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Secondary Finishing Operations
Published in Richard Leach, Simone Carmignato, Precision Metal Additive Manufacturing, 2020
Bethan Smith, David Gilbert, Lewis Newton
Mass finishing is a commonly used and an established technique for AM parts due to its application to complex geometries. Common to most types of mass finishing is the use of free-flowing abrasive media of varying sizes and shapes. This media is energised in different ways depending on the technique; for example, in its simplest form, a barrel is vibrated, thus agitating the media and part within (Jamal et al. 2017). More recently, there have been advances in the amount of energy that can be imparted to the media and how this is controlled. An example of this development is stream finishing, whereby the part is fixed in a specific orientation and moved through the media barrel, whilst the media is simultaneously moved in the opposite direction. Stream finishing can give good results on AM parts, and (as the parts are fixtured) the angles and material removal can be controlled (Fintek 2019). A range of companies are also offering varying high-energy systems, where the part remains loose in the barrel to give the material removal needed on AM parts but keeps the flexibility for a range of geometries (Crisbasan 2018). Alongside these developments, companies are also now targeting mass finishing processes in the aerospace sector, where AM is increasingly being used, through improving the automation and control of these systems (MMP Technology 2013, AM Solutions 3D Post Processing 2019)
Mass Finishing Operations
Published in Hassan El-Hofy, Fundamentals of Machining Processes, 2018
Mass finishing is the general description for vibrating or flowing an abrasive media around a number of nonfixtured parts, moving randomly within the mass of the abrasive media. Mechanical mass finishing includes the following processes:
Post-processing treatments to enhance additively manufactured polymeric parts: a review
Published in Virtual and Physical Prototyping, 2021
F. Tamburrino, S. Barone, A. Paoli, A. V. Razionale
Mass finishing processes are defined as those capable of simultaneously treating a large number of relatively small parts. The two most important mass finishing processes are vibratory bowl finishing (VBF, also known as vibratory grinding) and barrel finishing (BF, also known as barrel tumbling). Both involve the use of a cyclic action to create grinding contact on the part’s surfaces by abrasive action media composed of specially shaped pallets, fine abrasive compounds, and water. The material removal rates depend on the processing time, media size and shape, and adopted compound.