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Research on surface integrity of grinding Inconel718

Article  in  International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology · March 2012

DOI: 10.1007/s00170-012-4236-7

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Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 65:1019–1030
DOI 10.1007/s00170-012-4236-7
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Research on surface integrity of grinding Inconel718
C. F. Yao & Q. C. Jin & X. C. Huang & D. X. Wu &
J. X. Ren & D. H. Zhang
Received: 5 September 2011 / Accepted: 8 May 2012 / Published online: 8 June 2012
# Springer-Verlag London Limited 2012
Abstract Inconel718 is widely used in the aerospace indus-
try; the finished surface quality has significant effect on ser-
vice performance of component. The surface integrity in
grinding Inconel718 respectively by using a vitrified bond
single alumina (SA) wheel and a resin cubic boron nitride
(CBN) wheel were investigated. First, effects of different
grinding parameters on grinding temperature and grinding
force and grinding chips feature by using a SA and a CBN
wheel respectively were investigated. Then, the surface rough-
ness and topography by using a SA and a CBN wheel through
single factor experiment were compared, and in the grinding
parameters range of the present study, the better surface can be
obtained by a SA wheel. Finally, surface integrity by using a
SA wheel and the different grinding depth was studied and
analyzed by the grinding temperature and the grinding force.
It was possible to conclude that better surface can be achieved
by using a SA, and taking ap 00.005 mm, vw 016 m/min, vs 0
25 m/s for grinding Inconel718. In this grinding case, the
surface roughness was Ra0.112 μm, the surface residual stress
was +700Mpa, and the surface hardness was 440 HV; the
depth of residual stress layer was 40∼60 μm, the depth of
softened layer was 30∼40 μm and the depth of plastic defor-
mation layer was 10∼15 μm.
Keywords Precision grinding . Surface integrity .
Inconel718
C. F. Yao (*) : Q. C. Jin : X. C. Huang : D. X. Wu : J. X. Ren :
D. H. Zhang
The Key Laboratory of Contemporary Design and Integrated
Manufacturing Technology, Ministry of Education,
Northwestern Polytechnical University,
Box 552, Xi’an, Shaanxi 710072, People’s Republic of China
e-mail: chfyao@nwpu.edu.cn
1 Introduction
The surface topography and the physical and mechanical
properties of the affected layer in components machining
have a significant effect on wear-resisting property, fatigue
performance, and stress corrosion behavior. This phenome-
non is more prominent for the high-strength alloy material
[1]. Inconel718 belongs to Ni base deformation superalloy,
and is widely employed in the aerospace industry, particu-
larly in the hot sections of gas turbine engines. This is due to
its high temperature strength and high corrosion resistance.
Inconel718 has good over-all properties in the range from
253 to 700°C, and has the best yield strength under 650°C.
It is known as one kind of the most difficult-to-cut materials.
The machining property of Inconel718 is very poor because
of the low thermal conductivity, high linear thermal expan-
sion coefficient close to steel’s, the stable atom combination,
and the high strength and hardness in an appropriate tem-
perature range [2–5]. Due to the poor machining property of
this material, the finished surface and subsurface are easily
affected or damaged during the machining process. To en-
sure better surface integrity, special attention must be paid to
when choosing cutting parameters, tool material and geom-
etry, and tool coating. Surface integrity is important for the
components adapting to high thermal and mechanical loads
during their employment [6]. Aeronautic structures are sub-
jected to severe conditions of stress, temperature, and hostile
environments. Surface condition has an ever-increasing in-
fluence on the performances of the components. Several
histories and failure analyses of dynamic components show
that severe failures, produced by fatigue, creep and stress
corrosion cracking, always start on the surface or near the
surface of components. Their origin for failures depends on
the surface quality. Hence, much more attention should be
paid to surface characteristics of components, which was
1020
first offered by Field and Khales [7] and then by Arunachalam
et al. [8] about machining Inconel718.
Recently, multitude researches were conducted on sur-
face integrity for machining Inconel718, including turning,
milling, drilling, and grinding, etc. [7–13]. The precision
grinding is known as a key processing method and it can
guarantee the machining surface integrity and accuracy for
Inconel718 component parts. However, it is difficult to
conduct the grinding heat to the base material because of
its poor thermal conductivity in grinding for Inconel718.
While the temperature in the grinding area rises, quality
problems like burn and flaw on the surface of parts, have
been brought out. Sunarto and Ichida [14] finished the creep
feed grinding test of nickel-based superalloy using a ultra-
fine polycrystalline diamond grinding wheel, and the study
show that the ultrafine polycrystalline diamond abrasive
grinding wheel has better properties than the ordinary dia-
mond abrasive grinding wheel in grinding such as wheel
wear and grinding force and other aspects. Xu Xipeng and
others analyzed the influence of grinding temperature on
surface integrity of grinding K417 [15, 16]. In [16], using
SiC, Al2O3, and CBN grinding wheel on the K417, the
plane grinding experiment has been done respectively, and
the abrasion mechanism of grinding wheel was explained. It
has been observed that the serious adhesion appears in
grinding wheel and workpiece using SiC and Al2O3. This
is because of the chemical reaction of contact interface
between workpiece and wheel in the high temperature, as
well as the plastic deformation of K417. The effect of
grinding wheel wear and processing parameters on grinding
properties have been studied by Guo et al. [17], when
grinding nickel base alloy by electroplated CBN, the grinding
wheel linear velocity 12∼60 m/s, the workpiece feed velocity
12∼150 mm/s, and the grinding depth 0.03∼0.06 mm were
applied in experiment. It also pointed out that the workpiece
surface thermal damage white layer only produces in case of
(when) grinding wheel wear and high temperature emerged in
the grinding zone, but a quantitative analysis was not given.
The grindability and surface integrity of cast nickel-based
superalloy in creep feed grinding with brazed CBN abrasive
wheels were studied by Ding et al. [18]. Some important
factors, such as grinding force and temperature, specific grind-
ing energy, size stability, surface topography, micro-hardness
and micro-structure alteration of the subsurface, residual
stresses, are investigated in more detail. The results show that
during creep feed grinding with the brazed CBN wheels, low
grinding temperature at about 100°C was obtained. Using a
combined grinding parameters of wheel speed 22.5 m/s, work-
piece speed 0.1 m/min, depth of cut 0.2 mm when grinding
straight grooves, the expected dimensional accuracy was
attained. Chen Ming [19] and others studied the grind-
ing burn mechanism of superalloy. The grinding surface
integrity of Inconel718 and the influence of surface
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 65:1019–1030
integrity on the fatigue life were also studied by Huang et al.
[20–22].
Some research has been carried out on grinding Inconel718
using SA wheel and CBN wheel; relatively fewer studies have
been dedicated to 3D surface topography and the residual
stresses, micro-hardness and micro-structure of heat affected
layer. As a matter of fact, the surface characteristics of grind-
ing Inconel718 components such as 3D surface topography
and the residual stresses, micro-hardness and micro-structure
of heat affected layer affect loading capacity, wear behavior
and fatigue resistance.
The present investigation is undertaken on Inconel718 in
order to investigate the grinding temperature and force,
ground surface roughness and topography while using a
SA wheel and a CBN wheel. Then focus on the 3D surface
topography and the heat affected layer beneath the ground
surface using a SA wheel, discuss the quantitative relation of
the different heat affected layer depth including the residual
stresses layer depth, the softening layer depth and the plastic
deformation layer depth when grinding using the different
grinding depth. For grinding Inconel718 alloy material, the
basis of selection and control of the grinding parameter is
provided.
2 Experimental material and procedure
2.1 Work-piece material
The material is Inconel718 alloy. Its main chemical compo-
sition is (in w%) :0.040 C, 0.006 P, 0.002 S, 0.15 Si, 0.05
Mn, 19.15 Cr, 52.46 Ni, 3.04 Mo, l0.40 A, 1.08 Ti, 0.002 B,
4.94 Nb, 0.002 Mg. The heat treatment process for
Inconel718 alloy is the following, 954°C solution treatment
and insulation for an hour; air cooling to 720°C and insula-
tion for 8 h; furnace cooling to 620°C and insulation for 8 h;
lastly, air cooling to room temperature. Its main mechanical
properties are: tensile strength σb is 1489 MPa; yield
strength σ0.2 is 1319 MPa; elongation δ is 20 %; shrinkage
y is 46 %; and the tested hardness of material is 468 HV.
2.2 Measuring system of grinding temperatures and force
Grinding temperatures have a significant effect to grinding
process. The measurements of grinding temperatures were
conducted by a semi-artificial thermocouple. The measuring
system of grinding temperatures is shown in Fig. 1a. One
temperature testing sample was made of two pieces of
Inconel718 specimen, and one testing sample is shown in
Fig. 1b. The procedure of testing sample is as follows:
machining two pieces of specimen with 20 mm×10 mm×
5 mm; grooving on the surface for one piece of specimen
and the groove width and depth both close to the Constantan
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 65:1019–1030
(a) Measuring system of grinding temperatures
Fig. 1 The measuring system of grinding temperatures and a testing sample (a) measuring system of grinding temperatures (b) a new testing
sample
wire diameter, namely φ 0.3 mm; putting the Constantan
wire with insulation paint layer about 0.01 mm thickness in
the groove; coating on the surface for another piece of
specimen with a layer of glue; binding two pieces of
Inconel718 specimens together with glue; vising this sample
moderately and putting under normal temperature for 8 to
12 h; lastly, checking the insulation of Constantan wire and
Inconel718 workpiece. After making this sample, it should
be fixed on the worktable using a vise.
By linking this sample with A11S11 signal disposal
module, UA305 high-speed USB data collector and com-
puter, the semi-artificial thermocouple thermometry system
are set up. Thus, a hot junction of thermocouple will be
created on the surface when grinding and the signal from the
thermocouple is amplified, stored, and observed using a
computer. The actual average grinding temperature is com-
puted based on the Inconel718–Constantan (0.3 mm) ther-
mocouple characteristic curve. The curve was established by
calibration experiments and shown in Fig. 2.
The normal force Fn and tangential force Fτ for grinding
process were tested by dynamic strain measuring instru-
ment. All measuring experiments of grinding temperatures
and force are conducted on MM7120 plane grinder, and the
rotating speed is between 0 and 3000 rpm. A SA wheel and a
CBN wheel were used. The wheel internal diameter is
75 mm, and the external diameter is 250 mm. Its width
ds is 25 mm. Down-grinding with emulsified liquid cool-
ing and lubrication were employed. In order to obtain the
grinding force and grinding temperature in different
grinding parameters (workpiece linear speed vw, grinding
depth ap, wheel linear speed vs), the specific grinding
parameters are given in Table 1, and axial feed speed fa is
1.3 mm/str.
1021
(b) a new testing sample
2.3 Experimental system of surface integrity
The investigation studied the effects of grinding parameters
(workpiece linear speed vw, grinding depth ap, wheel linear
speed vs) on surface integrity. All experiments of grinding
surface integrity also were conducted on MM7120 plane
grinder, and down-grinding with emulsified liquid cooling
and lubrication was employed. Every grinding parameter
had five levels. The specific grinding parameters shown in
Table 1 are the same as the parameters of the grinding force
and grinding temperature testing.
The size of Inconel718 alloy workpiece is 10 mm ×
20 mm×30 mm. The testing method for surface integrity
is also very important. And the test methods are as follows
in this study and some testing regions shown in Fig. 3:
1. TR240 rough meter was applied to measure surface
roughness, choosing five points along grinding direc-
tion in region A on the grinding surface, and measuring
surface roughness of each point to acquire A1, A2, A3,
A4 and A5. Sampling length ln of measuring is 0.8 mm,
and assessment length lr is 5.6 mm. Then average these
five values.
2. The surface topography was detected with the optical
VECOO 3D surface topography tester in region B on
the grinding surface. When measuring, the magnifica-
tion was set as 10 times. The measuring resolution was
set as 736×480, and the measuring point sampling size
was set as 830.22×830.22 nm2.
3. The residual stress distribution on the grinding layer
along grinding direction was tested using the ψ tilt X-
ray method by means of an XStress 3000 with Cu-Kα
radiation in region C. Some specimens were stripped
1022 Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 65:1019–1030

