Quality Control Technology for Abrasive Flow Precision Machining of a High-Performance Impeller

Area of Science:

• Manufacturing Engineering
• Materials Science
• Surface Metrology

Background:

• High-performance impellers require precise surface finishing for optimal efficiency.
• Complex geometries and narrow channels pose significant challenges for traditional polishing methods.
• Existing techniques can be inefficient, damaging, or unable to achieve uniform results.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate solid-liquid two-phase abrasive flow machining (AFM) for high-precision finishing of impellers.
• To analyze the impact of flow channel structures and machining parameters on polishing effectiveness.
• To determine optimal AFM parameters for uniform surface quality on complex impeller geometries.

Main Methods:

• Numerical simulations were employed to analyze polishing effects under different flow channel designs and machining parameters.
• Experimental validation utilized an orthogonal test design to identify key influencing factors.
• Surface roughness (Ra) was measured before and after machining to quantify improvements.

Main Results:

• A gradual flow channel structure demonstrated superior processing uniformity and intensity compared to a direct flow channel.
• Increased inlet pressure and abrasive viscosity significantly enhanced both the strength and uniformity of the polishing effect.
• Inlet pressure was identified as the most critical factor, followed by abrasive grain size and process cycles.

Conclusions:

• Optimized AFM parameters (6 MPa inlet pressure, 10 cycles, 40 µm abrasive) reduced impeller surface roughness by nearly 94% (from 0.766 µm to 0.047 µm).
• This study provides a scientifically validated approach for achieving high-quality, uniform surface finishing on complex impellers.
• AFM offers a viable solution for enhancing the performance and efficiency of high-performance impellers through precision surface finishing.