Monel 400 is a cuprous nickel alloy which is very well-known for its resistivity towards physical and chemical strength. It is probably one of the hardest and most non-corrosive materials known in industrial as well as research field. These properties have enhanced its applications in various fields such as aerospace industries, marine industries, automotive industries etc. Monel 400 alloys are too hard to machine using conventional machine tools and methods as it work hardens rapidly on its surface. Authors concluded that electrochemical machining is the choice of machining of these materials. The present work is carried out to analyze the impact of ECM process parameters such as applied voltage (V), inter-electrode gap (IEG) and electrolyte concentration (EC) on material removal rate (MRR) and surface roughness (Ra). An aqueous sodium nitrate (NaNO3) is used as basic electrolyte in the electrochemical machining of Monel 400 alloys. Response surface methodology (RSM) based central composite design (CCD) is used as experimental strategy. Effects of process parameters as well as their interactions are analysed and the process parameters are optimized.

Utilization of full potential of electrochemical machining (ECM) is not yet achieved because of its lack of accuracy, difficulty in proper tool design and control of parameters. The enhancement of performance of ECM is still a subject of concern in this modern manufacturing world. In this work, low frequency vibrating tool assisted by a magnetic flux was used as an efficient hybrid technique in ECM for improving material removal rate (MRR) and surface roughness (Ra). This paper presents a development of mathematical model correlating MRR and Ra with machining conditions such as voltage, electrolyte concentration, and inter-electrode gap. The significance of ECM process parameters has been investigated using contour plots. The inter-electrode gap (IEG) is considered slightly higher than the maximum tool amplitude that otherwise leads to tool damage. Results indicate that magnetic flux-assisted vibrating tool increases the MRR from 10% to 96%. A magnetic flux-assisted vibrating tool in ECM facilitates and drives out the sludge in the IEG to improve the machining performance. MRR is enhanced due to the movement of ions triggered by magnetic flux, which assures an increase in anodic current. A slight increase in Ra was also noted in comparison to machining with aqueous NaCl electrolyte alone.

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