A Study of Temperature Distribution and its Effect on Grinding Wheel Surface During Wheel Loading

The cutting ability of abrasive grains is considerably changed by wheel loading and leads to excessive rubbing at the wheel-work interface. Therefore, the wheel life, the overall performance of the grinding operation and the surface finish of the work piece are directly having an effect by the amount of loading over the wheel periphery. Wheel loading can, thus, be considered as an important factor for evaluating the grinding process. Though, few monitoring systems based on ultra sound and acoustic emissions are on the research anvil, they demand high investment. Monitoring of grinding wheel loading, using IR (Infra Red) which is affordable and cost effective for small scale industries is the scope of the present work. This work involves study on the temperature on cutting surface of grinding wheel during machining process. This information helps to understand the influence of temperature on wheel loading. In this respect, the experiments were carried out with Aluminium Oxide (Al₂O₃) and Silicon Carbide (SiC) grinding wheels over High carbon High chromium steel (HCHCr) and Mild steel specimens. The grinding wheels and specimens were chosen for pilot study, as they are widely used in Indian small scale Industries. The experiments were carried out with (WC) and without (WOC) general purpose soluble oil coolant. Temperature measurements were recorded at two locations on the grinding wheel to understand the distribution. The results show that the temperature rise during grinding was insignificant to cause any influence on the wheel loading.