UNITII: GRINDING PROCESS

2.1 INTRODUCTION:
Grinding is form of abrasive machining. Grinding is a material cutting
process in which grains of the abrasive material is used as cutting tools.

Grinding is a metal cutting operation performed by means of rotating

abrasive tool known as grinding wheel. Grinding wheels are made of
abrasives particles. These particles are hold together by bonding material
called as bond. Each abrasive particle has random irregular geometry and it
acts as a cutting element.
Grinding operation is of two types: a] rough grinding b] precision grinding.
Rough grinding is use for removing excess material from casting, weldments
and forgings.
Precision grinding removes negligible amount of metal. It is use to produce
finished parts and accurate dimensions Depending on the geometry of
workpiece and the position at which workpiece is to be grind, it can be
categorize as external grinding, internal grinding, surface grinding, form
grinding and centre less grinding.

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2.2GRINDING WHEEL: A grinding wheel is a cutting tool having
thousands of sharp abrasive grains on the face of it, which do the cutting
action. It is use to remove material from a workpiece in an abrasive action.
Each grain acts as a cutting tool. It is only self-sharpening cutting tool.
COMPONENTS OF A GRINDING WHEEL:
ABRASIVE GRAINS -performs the cutting action.
BOND - holds the abrasive grains when they do the cutting action and
release the grains when they become dull or blunt.
STRUCTURE - the void between adjacent grains to provide chip clearance.

2.3FEATURES OF GRINDING PROCESS:

 Grinding operation is intermittent in nature and produces discontinuous
chips.
 Grinding wheel has self- sharpening characteristics.
 The load acting on the individual cutting grain is non-uniform.
 The geometry of the each abrasive grain is highly random.
2.4 SHAPES AND SIZE OF A GRINDING WHEEL:
1] STRAIGHT WHEEL: straight wheels are as shown in Figure are Types 1,
2 and 3. These are use for cylindrical, internal, centre less and surface

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grinding operations. These wheels vary in size, diameter and width of the
face.

2] Tapered Face Straight Wheels: This type of wheel is as shown in figure. It

is also a straight wheel but its free is slightly tapered to facilitate the grinding
of threads and gear teeth.

3] Cylindrical Wheel Ring: Cylindrical-grinding wheel is as shown in Figure

Type 5. It is use for surface grinding, i.e. production of flat surfaces.
Grinding takes place with the help of face of the wheel.

4] Cup Wheel: Cup wheel shown in Figure 2.1 Type 6. It is use for grinding
flat surfaces with the help of face of grinding wheel.

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5]Flaring Cup Wheel: One modified grinding wheel named as flaring cup
wheel is Type 7 in Figure It is use in grinding of tools in tool room.

6] Saucer Wheel: Saucer wheel shown in Figure 2.1 at Type 8. It is use for
sharpening of circular or band saw.

7] Segmented Wheel: Segmented wheel shown in Figure 2.1 at Type 9.

These are normally on vertical spindle, rotary type and reciprocating type
surface grinders.

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8] Dish Wheel: Dish wheel shown in Figure type 10. It is also use for
grinding of tools in tool room. It is capable to grind very narrow places due
to its thinness
2.5 SIZE AND CODING OF A GRINDING WHEEL:
Major dimensions of a grinding wheel are the outside diameter; bore
diameter; and width of the face. In addition to the above geometry of the
face of grinding wheel may be flat, pointed, concave, convex, etc.
The Indian Standard Coding system of grinding wheel is IS 551-1954. It
provides uniform system of coding of grinding wheels to designate their
various characteristics
W: Symbol for Manufacturer’s Abrasive Type (Prefixed)
C: Name of Abrasive
30: Grain Size
L: Grade
5: Structure Type
R: Bond Type
17: Manufacturer Symbol for Record (Suffix).
MANUFACTURER’S SYMBOL: It is optional symbol and criteria of its
assignment entirely depend on the manufacturer’s choice.
ABRASIVE TYPE: This is an alphabet symbol used to indicate the name of
abrasive used ‘A’ stands for Aluminum Oxide and ‘C’ stands for Silicon
Carbide.
GRAIN SIZE: This number provides idea of grain size of abrasives. It is defined
as number of holes in one-inch length of the sieve used to filter the abrasive
partials. Larger number indicates finer grain sizes. Four categories of
abrasive particles are

