respectively, keeping the other factors at their mean level.

International Journal of Application or Innovation in Engineering& Management (IJAIEM)
Web Site: www.ijaiem.org Email: editor@ijaiem.org
Volume 3, Issue 9, September 2014 ISSN 2319 4847

Volume 3, Issue 9, September 2014 Page 86
60
0. 4
50
0.6
0.8
4
1.0
6
40 8
10
Gr ey r elati onal gr ade
Voltage ( V)
C ur r ent( amps)
S ur fac e P l ot of Gr ey r el ati onal gr ade vs Vol tage ( V) , Cur r ent( amps )

10
8
0.4
0.6
6
0.8
100
1.0
200 4
300
Grey r elational gr ade
Cur rent(amps)
Pulse on T ime(T on)
Surface Plot of Grey relational vs Current(amps), Pulse on Time( To

Fig. 9 Response surface plot representing the Fig.10 Response surface plot representing the
effect of Ip and V on GRg. effect of Ton and Ip on GRG

90
0.4
85
0.6
0.8
40
1.0
50 80
60
Gr ey r elational gr ade
Duty Cycle (Tau)
Voltage ( V)
Surface Plot of Grey relational grade vs Duty Cycle (Tau), Voltage (V)

Fig.11 Response surface plot representing the effect of V and Tau on GRG
Effect of process parameters on Material Removal Rate (MRR): The below four graphs illustrates the effect of the process
parameters i.e. current, pulse on time, pulse off time and voltage on MRR. As MRR is important factor to measure the
productivity of a particular process so it is important to know the effects of various process parameters on it.

10 9 8 7 6 5 4
25
20
15
10
5
Current
M
R
R
(
C
u
r
r
e
n
t
)
Scatterplot of MRR(Current) vs Current

300 250 200 150 100
16.0
15.5
15.0
14.5
14.0
13.5
13.0
Pulse on Time
M
R
R
(
P
u
ls
e

o
n

t
im
e
)
Scatterplot of MRR(Pulse on time) vs Pulse on Time

Fig.12 Material Removal Rate for each level Fig.13 Material Removal Rate for each level of
of Current Pulse on Time
90 88 86 84 82 80
15.5
15.0
14.5
14.0
13.5
13.0
12.5
12.0
Duty Cycle
M
R
R
(
D
u
t
y
C
y
c
le
)
Scatterplot of MRR( Duty Cycl e) vs Duty Cycl e

60 55 50 45 40
16
15
14
13
12
11
Voltage
M
R
R
(
V
o
lt
a
g
e
)
Scatterplot of MRR( Voltage) vs Voltage

Fig.14 Material Removal Rate for each level Fig.15 Material Removal Rate for each level
of Duty Cycle of Voltage
Effect of parameters on Electrode Wear Rate (EWR): The following four graphs depicts the effect of the process
parameters i.e current, pulse on time, pulse off time and voltage on EWR. As EWR is important factor to measure the
productivity and efficiency of a particular process so it is important to know the effects of various process parameters on
it.

International Journal of Application or Innovation in Engineering& Management (IJAIEM)
Web Site: www.ijaiem.org Email: editor@ijaiem.org
Volume 3, Issue 9, September 2014 ISSN 2319 4847

Volume 3, Issue 9, September 2014 Page 87
10 9 8 7 6 5 4
0.30
0.25
0.20
0.15
0.10
0.05
0.00
Current
E
W
R
(
C
u
r
r
e
n
t
)
Scatterplot of EWR( Current) vs Current

300 250 200 150 100
0. 30
0. 25
0. 20
0. 15
0. 10
0. 05
Pulse on Time
E
W
R
(
P
u
ls
e

o
n

t
im
e
)
Scatterpl ot of EWR( Pulse on time) vs Pulse on Time

Fig.16 Electrode wear Rate for each level of Current Fig.17 Electrode wear Rate for each level of Pulse on time

90 88 86 84 82 80
0. 25
0. 20
0. 15
0. 10
0. 05
Dut y Cycle
E
W
R
(
D
u
t
y

C
y
c
le
)
S ca tte r pl ot o f E WR ( D uty Cy cl e) vs Duty C ycl e

60 55 50 45 40
0.25
0.20
0.15
0.10
0.05
Voltage
E
W
R
(
V
o
lt
a
g
e
)
Scatterpl ot of EWR(Vol tage) vs Vol tage

Fig.18 Electrode wear Rate for each level of Duty Cycle Fig.19 Electrode wear Rate for each level of Voltage
5. CONCLUSION
In this study, Taguchi L9 array with grey relational analysis has been used to optimize the multiple performance
characteristics: material removal rate(MRR) and Electrode wear rate(TWR). The largest max-min value has been found
from response table. It is found that peak current is most significant factor among process parameters involved in EDM
process. Based on the observations from the experimental runs, the following conclusions are presented: With increase in
current, the value of MRR and EWR gradually increased. So in order to have an optimal condition (high MRR and low
EWR), we have to choose moderate current. With increase in pulse ON time, the value of MRR first increased and then
gradually decreased after level 2(200 s) but the value of EWR gradually decreased from level 1(100 s) to level 4(75 s).
With increase in pulse Duty Cycle, the value of MRR fluctuated throughout the levels, it first decreased and then finally
increased, whereas the value of EWR gradually decreased till level 2 and then steeply increased. With an increase in
voltage, the value of MRR first dramatically increased and then plummeted downwards at level 2(50V), however, the
value of SR gradually increased from level 1(40V) to level 2(50V) and gradually decreased from level 3(50V) to level
4(60V). Optimum parameter settings obtain from Grey Relational analysis are Current (10A), Pulse ON Time (100 s),
Duty Cycle (90%) and Voltage (50 V). This study will help in identifying the significant factors which are efficiently
regulated to decrease error, time consumption and cost and to increase quality and productivity. This study may provide
the experimenter and practitioners an effective guideline to select optimum parameter settings for achieving the desired
MRR, TWR and G during EDM of AISI D2 tool steel. This method can also be applied for the optimization of the
processing parameters in other manufacturing processes, to promote manufacturing efficiency.
REFERENCES
[1].S Kumar, TP Singh (2007), A comparative study of the performance of different EDM electrode materials in two
dielectric media, (IE) (I) Journal- PR, Vol. 8, PP. 38.
[2].SK Saha (2008), Experimental investigation of the dry electric discharge machining (Dry EDM) process, M. Tech.
Thesis, IIT Kanpur, Kanpur 208016, India.
[3].GKM Rao, GR J anardhana, DH Rao, MS Rao (2008), Development of hybrid model and optimization of metal
removal rate in electrical discharge machining using Artificial Neural Networks and Genetic Algorithm, ARPN
Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Vol. 3, No. 1, pp. 19-30.
[4].MK Pradhan, CK Biswas (2008), Modeling of machining Parameters for MRR in EDM using response surface
methodology, Proceedings of NCMSTA 08 Conference (National Conference on Mechanism Science and
Technology, from Theory to Application), November 13-14, 2008, NIT Harripur, India.
International Journal of Application or Innovation in Engineering& Management (IJAIEM)
Web Site: www.ijaiem.org Email: editor@ijaiem.org
Volume 3, Issue 9, September 2014 ISSN 2319 4847

Volume 3, Issue 9, September 2014 Page 88
[5].W Tebni, M Boujelbene, E Bayraktwe, S Ben Salem (2009), Parametric approach model for determining electrical
discharge machining (EDM) conditions, effects of cutting parameters on the surface integrity, The Arabian Journal
for Science of Engineering, Vol. 34, No.1C, pp. 101 114.
[6].Marcel Sabin Popa, Glad Contiu, Grigore Pop, (2009), Surface quality of the EDM processed materials, XXIX
IMEKO World Congress, Fundamental and Applied Metrology, September 6-11, 2009, Lisbon, Portugal.
[7].J Marafona, C wykes (2000), A new method of optimizing material removal rate using EDM with copper-tungsten
electrodes, International Journal of Machine Tools and manufacture, Vol. 40, pp. 153-164.
[8].Yih-fong Tzeng, FU-chen Chen (2007), Multi-objective optimization of high speed electrical discharge machining
process using a Taguchi fuzzy based approach, Materials and Design, Vol. 28, pp. 1159-1168.
[9].H Singh, R Garg, (2009), Effects of process parameters on material removal rate in WEDM, J ournal of
Achievement in Materials and Manufacturing Engineering, Vol. 32, No. 1, pp. 70-74.
[10].AKM Asif Iqbal, Ahsan Ali khan (2010), Modeling and analysis of MRR, EWR and surface roughness in EDM
milling through Response Surface Methodology, American J ournal of Engineering and Applied Science, Vol. 3,No.
4, pp.611-619