Modeling and Experimental Investigation of Laser Drilling with Jet Electrochemical Machining

As two kinds of defects, recast layers and spatters, commonly accompanied by laser-drilled holes always prevent the laser drilling technique from extending its applications in aerospace and aircraft industries, therefore, a novel hybrid process incorporating laser drilling with jet electrochemical machining (JECM-LD) has been developed to solve these problems as well as improve the overall quality of laser-drilled holes. It is executed by directing an electrolyte jet coaxially aligned with a laser beam onto the workpiece surface. During the process, the electrolyte jet produces electrochemical reaction with the surface material, effective cooling of it and carries away the process scraps. A two-dimensional mathematical model is proposed to describe the shape of the holes machined by JECM-LD. The model is verified through comparison between the results from simulation and those from experiments conducted on the test pieces made of 321 stainless steel 0.5 mm thick processed by the pulsed Nd:YAG laser at second harmonic wavelength. An examination of the experimental results under an optical microscope discovers that, by contrast with the laser drilling in air, the JECM-LD has effectively removed the recast layers and spatters, but its efficiency dropped by about 30%.