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Grain size depends upon 1] quantity of material to be removed b] required
quality of surface finish; c] hardness of workpiece material.
Fine and very fine grain size is use for precision grinding, & coarse and
medium grain size is use for rough grinding.
GRADE: Grade of a grinding wheel is the indicative of hardness and tenacity
of bond of abrasives. It is denoted by capital letters of alphabet ‘A’ to ‘Z’.
Selection of grade depends on 1] hardness of workpiece material, 2] grinding
speed, 3] contact area of grinding wheel with the workpiece, 4] capability of
grinding machine.
Grinding wheels are name as soft, hard or medium hard wheels depending
on their grade. Abrasives of hard grinding wheels get blunt quickly so these
are use to grind workpiece of low hardness and soft grinding wheels are use
for hard material work pieces.
STRUCTURE OF A GRINDING WHEEL : It includes number of abrasives and
number of pores in unit volume. The distribution of abrasives and bores
decides the structure of a grinding wheel.
Based on structure grinding wheels are called dense or open grinding wheel.
In dense grinding wheels, abrasive particles are densely packed as compared
to open grinding wheel with larger porosity. Number denotes structure of
grinding wheel. Higher number indicates open structure of grinding wheel.

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Selection of an appropriate structure depends on hardness of workpiece
material; required quality of surface finish; and type of grinding operation.
Open structure wheels are use for rough grinding and for softer materials.

Dense structured grinding wheels are use for hard and brittle materials.
TYPE OF BOND

Bond is the binding of abrasive particles together with the help of adhesive
substance. Selection of a bond depends on the type of grinding operation;
workpiece material, required bond strength and contact area of workpiece
with the grinding wheel.
MANUFACTURER’S SYMBOL: Two digit numbers are use for this symbol.
2.6 VARIOUIS ELEMENTS OF GRINDING WHEEL: The various main
elements of a grinding wheel are abrasive; bonds and structure. Different
abrasive properties are hardness, toughness and resistance to fracture
uniformly. Two principal groups of abrasives are: (a) Natural abrasives, and
(b) Artificial abrasives.
NATURAL ABRASIVES: There are a few examples of natural abrasives that
include sand stone (solid quartz); emery; corundum and diamond.
Sand stone is one of the natural abrasive used to make grinding stones.
These are relatively soft. These cannot use for grinding of hard material and
at faster speed.
Emery is a natural aluminum oxide containing 55 to 65% alumina, rest are
iron oxide and impurities. If percentage of aluminum oxide is more, ranging

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from75 to 95% then it is called as corundum. It consist impurities, as
remaining amount. Both emery and corundum are harder than quartz.
ARTIFICIAL ABRASIVES: Main artificial abrasive are silicon carbide and
aluminum oxide. Artificial abrasive are preferred in manufacturing of
grinding wheels because of their uniformity and purity.
Silicon Carbide: It is called as carbornudum. There are two types of silicon
carbide abrasive, green grit with approximately 97% silicon carbide and
black grit with approximately 95% silicon carbide. It is less hard than
diamond and less tough than aluminum oxide. It is used for grinding of
material of low tensile strength like cemented carbide, stone and ceramic,
gray cast iron, brass, bronze, aluminum vulcanized rubber, etc.
Aluminum Oxide: It is prepared by heating mineral bauxite, a hydrated
aluminum oxide clay containing silica, iron oxide, titanium oxide mixed
with ground coke and iron borings in a arc type electric furnace. Aluminum
oxide is tough and fracture resistant. It is preferred for grinding of materials
of higher tensile strengths like steel; high carbon and high-speed steel and
tough bronze.
Bonds
A bond is an adhesive material used to held abrasive particles together;
relatively stable that constitute a grinding wheel. Different types of bonds
are: (a) Vitrified bond,(b) Silicate bond, (c) Shellac bond, (e) Rubber bond,
and (f) Oxy-chloride bond.
Vitrified Bond: This bond consists of mixture of clay and water. Clay and
abrasives are mix with water to make a uniform mixture. The mixture is
moulded to shape of a grinding wheel and dried up to take it out from mould.
Perfectly shaped wheel is heated in a kiln just like brick making. It this way
clay vitrifies and fuses to form a porcelain or glass grains. High temperature

