Development of a hybrid process model to analyse the interdependencies in the sharpening of high-hardness grinding wheels

• Applicant: Professor Dr.-Ing. Eckart Uhlmann
• Subject Area: Metal-Cutting and Abrasive Manufacturing Engineering
• Term: since 2025
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 557289949

An essential part of grinding technology is the conditioning process to produce the shape and cutting ability of the grinding wheel. Due to the sharpening process, sufficient chip space is achieved and the required cutting grains are exposed from the bond by resetting the bonding material. Thus, the optimal preparation of grinding wheels shows economic potentials. On the one hand the bonding material must be set back far enough to create the necessary abrasive grain protrusion and chip space. On the other hand, the grinding wheel should not be over-sharpened. Otherwise the exposed abrasive grains will break out of the bonding system and lead to undesirably high surface roughness and high grinding wheel wear. When sharpening with dressing stones, the grinding wheel bond is reset by a particle-lubricoolant mixture created in the effective gap between the grinding wheel and the sharpening stone which was not investigated in previous studies. In this context, the main goal of the planned research project aims to increase the understanding of the sharpening process of super abrasive grinding wheels by examining the microscopic processes in the effective gap between the grinding wheel and the sharpening stone. Therefore, technological studies are carried out to determine the influencing factors on the rheological properties of the particle-lubricoolant mixture as well as to gain knowledge about their influence on the sharpening process and the resulting grinding wheel topography. Based on the knowledge gained, a hybrid process model is then developed to map the microscopic processes in the effective gap and to describe the sharpening process. Based on the improved process understanding, it is possible to specifically adjust the grinding wheel topography and thus increase the economic benefit of the entire grinding process.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants