Investigation of Machining Characteristics in Electrical Discharge Machining Using a Slotted Electrode with Internal Flushing

In die-sinking electrical discharge machining (EDM), it is challenging to implement internal flushing, mainly because it is easy to produce residual material columns on the workpiece cavity’s bottom surface, affecting the processing quality and efficiency. In order to solve this problem, the internal flushing slotted electrode EDM technology was proposed. The slotted electrode was designed, and its preparation method was described. The influence of pulse width, pulse interval, and flushing pressure on the performance of the internal flushing slotted electrode EDM was studied using single-factor experiments. The experimental results indicate that, with the increase in pulse width, the material removal rate (MRR) increases first and then decreases, while the electrode wear rate (EWR) and the relative electrode wear rate (REWR) decrease gradually; with the increase in pulse interval, the MRR decreases, while the EWR and the REWR increase gradually; with the increase in flushing pressure, the MRR increases first and then decreases, while the EWR and the REWR increase gradually. When the slotted electrode is used for continuous internal flushing EDM, the appropriate pulse width, flushing pressure, and smaller pulse interval can improve the MRR and reduce the EWR and the REWR.