Fig. 2 The Inconel718-

Constantan (0.3 mm) thermo-
couple characteristic curve

using electrochemical method, and each electrochemical
processing time was set 15 s for controlling 5∼6 μm
stripping depth. For specimens stripped, the residual stress
was tested until close to the body material’s residual stress.
4. Micro-hardness was measured by line cutting a 3° in-
clined plane away from one end of finished surface.
And the line cutting route is shown as region D in
Fig. 3. Then, coarse grinding, precise grinding and
polishing were done on the inclined plane. On the
inclined section, micro-hardness was measured point-
by-point, until the basis material hardness came out.
Then, calculated the extent and depth of hardening.
Micro-hardness was measured by MHT-4 micro-
hardness instrument, test force was set as 300 gf, and
time of keeping load was set as 10 s.
5. The metallographic test sample was made through cut-
ting the machined sample along the grinding direction,
and shown as region E in Fig. 3. Then, the cutting
section was corroded after abrading and polishing. The
corrodent was matched as HNO3/HF/H2O01:1:10. The
micro-structure of cutting section was observed with
DMI 5000M.

Table 1 Grinding experiment scheme

Grinding Single alundum, 80# Grain, Structure 6, Vitrified binder

wheel
CBN, 80# Grain, Concentration 100, Resin binder 8mm

5mm
NO. vw (m/min) ap (mm) vs (m/s) r

1# 8
n
2# 12
3# 16 0.015
4# 22
4m
m

5# 43
6# 0.005 25 10mm
4

5mm

7# 0.01
fa

8# 0.015
9# 0.020 3° 8mm
10# 0.025
11# 16 15 Vw
12# 20
13# 0.015 25
14# 30
15# 35
Fig. 3 Surface integrity testing regions for grinding surface
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 65:1019–1030 1023

3 Effects of grinding parameters on grinding force
and temperature
3.1 Grinding force and temperature
The effects of grinding parameters on grinding force and
temperature were compared in Fig. 4. Either for CBN or SA
wheel, the time for each grinding step deceasing with vw
increasing, more workpiece material moved to the grinding
area and the grinding thickness of single grain increases;
Because grinding heat cannot diffuse in a short time, the
grinding force and temperature increasing. The grinding
thickness of a single grain will be reduced with vs increas-
ing, and more grinding coolant goes in the grinding area
with the grinding wheel. Good lubrication makes the grind-
ing force and temperature decrease. With the grinding depth

