Development of a novel 2D rotary ultrasonic texturing technique for fabricating tailored structures

Microgrooves, microdimples, or hierarchical surfaces comprising these structures are highly required in many industrial fields for their functional performances. In the present research, a novel two-dimensional (2D) rotary ultrasonic texturing (RUT) technique is developed for efficiently fabricating these precision surface structures. A rotary ultrasonic spindle that can generate circular vibration on the horizontal plane perpendicular to the spindle axis was designed and manufactured for carrying out the 2D RUT processes. The spindle structure and the texturing principle are introduced. Surface generation mechanisms are mathematically analyzed and experimentally verified. A diamond tool with geometrically defined cutting edge was designed and manufactured for carrying out the surface texturing experiments. Different types of nearly burr-free textured surfaces composing of periodic grooves from several micrometers to tens of micrometers were successfully fabricated, and their textural features coincide well with the theoretical prediction. Material removal mechanisms, tools design principles, and machinable structures of the new 2D RUT technique are discussed.