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also does annealing of abrasive. This wheel posses a good strength and
porosity to allow high stock removal with coal cutting.
Disadvantage of this type of wheel are, it is sensitive for heat, water, oil and
acids. Their impact and bending strengths are also low. This bond is denoted
by symbol ‘V’ in specification.
Silicate Bond: Silicate bonds are made by mixing abrasive particals with
silicate and soda or water glass. It is moulded to required shape, allowed to
dried up and then taken out of mould. The raw moulded wheel is baked in a
furnace at more than 200oC for several days. These wheel exhibits water
proofing properly so these can be used with coolant. These wheels are
denoted by ‘S’ in specification.
Shellac Bond : These are prepared by mixing abrasive with shellac than
moulded by rolling and pressing and then by heating upto 150oC for several
hours. This bond exhibit greater elasticity than other bonds with appreciable
strength. Grinding wheels having shellac bond are recommended for cool
cutting on hardened steel and thin sections, finishing of chilled iron, cast
iron, steel rolls, hardened steel cams and aluminium pistons. This bond is
denoted by ‘E’ in specifications.
Resinoid Bond: These bonds are prepared by mixing abrasives with
synthetic resins like backelite and redmanol and other compounds. Mixture
is moulded to required shape and baked upto 200oC to give a perfect
grinding wheel. These wheels have good grinding capacity at higher speed.
These are used for precision grinding of cams,rolls and other objects where
high precision of surface and dimension influence the performance of
operation. A resinoid bond is denoted by the letter ‘B’.
Rubber Bond : Rubber bonded wheels are made by mixing abrasives with
pure rubber and sulpher. After that the mixture is rolled into sheet and
wheels are prepared by punching using die and punch. The wheels are
vulcanized by heating then in furnace for short time. Rubber bonded wheels
are more resilient and have larger abrasive density. These are used for
precision grinding and good surface finish.Rubber bond is also preferred for
making thin wheels with good strength and toughness. The associated
disadvantage with rubber bond is, these are lesser heat resistant. A rubber
wheel bonded wheel is denoted by the letter ‘R’.
Oxy-chloride Bond: These bonds are processed by mixing abrasives with
oxides and chlorides of magnesium. The mixture is moulded and baked in a
furnace to give shape of a grinding wheel. These grinding wheels are used
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for disc grinding operations. An oxychloride bonded wheel is specified the
letter ‘O’.

2.7 FACTORS AFFECTING GRINDING WHEEL SELECTION:

Factors affecting grinding wheel selection:

a) Choice for Abrasives

b) Grit Size
c) Grade
d) Amount of stock removal and finish required
e) Is the operation wet or dry
f) Wheel Speed
g) Area of Grinding Contact
h) Severity of the grinding operation

A] TYPE OF ABRASIVES: Pure Al2O3 is advantageous in fine tool

grinding operation, and heat sensitive operations on hard, ferrous materials.

