Influence of the Grinding Wheel Topography on the Thermo-Mechanical Stress Collective in Grinding

The grinding process is used for both high-performance machining and surface finishing of hardened steel. In addition to the grinding parameters and the grinding fluid supply, the topography of the grinding wheel mainly determines the grinding process behavior and the grinding process result. An alteration of the topography by a variation of the volumetric composition of the grinding wheel, by a variation of the grinding wheel conditioning, or by wear causes a change in the contact conditions. The state of the art shows a substantial knowledge deficit about the influence of the volumetric grinding wheel composition and the resulting grinding wheel topography on the thermo-mechanical stress collective acting on the workpiece external zone. Thus, it is not possible to make a quantitative statement about the influence of the volumetric grinding wheel composition on the external zone properties of a component after grinding. Therefore, the aim of the current research is an empirical-analytical model for the prediction of the thermo-mechanical stress collective as a function of the grinding wheel topography. For this purpose, a methodology is developed, which enables the prediction of the topography-dependent thermo-mechanical load in a grinding process. Therefore, the topography is characterized by means of quantitative parameters and the main influencing variables on the grinding process behavior are investigated. The findings are used to analyze the influence of a change in the topography on the grinding temperature and the grinding force. The obtained results are summarized and are used to explain the thermo-mechanical stress collective as a function of the grinding wheel topography.