Study on ultrasonic-assisted WECDM of quartz wafer with continuous electrolyte flow

This study presents a novel structure for electrochemical discharge machining (WECDM) of nonconductive quartz wafers with continuous electrolyte flow. A small and stable insulating gas film was formed in the gap between the wire electrode and workpiece to achieve improved WECDM in a small area. A pulsed power supply and ultrasonic-assisted processing were combined to machine the quartz workpiece. This approach can considerably reduce unstable discharge phenomena and discharge heat generation. Furthermore, it can avoid easy breakage and subsequent loss of the wire electrode. The machining accuracy and the machining speed can be improved using appropriate WECDM parameters. Experimental results revealed that a minimum slot width of 0.208 mm was obtained at a voltage of 44 V, duration time of 100 μs, duty factor of 40%, feed rate of 20 μm/s, and ultrasonic power level of 2. Accordingly, the proposed design can obtain a smaller slot width, which improves processing accuracy.