Regular or brown aluminum oxide (doped with TiO2) is recommended

heavy duty grinding. Black carbide containing at least 95% SiC is efficient
for grinding soft nonferrous materials. Green silicon carbide contains at least
97% SiC. It is used for grinding cemented carbide.Diamond grit is best
suited for grinding cemented carbides, glass, sapphire, stone, granite, marble,
concrete, oxide, non-oxide ceramic, fiber reinforced plastics, ferrite,
graphite.Natural diamond grit is characterized by its random shape, very
sharp cutting edge and free cutting action and is exclusively used in metallic,
electroplated and brazed bond.
Grit size: The grain size affects material removal rate and the surface
quality of workpiece in grinding. Large grit- big grinding capacity, rough
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workpiece surface.Fine grit- small grinding capacity, smooth workpiece
surface.
Fine grit-size works best in hard brittle material.
Coarser grit capable of taking heavier cuts can be used advantageously on
soft and ductile materials
Grade: The worn out grit must pull out from the bond and make room for
fresh sharp grit in order to avoid excessive rise of grinding force and
temperature. Therefore, a soft grade should be chosen for grinding hard
material. On the other hand, during grinding of low strength soft material
grit does not wear out so quickly. Therefore, the grit can be held with strong
bond so that premature grit dislodgement can be avoided.
Structure / concentration:The structure should be open for grinding wheels
engaged in high material removal to provide chip accommodation space. The
space between the grits also serves as pocket for holding grinding fluid. On
the other hand, dense structured wheels are used for longer wheel life, for
holding precision forms and profiles.
Bond:
Vitrified bond: Vitrified bond is suitable for high stock removal even at dry
condition. It can also be safely used in wet grinding. It cannot used where
mechanical impact or thermal variations are like to occur. This bond is also
not recommended for very high speed grinding because of possible breakage
of the bond under centrifugal force.
Resin bond :Conventional abrasive resin bonded wheels are widely used for
heavy duty grinding because of their ability to withstand shock load. This
bond is also known for its vibration absorbing characteristics and finds its
use with diamond and cBN in grinding of cemented carbide and steel
respectively. Resin bond is not recommended with alkaline grinding fluid for
a possible chemical attack leading to bond weakening. Fiberglass reinforced
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resin bond is used with cut off wheels which requires added strength under
high speed operation.
Shellac bond: At one time this bond was used for flexible cut off wheels. At
present use of shellac bond is limited to grinding wheels engaged in fine
finish of rolls.
Oxy-chloride bond: It is less common type bond, but still can be used in disc
grinding operation. It is used under dry condition.
Rubber bond:Its principal use is in thin wheels for wet cut-off operation.
Rubber bond was once popular for finish grinding on bearings and cutting
tools.

AMOUNT OF STOCK REMOVAL AND FINISH REQUIRED: finish

required. These affect the choice of grit size and bond.Grit-size: As a rule,
coarser grit is selected for fast-cutting action and fine grit where a high
finish is required.Bond: Vitrified bonded wheels are generally used for
fast-cutting action and commercial finish. Resinoid, Rubber and Shellac
bonded wheels produce the highest finish.

IS THE OPERATION WET OR DRY:

Coolant is necessary in precision grinding. However, in some cases (e.g
Tool regrinding) the process may be dry, in which case a softer grade
wheel may be necessary whereas for wet grinding, a one grade harder
wheel can be used as the coolant reduces the heat generated in grinding.
AREA OF GRINDING CONTACT :
The area of grinding contact between the wheel and the work effect work
effect the choice of grit-size and grade. Grit-Size: A coarser grit is required
when the areas is relatively large to provide adequate chip clearance

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between the abrasive grains. As the area of grinding contact becomes
smaller and the unit pressure tending to break down the wheel-face
becomes greater, finer grit wheels should be used.
Grade: On large areas of contact, soft grade wheel provides normal
breakdown of the grit, ensuring a continuous free-cutting action. On the
other hand, a harder grade is needed to withstand the increasingly higher
unit pressure, as the area of contact becomes smaller.
SEVERITY OF THE GRINDING OPERATION: This affects the abrasive
and grade.
ABRASIVE: A tougher abrasive is required for grinding operation like
snagging, for light grinding operations an intermediate abrasive is used for
grinding jobs of average severity
Grade: The severity of the grinding operation also influences the ‘grade’.
Hard grades provide durable wheels for rough grinding such as snagging,
while medium and soft grade wheels are generally used for less severe
precision grinding operations."
2.8 WHEEL GLAZING: after continuous use of the grinding wheel, the
sharp cutting edges of the grinding wheel become dull. Abrasive grains
lose their cutting ability and sharpness. Wear of abrasive particles take
place. Wheel surface become smooth. Grinding wheel having smooth
surface provides rubbing action. Grinding wheel takes glass like
appearance.
Wheel glazing seen more prominent in hard grinding wheel at higher
grinding speed.
2.9WHEEL LOADING: during the grinding operation, material removed
from the workpiece is adhered to the face of the grinding wheel. These