a Effect of vw on grinding force and temperature

b Effect of vs on grinding force and temperature

c Effect of ap on grinding force and temperature

Fig. 4 Effects of grinding parameters on grinding force and temperature. a Effect of vw on grinding force and temperature. b Effect of vs on
grinding force and temperature. c Effect of ap on grinding force and temperature
1024
ap increasing, the deformation of chip and friction between
grain and workpiece aggravates; more grain participates in
cutting, and the grinding force and temperature increase.
From Fig. 4, either CBN or SA wheel, the grinding
normal force Fn is larger than the tangential force Fτ; the
grinding force and temperature increases with the workpiece
linear speed vw or the grinding depth ap increasing, but
declines with the wheel linear speed vs increasing. Because
the same grinding parameters were used, the grinding force
of CBN wheel is similar to SA wheel, but the grinding
temperature of CBN wheel is lesser than the SA wheel.
From Fig. 4c, the grinding depth ap has the most important
effects on the grinding force and temperature. For CBN
wheel, the grinding temperature ranges from 150°C to
250°C but for SA wheel, the grinding temperature ranges
from 150°C to 900°C. This may be because of that CBN
wheel has better heat conduction performance than SA
wheel.
3.2 Analysis of grinding chip feature
The grinding chips were observed with QUANTA 200 scan-
ning electron microscope in a secondary electron mode.
SEM pictures of grinding chips of both CBN wheel and
SA wheel are shown in Fig. 5. The grinding chips by SA
wheel is banded, thin, long, and even, but the grinding chips
by CBN wheel is crescent, wide, thick, and uneven.
The grinding process includes cutting, plowing and
scratching, and the grinding chip is formed by extruding,
cutting and tearing. Because of the different plastic defor-
mation, the grinding force and the grinding temperature, the
grinding chip show different shape using CBN wheel and
SA wheel. The grinding tangential force Fτ by CBN wheel is
about 66.7 N, but by SA wheel is about 38.1 N; the grinding
temperature by CBN wheel is about 118.4°C, but by SA
wheel is about 447.7°C. So, the grinding tangential force Fτ
is larger and the grinding temperature is lower using CBN
a Grinding chips by CBN wheel
Fig. 5 The grinding chips topography (vw 016 m/min, vs 025 m/s, ap 00.015 mm, fa 01.3 mm/str) a Grinding chips by CBN wheel. b Grinding
chips by SA wheel
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 65:1019–1030
wheel than SA wheel. At the same time, the plasticity of
Inconel718 is poor at lower temperature; the resin bond
CBN wheel has better elasticity than the vitrified bond SA
wheel. So, the chip of CBN wheel is formed by two adjacent
grains synchronously like a bigger grain in cutting, and the
grinding process of CBN wheel is like tearing and spalling
materials from the workpiece surface by a bigger grain
shown in Fig. 6a. However, the better plasticity at higher
temperature and the sharper SA grain make chips thin and
long by SA wheel, and the chips are formed by a little single
grain in cutting shown in Fig. 6b.
4 Grinding surface roughness and topography
of SA wheel and CBN wheel
4.1 Effects of SA wheel and CBN wheel on grinding surface
roughness
The effects of SA wheel and CBN wheel on grinding surface
roughness were compared in Fig. 7. From Fig. 7, the grind-
ing surface roughness ranged from Ra0.22 to Ra0.48 using a
CBN wheel with 80# grain. However, the grinding surface
roughness ranges from Ra0.1 to Ra0.2 using a SA wheel
with 80# grain. So, in the grinding parameter range of the
study, the better surface can be gotten by SA wheel when
adopting the same parameters.
The effect of vw on grinding surface roughness is shown
in Fig. 7a. For SA wheel, increasing vw lead to increasing of
surface roughness. When vw increases, the grinding thick-
ness of single grain increases and the grinding force in-
crease. This leads to greater plastic deformation, and the
grinding roughness increases. While for CBN wheel, when
vw increases surface roughness decreases. The reason is that
the grain of CBN wheel has a relative high hardness fitting
the high grinding speed, and the increasing of vw makes the
grinding sharper, the plastic deformation and the grinding
b Grinding chips by SA wheel
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 65:1019–1030 1025

Fig. 6 The formation of chip CBN grain SA grain ravine

with SA wheel and CBN wheel, ridge chip
a Chip formation diagram by chip ridge
CBN wheel. b Chip formation ravine
diagram by SA wheel

workpiece
workpiece

a Chip formation diagram by CBN wheel b Chip formation diagram by SA wheel

roughness decreasing. This can illustrate that the CBN
wheel is suitable for high-speed grinding. The effect of vs
on grinding surface roughness is shown in Fig. 7b. For SA
wheel, when vs is increasing under 25 m/s, the grinding
thickness of single grain decreases. This causes the decrease
of grinding surface roughness; When vs exceeds 25 m/s, the
adhesion wear is relatively obvious, and results in the in-
creasing of grinding surface roughness. When grinding by
CBN wheel, the grinding thickness of single grain decreases
with the increase of vs. This leads to the decreasing of
grinding force and results in the decreasing of grinding
surface roughness. This also illustrates that the CBN wheel
is suitable for high-speed grinding. The effect of ap on
grinding surface roughness is shown in Fig. 7c. From it,
increasing ap makes increasing of surface roughness both
with the SA or the CBN wheel. Because the grinding thick-
ness of single grain increases, the grinding force increases.
Thus, the grinding surface toughness increases.

