Chemical Machining

CHEMICAL MACHINING(CHM)
Presented by:
NAGESH N.M.
CONTENTS
 Introduction
 Principle
 Steps
 Processes
 Design considerations
 Characteristics
 Materials
 Advantages and Dis-advantages
 Applications
 Conclusion
 References
INTRODUCTION
 Chemical machining(CHM) Was developed based on the observation that

chemicals attack metals and etch them by using chemical dissolutions.
 CHM is the removal of metal by chemical attack by a corrosive liquid.
 The areas of the work piece which are not to be machined are masked.
 The work piece is either immersed in or exposed to a spray of chemical

reagent.
 CHM was basically developed for aerospace industry to maintain strength

of part at reduced weight.
PRINCIPLE OF CHM
 An etchant resistant mask, made typically of rubber or plastic is used to

protect those parts of the component from which no material is to be
removed.
 Part to be machined is defined by any one of the procedures: scribing &

removing the coating, exposing to light & dissolving unexposed region, or
silk screen printing.
 Strong acid or alkaline solution is used to dissolve materials selectively.
 Chemically resistant coating is applied to protect surfaces not to be

machined.
Principle
Figure : (a) Schematic of chemical machining process (b) Stages in producing a

profiled cavity by chemical machining
STEPS IN CHEMICAL MACHINING
 The 5 steps in chemical machining are as follows:
 Part preparation: cleaning.

 Masking: application of chemically resistant material
 Etching: dip or spray exposure to etchants
 Mask removal: stripping the maskant and cleaning the part.
 Finishing: inspection and other processing
Types of masks used in CHM
 Cut and peel masks.
 Screen resist masks.
 Photo resist masks.
Cut and peel maskants
 Film of chemically resistant material is applied to the work piece by dipping, spraying or flow
coating.
 Vinyl, styrene and buta diene are used.
 Rubbery film is then cut & peeled away selectively.
 Manual scribing of mask material usually achieves an accuracy of ±0.13 mm to ±0.75 mm.
Screen resist maskants
 Mask material is applied to the work piece surface by printing, using stencils and a
fine polyester or stainless steel mesh screen.
 Relatively thin coatings with tolerances held to ±0.05 to ±0.18 mm are obtained by
screen printing.
 Etching depths are restricted to about 1.5 mm because of thinness of the coating.
Photo resist maskants
 Photo resist mask is quite widely used & is often referred to as photochemical
machining.
 Produces intricate & finely detailed shapes using a light activated resist materials.
 WP coated with photo resist material & a master transparency is held against the
WP, while exposure to UV rays takes place.
 Light activates the photo resist material in those areas corresponding to opaque
parts.
 Tolerances of ±0.025 to 0.005 mm can be produced.
CHEMICAL MACHINING PROCESSES
 Chemical milling

 Chemical blanking
 Chemical engraving
 Photochemical machining
ing is used in the aerospace industry to remove shallow layers of material from large aircraft components missile skin panels (Figure 7), extruded parts
Chemical milling
1. In chemical milling, shallow cavities are produced

on plates, sheets, forgings and extrusions.
2. The two key materials used in chemical milling

process are etchant and maskant.
3. Etchants are acid or alkaline solutions maintained

within controlled ranges of chemical composition
and temperature.
4. Maskants are specially designed elastomeric Figure : Missile skin-panel section contoured by
products that are hand strippable and chemically chemical milling to improve the stiffness- to-
resistant to the harsh etchants. weight ratio of the part
5. Chemical milling is used in the aerospace industry to

remove shallow layers of material from large aircraft
components missile skin panels extruded parts for
airframes.
Chemical blanking
 Chemical blanking is used to etch entirely through a metal part.
 In chemical blanking, holes and slots that penetrate entirely through the
material are produced, usually in thin sheet materials.
 Used to produce fine screens, flat springs, etc…
 Very cheap but efficient.

