Study of Surface Finishing using Abrasive Flow Machining

Abrasive Flow Machining (AFM) is an effective way to polish unsymmetrical surfaces and interior structure of parts, which are difficult to reach by conventional machining. The material to be machined may be cylindrical or any complex shape. Various process parameters are Material Removal Rate, Machining Time, and Abrasive Mesh size that affects the performance of AFM. The key components of AFM process are the machine, tooling and abrasive medium. AFM is capable to produce surface finish (Ra) as good as 0.05 μm, deburr holes as small as 0.2 mm and radius edges from 0.025 mm to 1.5mm. AFM has wide range of applications in industries such as aerospace, medical, electronics, automotive, precision dies and moulds as a part of their manufacturing activities. For better surface integrity, texture and its performance, continuous developments are taking place for modifying the existing AFM process technology and AFM machine configuration.