Study on hole machining for the constant feed rate of Al2O3 engineering ceramics through low-frequency axial vibration

Engineering ceramics are increasingly extensively applied in the aerospace, vehicle, armor protection and other fields due to their excellent performances such as high compression strength, high hardness, low density and high protection performance. However, engineering ceramics are typical difficult-to-machine materials, especially in the hole machining under constant feed rate, which limits the promotion and application. In this study, by combining a specially developed novel thin-wall diamond trepanning bit with a low-frequency axial vibration machining, the hole machining process for the constant feed rate of Al2O3 engineering ceramics was experimentally studied and the influence of the low-frequency axial vibration process on the axial drilling force, hole-wall surface roughness and edge chipping size of holes machined was analyzed. The results showed that the low-frequency axial vibration machining obtained a lower axial drilling force and a smaller edge chipping size compared to the traditional drilling process. Moreover, both the axial drilling force and the edge chipping size declined markedly with the rise in amplitude. However, the hole-wall surface roughness presented a rising trend due to the hammering effect of vibration. The process technology proposed in this article realizes the hole machining for a constant feed rate of Al2O3 engineering ceramics and provides a reference for the engineering lot-size hole machining of engineering ceramics.