An electrochemical machining method for aero-engine blades based on four-directional synchronous feeding of cathode tools

Blades are critical components of modern aero-engine. Among the many characteristic structures of the blade, the leading/trailing edges are key structures that have the greatest influence on the aerodynamic effect and power conversion of the blade. Electrochemical machining (ECM) is regarded as one of the most important techniques in blade manufacturing due to its process characteristics of high material removal rates, virtually no tool wear, and no areas of thermal or mechanical damage to the workpiece rim zones. Herein, an ECM method based on the four-directional synchronous feeding of four cathode tools is proposed to improve the machining accuracy of the leading and trailing edges of the blade. During blade ECM using this method, four cathode tools feed toward the basin/back surfaces and leading/trailing edges respectively. The dynamic processing simulation and flow field simulation results of the ECM process show that the proposed method eliminates the sharp changes in the electric field and electrolyte flow field at the leading and trailing edges seen in traditional machining methods. Thus, the electric field and flow field stability of the leading and trailing edges at the final stage of machining is greatly improved. Experimental comparison of the conventional and proposed ECM methods showed that four-directional synchronous feeding results in improved profile accuracy over repeated machining processes and good surface quality.