a Effect of vw on surface roughness b Effect of vs on surface roughness

vs 25 m/s ap 0.015mm vw 16 m/min ap 0.015mm

c Effect of ap on surface roughness

vw 16 m/min,vs 25 m/s

Fig. 7 Effects of grinding parameters on surface roughness. a Effect of vw on surface roughness. b Effect of vs on surface roughness (vs 025 m/s,
ap 00.015 mm) (vw 016 m/min, ap 00.015 mm). c Effect of ap on surface roughness (vw 016 m/min, vs 025 m/s)
1026
a 3D surface topography
Fig. 8 3D topography and surface SEM picture of SA wheel 80# (vw 016 m/min, ap 00.015 mm, vs 025 m/s, fa 01.3 mm/str). a 3D surface
topography. b SEM picture of grinding surface
4.2 Analysis of surface topography
The 3D surface topography by CBN wheel and SA wheel
with the same grain are shown in Figs. 8 and 9. From them,
the 3D surface topography by CBN wheel has obvious wide
scratch and ditch, while the 3D surface topography by SA
wheel is relatively smooth and without obvious ditch. When
using the same grinding parameters, the surface roughness
by SA wheel is Ra0.18, Rq0.23 and Rt1.76; the maximum
height of the peak and ditch of grinding surface are 0.77 and
0.99 μm, respectively. The surface roughness by CBN
wheel is Ra0.26, Rq0.33 and Rt2.78; the maximum height
of the peak and ditch of grinding surface are 1.20 and
1.49 μm.
From analysis of surface topography, when using SA
wheel with 80# grain, as long as the grinding parameters
are appropriate, the grinding temperature is relatively high
and the plasticity of the material is comparatively good. So
the grinding tangential forces are little, which is shown in
Fig. 4. This leads to the grinding surface texture is clear and
homogeneously. The grinding speed in this study is not very
suitable for CBN wheel, the grinding temperature is
a 3D surface topography
Fig. 9 3D topography and surface SEM picture of CBN wheel 80# (vw 016 m/min, ap 00.015 mm, vs 025 m/s, fa 01.3 mm/str). a 3D surface
topography. b SEM picture of grinding surface
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 65:1019–1030
b SEM picture of grinding surface
relatively lower and the plasticity of the material is worse.
So the grinding tangential forces are large, which is shown
in Fig. 4. These lead to the unclear grinding surface texture
and the surface is torn, wrinkled, and folded.
For SA and CBN wheels, if the grinding parameters are
not suitable such as ap 00.015 mm or greater, the small
white–gray spot and the black spot easily produce, mean-
while the micro-cracks were found in both the white–gray
spot and the black spot shown in Fig. 10. When grinding
depth ap is greater, the grinding force and the temperature
will be too high and lead to the tensile stresses on grinding
surface, thus the micro-cracks produced. The crack on the
surface of grinding workpiece was observed by QUANTA
200 scanning electron microscope in a secondary electron
mode.
4.3 Analysis grinding ratio
G0vw/vs, namely, grinding ratio is a meaningful evaluation
index and play a guiding role of theory in industry. Grinding
ratio using CBN wheel (20∼40) is much larger than SA
wheel when grinding Inconel718 [23], because of high
b SEM picture of grinding surface
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 65:1019–1030
a Micro-cracks in white-gray spot
