Fundamental study of cylindrical blasting

Blasting is a machining method used for microholes or grooves on hard and brittle materials, such as glass and silicon, and is now beginning to be applied in manufacturing in medical and semiconductor fields. Blasting is applied for machining of flat surfaces in many cases, and some applications have been reported. However, the application of blasting is expected to extend into industrial fields, if blasting could be applied for micromachining of 3D-shaped surfaces. In this study, machining characteristics in cylindrical blasting were experimentally investigated, with analysis of stock removal, surface roughness, and the machined surface state to obtain fundamental information regarding blasting of cylindrical surfaces. Abrasive grains of green silicon carbide make finer surfaces rather than those of white fused alimina in blasting of C3604. The offset of blasting nozzle against the workpiece axis enhances the machining efficiency.