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particles occupy the open space between the abrasive particles. Due to this,
sharpness of the cutting particles is lost and face becomes smooth. This
phenomenon is called as wheel loading. Loading is caused by grinding soft
metals or after taking deep cuts in absence of cutting fluid.
2.10-WHEEL DRESSING: The remedy of glazing and loading is dressing
of grinding wheels. Dressing removes the loading and breaks away the
glazed surface so that sharp abrasive particles can form again for grinding.
Different type of dressing operations are:
1] The dressing is perform with the help of star dresser. It consists of a
number of hardened steel wheels with sharp points on their periphery. The
tool is held against the face of revolving wheel and tool is move across the
face to dress the whole surface.
2] Steel tube filled with a bonded abrasive. The end of the tube is held
against the wheel and steel tube is moved across the face of grinding wheel.
2.11.TRUING

Truing is the process of aligning the periphery of grinding wheel so that it

runs concentric with the axis of rotation. Super abrasive wheel or dresser is
used for truing operation.
Truing minimizes the vibration of the wheel. Truing improves the surface
finish. [Truing and dressing operations are perform with same tool but not
for the same purpose.].
2.12 CLASSIFICATION OF GRINDING MACHINE:

 Rough grinders:
1. Floor grinders
2. Swing frame grinders

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 3. Portable and flexible shaft grinders
4. Belt grinders
 Cylindrical grinders:
1. Plain cylindrical grinders
2. Universal cylindrical grinders
3. Center-less grinders
 Surface grinders:
1. Reciprocating table type
2. Rotary table type
 Special type grinders:
1. Internal grinders
2. Tool and cutter grinders
3. Crank shaft grinders
4. Thread grinders

CYLINDRICAL GRINDING MACHINE: the cylindrical grinding

machine is used for producing cylindrical surfaces. The grinding wheel is
mounted on spindle of wheel head of machine. The grinding wheel is
rotated at very high speed by the spindle. The workpiece is held between
centers at headstock and tailstock. The workpiece is rotated at lower speed
in direction opposite to the direction of rotation of the grinding wheel. The
work centers are mounted on table.

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Cylindrical grinding is used for producing a] sleeves b] rollers c] spindles
d] precision rods

SURFACE GRINDING MACHINE: The surface grinding machine is

use for producing the flat surfaces. The grinding wheel is mounted on
spindle and it is rotated at high speed. The workpiece is mounted on table.
The table may have rotary or reciprocating movement. The surface
grinding machine can have horizontal spindle or vertical spindle.

Surface grinding is used for grinding of 1] blanks 2] piston rings 3] side

faces of the milling cutter.

CENTERLESS GRINDING :

In centerless grinding the workpieces are held between the grinding wheel
and the regulating wheel.the workpiece rests on the blade.

By tilting the rotational axis of regulating wheel

with respect to the grinding wheel , the workpiece is given longitudinal
force , creating the movement. No manual handling of the part is required.

In this method, the rate of production is high and cost of production is less.

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METHODS OF FEED GIVEN TO JOB IN CENTERLESS GRINDING
MACHINE:

Internal grinding machine

This machine is used to produce internal cylindrical surface. The surface
may be straight, tapered, grooved or profiled.
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Broadly there are three different types of internal grinding machine as
follows:
1. Chucking type internal grinder
2. Planetary internal grinder
3. Centreless internal grinder

29.3.1 Chucking type internal grinder

Figure illustrates schematically this machine and various motions required

for grinding action. The workpiece is usually mounted in a chuck. A
magnetic face plate can also be used. A small grinding wheel performs the
necessary grinding with its peripheral surface. Both transverse and plunge
grinding can be carried out in this machine as shown in Fig.

Planetary internal grinder

Planetary internal grinder is used where the workpiece is of irregular shape
and can not be rotated conveniently as shown in Fig. 29.18. In this machine
the workpiece does not rotate. Instead, the grinding wheel orbits the axis of
the hole in the workpiece.

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Centreless internal grinder
This machine is used for grinding cylindrical and tapered holes in cylindrical
parts (e.g. cylindrical liners, various bushings etc). The workpiece is rotated
between supporting roll, pressure roll and regulating wheel and is ground by
the grinding wheel.

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