Removal Mechanism of Abrasive Jet Polishing with a Novel Nozzle

In view of the high-precision and low-damage requirements for surface polishing of hard and brittle components, an abrasive jet polishing process using a novel nozzle with specifically designed shroud was proposed. The removal mechanism of abrasive jet polishing was investigated by simulating the jet flow in the interaction area of the nozzle shroud and workpiece. The simulation results indicate that the velocity of the abrasive jet increases greatly by the shroud and the direction of the jet is aligned almost parallel to the workpiece surface. With such a design, the normal force of the abrasive jet is minimized to reduce the impact damage of the workpiece surface. Further, the stabilized abrasive jet insures a smooth machining. The machining experiments were performed on the quartz glass component, a typical hard and brittle material. The results of the shrouded abrasive jet polishing experiments show that the material removal mainly relied on the shearing and scratching of the workpiece surface rather than the mechanical shock impacts, which is consistent with the simulation findings.