Surface Modification of Titanium Using Scanning Electrode Method by Electro Discharge Machining

Abstract

In this paper we present a surface modification method for titanium using a scanning electrode during the finishing process of EDM. The effects of several parameters, such as the electrode thickness, scanning speed and scanning pass, on the surface properties were investigated. Using this method, the discharge process can be controlled without any difficulty. Therefore a smooth TiC layer with excellent tribological properties may result. The C/Ti ratio in the TiC layer, which influences the tribological properties of the machined surface, changed with the discharge number. The scanning electrode method proved to be effective for efficient surface modification of titanium.