from the conferences organized by TANGER Ltd.
The improvement of surface quality in difficult to cut materials is critically important for enhancing service life. Plasma electrolytic polishing (PeP) is a promising surface finishing technology that provides high quality and eco-friendly smoothing of metal surfaces. This study presents the effects of PeP parameters on the surface modification of Ti-6Al-4V alloys. The PeP parameters were determined as cycle stages (1, 3, and 6) and stirring speeds (0 and 300 rpm). Other constant parameters were cathode material (SS304), voltage (300 V), electrolyte type (hydroxylamine hydrochloride and sodium fluoride), electrolyte concentration (5% and 0.8%), electrolyte temperature (80°C), and polishing time (6 min). Surface roughness, gloss, and material removal rate (MRR) were selected as output parameters. In addition, the current time graph was recorded during the polishing process. The experimental results shown that the surface roughness value decreased significantly after PeP. Moreover, an increase in the number of cycle stages led to an improvement in surface roughness. Similarly, a considerable rise in surface gloss was observed, demonstrating the direct influence of process parameters on gloss. The MRR value was determined to be directly proportional to the number of cycles. Additionally, a reduction in thickness occurred in the portions of the samples immersed in the electrolyte after the PeP process.
Keywords: Plasma electrolytic polishing, surface roughness, material removal rate, titanium alloys, gloss© This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.