Fig. 10 Micro-cracks on grinding surface (vw 016 m/min, ap 00.015 mm, vs 025 m/s, fa 01.3 mm/str, CBN wheel). a Micro-cracks in white–gray
spot. b Micro-cracks in black spot
hardness and good wear resistance. Using a SA wheel, the
better surface roughness and 3D surface topography than
using a CBN wheel can be obtained from Figs. 8 and 9. It
was necessary to investigate the grinding ratio in grinding
Inconel718 with a SA wheel. Through the grinding wheel
wear test when ap was 0.005 mm, vw was 16 m/min and vs
was 25 m/s, the grinding ratio of SA wheel is 1.69 and it is
very low. This may be because that the material adheres to
the surface of a SA wheel in grinding Inconel718. This leads
to the rise of the grinding force and aggravates the wearing
of SA wheel.
5 Analysis of affected layer of grinding by SA wheel
5.1 Residual stress
From Fig. 7, surface roughness was relatively good using a
SA wheel with 80# grain. And surface roughness does not
change too much when vw, vs, and ap change. However, ap
has the critical effects on the affected layer beneath the
grinding surface. In the coarse- and fine grinding, selecting
ap value is very important. Considering the influence of
grinding depth ap on the affected layer, so the surface
residual stress along grinding direction was analyzed for
6# and 9# samples shown in Fig. 11.
From Fig. 11, grinding Inconel718 with the ordinary
plane grinding results in higher residual stress on the grind-
ing surface. The reason is that when grinding Inconel718, a
great deal of heat emerges on the surface due to the low
thermal conductivity. These factors cause the grinding heat
to mainly concentrate in the grinding area and the tempera-
ture in the grinding zone very high. In addition, the linear
expansion coefficient of Inconel718 material is very large,
therefore the thermal expansion in the heat source region of
grinding surface is great. During grinding, the grinding area
1027
b Micro-cracks in black spot
on surface expands because of the instantaneous high tem-
perature. At the same time, great compressive stresses
emerge because of the restriction from the lower cold metal
material. In addition, the compressive stresses exceeds the
yield limit of material, thus the compression plastic deforma-
tion is formed on the grinding surface. Lastly, the residual
tensile stresses will be formed on the grinding surface during
the cooling process after grinding.
From Fig. 11, when ap is 0.005 mm, the residual stress
more rapidly decrease from the surface to the base material
than when ap is 0.005 mm. Although the differences of
surface roughness which obtained from the two kinds of
process parameters are very small, the surface residual
stresses are very different. This is mainly because the grind-
ing temperature in grinding area rises when the grinding
depth increases, and the plastic deformation are severe when
the heat is great. When the grinding depth ap is 0.005 mm,
the grinding temperature is 173.7°C and the tensile stresses
on the grinding surface is around +700 MPa; hS0.005, namely
the depth of residual stress layer, is about 40∼60 μm. When
Fig. 11 Residual stress distribution of affected layer grinding with
different parameters
1028 Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 65:1019–1030

