Electro Chemical Grinding (ECG)
Electrochemical grinding combines both electrolytic action (90%) and physical grinding (10%) to provide precision, burr-free and stress-free results. Owing to the electrolytic reaction, ECG eliminates the need for a separate deburring operation. It is also a low stress machining operation that avoids potential metallurgical damage associated with conventional grinding machines, including cracking and heat distortion. This makes ECG ideal for machining of delicate and thin walled parts. In addition, the electrolytic process can break sharp edges leaving a radius of .001 to .005 depending on the power settings.
Electrochemical Grinding is often used when conventional machining proves too costly or difficult, and an EDM Wire/Sinker is too slow. In most ECG applications, MicroGroup can hold tolerances of ±.001 using fixtures produced in-house by the Tooling Department.
Electrochemical Grinding is limited to metals that are conductive, such as: stainless steel, aluminum, copper , amorphous metals, Hastelloy®, Inconel® and nitinol.