Figure : parts profiled by chemical blanking process
Chemical Engraving
 Chemical Engraving is the practice of incising a design on to a hard,

usually flat surface, by cutting grooves into it. The result may be a
decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or glass are engraved,
or may provide an printing plate, of copper or another metal, for printing
images on paper as prints or illustrations; these images.
 Types of engraving
• Wood Engraving
• Copper and Steel Engravings
• Laser engraving
Photo Chemical Machining (PCM)
 Photochemical machining (PCM),

also known as photochemical
milling or photo etching, is the
process of fabricating sheet metal
components using a photo resist and
etchants to corrosively machine
away selected areas.
 PCM can be used on virtually any
commercially available metal or
alloy, of any hardness. It is limited
materials 0.0005 to 0.080 in (0.013
to 2.0 mm) thick. Metals include
aluminium, brass, copper, inconel,
manganese, nickel, silver, steel,
stainless steel, zinc and titanium Process steps for photochemical machining
DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS
 Designs involving sharp corners, deep & narrow cavities, severe tapers or
porous work piece should be avoided.
 Undercuts may be developed because etchant attacks both in horizontal

and vertical direction.
 To improve production rate the bulk of the work piece should be shaped by
other machining process priorly.
 Dimensional variations can occur ,this can be minimized by proper

selection of artwork media by controlling the environment.
 Many product designs are now made with computer aided design.
CHARACTERISTICS OF CHEMICAL MACHINING
 Shallow removal of material (up to 12mm)

 Blanking of thin sheets.
 Low tooling and equipment cost.
 Suitable for low production runs.
 Material removal rate(0.1mm/min)
MATERIALS
 Aluminum
 Chromium
 Copper (oxygen free, rolled…)
 Nickel
 Steel (carbon, stainless…)
 Lead
 Zinc
ADVANTAGES
1. Easy weight reduction

2. No effect of work piece materials properties such as hardness
3. Simultaneous material removal operation
4. No burr formation
5. No stress introduction to the work piece
6. Low capital cost of equipment
7. Easy and quick design changes
8. Requirement of less skilled worker
9. Low tooling costs
10. The good surface quality
11. Using decorative part production
12. Low scrap rates (3%)
DIS-ADVANTAGES
1. Difficult to get sharp corner
2. Difficult to chemically machine thick material (limit is depended on work piece
material, but the thickness should be around maximum 10 mm)
3. Scribing accuracy is very limited, causes less dimensional accuracy
4. Etchants are very dangerous for workers
5. Etchant disposals are very expensive
APPLICATIONS
High Precision Parts
and Decorative Items
 Gaskets
 Washers
 Sensors
 Nameplates
 Jewelry
 Microprocessor Chips
CONCLUSION
• Chemical machining is widely used to produce complex machine parts for

various application as well as decorative parts.
• The machining operation should be carried out carefully to produce a desired

geometry.
• Environmental laws have important effects when chemical machining is used.

REFERENCES
 Modern machining process by P C Pandey.
 www.ieee.org
 www.chemicalmachining.org
 www.photochemicalmachining.com
THANK YOU !

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CHEMICAL MACHINING(CHM)

 Chemical machining(CHM) Was developed based on the observation that

 CHM is the removal of metal by chemical attack by a corrosive liquid.

 The work piece is either immersed in or exposed to a spray of chemical

 CHM was basically developed for aerospace industry to maintain strength

 An etchant resistant mask, made typically of rubber or plastic is used to

 Part to be machined is defined by any one of the procedures: scribing &

 Strong acid or alkaline solution is used to dissolve materials selectively.

 Chemically resistant coating is applied to protect surfaces not to be

Figure : (a) Schematic of chemical machining process (b) Stages in producing a

 The 5 steps in chemical machining are as follows:

 Part preparation: cleaning.

Cut and peel maskants

1. In chemical milling, shallow cavities are produced

2. The two key materials used in chemical milling

3. Etchants are acid or alkaline solutions maintained

5. Chemical milling is used in the aerospace industry to

 Chemical blanking is used to etch entirely through a metal part.

 Used to produce fine screens, flat springs, etc…

 Very cheap but efficient.

 Chemical Engraving is the practice of incising a design on to a hard,

 Photochemical machining (PCM),

 Undercuts may be developed because etchant attacks both in horizontal

 Dimensional variations can occur ,this can be minimized by proper

 Shallow removal of material (up to 12mm)

1. Easy weight reduction

• Chemical machining is widely used to produce complex machine parts for

• The machining operation should be carried out carefully to produce a desired

• Environmental laws have important effects when chemical machining is used.

 Modern machining process by P C Pandey.

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