surface stress is around +980 MPa; hS0.02, namely the depth

of residual stress layer, is about 100∼120 μm. hS0.02 is
nearly 3 times as much as hS0.005. When vw is 16 m/min,
vs is 25 m/s and ap is varied from 0.005 to 0.02 mm, the
changing range of the depth of the tensile residual stress
layer is from 60 to 180 μm.

5.2 Micro-hardness

It is widely acknowledged that the lattice distortion at the

Fig. 12 Micro-hardness of affected layer grinding with different
parameters
the grinding depth ap is 0.02 mm, the grinding temperature
is 859.1°C, and the tensile stress on the grinding surface,
grinding plastic deformation zone leads to the grinding
surface hardening. However, the existence of soften effects
on the grinding surface was found in our experiments.
Figure 12 is the micro-hardness changing curve of affected
layer grinding with different parameters namely the 6# and
the 9# grinding samples.

Fig. 13 Micro-structure of
affected layer grinding with 20 µm grinding direction
different parameters. a 6# 0
(vw 016 m/min, ap 00.005 mm,
vs 025 m/s, fa 01.3 mm/str).
b 9# (vw 016 m/min,

hM0.005=10~15µ m
ap 00.02 mm, vs 025 m/s, 20
fa 01.3 mm/str)

40

hH0.005=30~40µm
60

hS0.005=40~60µ m
80

a 6# vw=16m/min,ap=0.005mm,vs=25m/s,fa=1.3mm/str
40 µm grinding direction
0

hM0.02=30~40 m
40

80
hH0.02=60~80µm

120
hS0.02=100~120 m

160

b 9# vw=16m/min,ap=0.02mm,vs=25m/s,fa=1.3mm/str
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2013) 65:1019–1030
From Fig. 12, it could be seen that the decreasing of
surface hardness in both two samples is achieved. The main
reason is the rise of grinding temperature in the grinding
contact area. The rising of temperature causes the γ′ phase in
the γ grain became to be aggregated and grown, and the γ″
phase grow up likely a disk. The γ″ phase is metastable, and
it will change to δ phase when the temperature rises. How-
ever, δ phase, γ′ phase and γ″ phase can’t do the strengthen
job. And the softening phenomenon produced in the grind-
ing surface. Moreover, the softening phenomenon has a
close relationship with the thermal treatment of Inconel718.
From Fig. 12, when ap is 0.005 mm, the grinding tem-
perature is 173.7°C; The grinding surface hardness is
440 HV, and the soften degree is around 6 %; hH0.005,
namely the depth of grinding softened layer, is about
30∼40 μm. When ap is 0.02 mm, the grinding temperature
is 859.1°C; the grinding surface hardness is 425 HV, and the
softening degree is around 9.2 %; hH0.02, namely the depth
of grinding softened layer, is 60∼80 μm. hH0.02 is nearly 2
times as much as hH0.005. Because of the conspicuous influ-
ence of grinding heat and grinding temperature, the deeper
the grinding depth ap, the more the softening on grinding
surface is obvious, as well as the deeper the depth of
grinding softened layer.
5.3 Micro-structure
Micro-structures of the longitudinal profile along the grinding
direction of the 6# and 9# samples are shown in Fig. 13. The
plastic deformation of the lattice on the grinding surface along
the grinding direction was observed and the broken lattice
appeared on the grinding surface. When ap is 0.005 mm, the
plastic deformation of lattice on grinding surface is not obvi-
ous, and the depth of the plastic deformation layer hM0.005 is
around 10∼15 μm. However, the plastic deformation is sig-
nificantly obvious and the depth of the plastic deformation
layer hM0.02 is about 30∼40 μm when ap is 0.02 mm.
From the affected layers of grinding by SA wheel for 6#
and 9# samples, the depth of grinding softened layer hH is
about two to three times of the depth of the plastic defor-
mation layer hM; and the depth of residual stress layer hS is
about one to two times of the depth of grinding softened
layer hH. If the better grinding parameter is used, hS is
almost equal to hH such as 6# sample.
6 Conclusions
1. The grinding force and temperature increases with the
workpiece linear speed vw or the grinding depth ap
increasing, but declines with the wheel linear speed vs
increasing. The grinding depth had great effect on
grinding force and temperature.
1029
2. The better surface can be achieved using a SA wheel
when adopting the same grinding process parameters,
the 3D surface topography of a CBN wheel had obvious
wide scratch and ditch, while the 3D surface topography
of a SA was relatively smooth and without obvious
ditch.
3. The SA wheel is suitable for grinding Inconel718 and
the grinding depth has great effect on the surface integrity
in grinding Inconel718.
4. Surface hardness, residual stress and plastic deformation
of the finished surface were investigated by using a SA
wheel when the grinding depth was changed. When
using a SA wheel, and taking ap 00.005 mm, vw 0
16 m/min, vs 05 m/s for grinding Inconel718, the better
surface integrity can be obtained.
Acknowledgments The authors wish to thank the support of the
National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant NO. 50975237
and NO.51005184).
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