STATISTICAL MODELING AND OPTIMIZATION OF SURFACE ROUGHNESS IN WIRE EDM OF NONCIRCULAR GEARS MADE OF SKD11 STEEL
Abstract
This study presents the statistical modeling and optimization of surface roughness in wire EDM of SKD11 noncircular gears. A Taguchi L9 design was employed to evaluate the effects of discharge current (I), feed rate (F), and wire winding speed (V). ANOVA results indicated that discharge current had the greatest influence (58.68%), followed by feed rate (31.95%) and wire winding speed (9.37%). A quadratic model developed using Response Surface Methodology (RSM) showed excellent accuracy (R² > 0.99). Surface roughness increased monotonically with higher parameter levels due to thermal effects. The optimized parameter combination significantly reduced surface roughness, confirming the effectiveness of the proposed statistical approach for precision gear manufacturing by WEDM.
References
Anshuman Kumar, K. Vivekananda, and Kumar Abhishek, “Experimental Investigation and Optimization of Process Parameter for Inconel 718 Using Wire Electrical Discharge Machining,” Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Systems, Vol. 18, No. 03, pp. 339–362, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1142/S0219686719500185
A. Klink, Y.B. Guoa, F. Klockea, “Surface integrity evolution of powder metallurgical tool steel by main cut and finishing trim cuts in wire-EDM,” Procedia Engineering, 19, pp. 178–183, 2011. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2011.11.098.
Wen Yuqin, Zhou Wei, Tang Jinyuan, “Research on the correlation between roughness parameters and contact stress on tooth surfaces and its dominant characteristics,” Measurement, Volume 238, 115399, 2024. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.measurement.2024.115399.
Deepak D., Yathindra K.V, Vijeesh Vijayan, Sachidananda H.K, Subraya Krishna Bhat, “Surface integrity and kerf characteristics in Wire-EDM of WAAM-fabricated hybrid ER70S-308L steel: A Taguchi-based parametric analysis,” Results in Surfaces and Interfaces, Vol. 20, 100627, 2025, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rsurfi.2025.100627.
Alam MN, Siddiquee AN, Khan ZA, Khan NZ, “A comprehensive review on wire EDM performance evaluation,” Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part E: Journal of Process Mechanical Engineering, 236(4), pp. 1724–1746, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1177/09544089221074843.
K. Manikanda Prasath, T. Pradheep, S. Suresh, “Application of Taguchi and Response Surface Methodology (RSM) in Steel Turning Process to Improve Surface Roughness and Material Removal Rate,” Materials Today: Proceedings, Volume 5, Issue 11, Part 3, pp. 24622–24631, 2018, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matpr.2018.10.260
Velusamy Mohankumar, Marudhamuthu Shanmugam Senthil Kumar et al, “Optimizing EDM process parameters with the use of GRA-based RSM for machining titanium alloy,” Results in Engineering, Volume 26, 104903, 2025, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rineng.2025.104903.
M. Adam Khan, JT Winowlin Jappes, P.S. Samuel Ratna Kumar, P.M. Mashinini, “EDM process parameter optimization using response surface methodology for Ni-Ti shape memory alloy,” Materials Today: Proceedings, Volume 52, Part 3, pp. 1466–1471, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matpr.2021.11.198.
R. Rajesh, M. Dev Anand, “The Optimization of the Electro-Discharge Machining Process using Response Surface Methodology and Genetic Algorithms,” Procedia Engineering, Volume 38, pp. 3941–3950, 2012, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2012.06.451.
Mahanta S, Chandrasekaran M, Samanta S, “RSM Modeling and Taguchi Analysis of EDM of B4C and Flyash Reinforced Hybrid Nanocomposites,” KEM, 801, pp. 227–32, 2019. https://doi.org/10.4028/www.scientific.net/kem.801.227.
K. Manikanda Prasath, T. Pradheep, S. Suresh, “Application of Taguchi and Response Surface Methodology (RSM) in Steel Turning Process to Improve Surface Roughness and Material Removal Rate,” Materials Today: Proceedings, Volume 5, Issue 11, Part 3, pp. 24622–24631, 2018, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matpr.2018.10.260.
Le Duc Tung, “Researching the effect of some parameters on Productivity and Surface roughness in machining non-circular gears on Wire Electrical Discharge Machining”, Master’s thesis in Mechanical Engineering, Hung Yen University of Technology and Education, Hung Yen, 2022.
Roy R.K, Design of experiments using the Taguchi approach: 16 Steps to Product and Process Improvement, John Wiley & Sons, Inc, 2001.
