Wear study of structured coated belts in advanced abrasive belt finishing

Abstract

Advanced belt finishing process is remarkably simple and inexpensive. The principle of operation is simple: pressure-locked shoes platens circumferentially press an abrasive coated belt on a rotating workpiece. This abrasive machining process reduces significantly surface irregularities subsequently improving geometrical quality and increasing wear resistance and fatigue life. It is therefore extensively used in automotive industry to superfinish crankshaft journals. However, the major industrial issue about this manufacturing process is its efficiency and robustness. One of the most promising ways to solve this issue is to control the distribution and morphology of the abrasive grits. Recently a new generation of abrasive belts coated with structured and shaped agglomerate grits has been commercially available. These structured coated belts with mastered cutting edge orientations promise to be more efficient as they have a better wear resistance compared to the traditional coated abrasive belt. Therefore, this work aims to discuss these assumptions and to establish the link between three structured coated belts, the surface finishes and the physical mechanisms which govern their wear performances. In particular a parametric study, based on the cycle time and the rotation speed, is lead in order to analyze the potential of each structure in terms of surface roughness improvement, wear resistance and consumed energy. The experimental results have demonstrated that, depending on the abrasive structure considered and for a same number of revolutions, modifying the cycle time or the rotation speed can lead to different surface finishes and belt's wear.