Effect of the Initial Electric Current Distribution on the Metal Dissolution Rate at the Plasma Electrolytic Polishing of a Product

Abstract—The effect of the initial current distribution on the nonuniformity of the distribution of the material removal rate on the surface of a product processed by plasma electrolytic polishing has been studied. Plasma electrolytic polishing experiments have been carried out to reduce the surface roughness on samples obtained by selective laser melting. The analysis of experimental data has made it possible to hypothesize that the electric charge distribution on the surface of the processed product plays a key role in a change in linear dimensions. After the performed analysis, it has been theoretically justified that the initial current distribution is important. On the basis of the data obtained in this work, it has been concluded that a sharp increase in the current density due to edge effects accelerates the metal dissolution process, which can in turn lead to inadmissible changes in the shape and dimensions of the processed product. It is necessary to improve the method and to study the physics of processes of plasma electrolytic polishing in order to integrate it into additive manufacturing as one of the key techniques for postprocessing of pieces.