SPH simulations of magnetorheological abrasive flow machining at a microscopic scale

Since SPH can simultaneously solve governing equations for fluids, solids and the interaction between them, it can compete with the well-developed mesh-based numerical methods in solving fluid-structure interaction (FSI) problems. We present the development of a smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) scheme in order to study the magnetorheological abrasive flow machining (MAFM) process. This process cannot be observed on a microscale during experiments which renders numerical simulations necessary. In order for the simulations to be as realistic as possible, the behavior of a workpiece under impact forces exerted by suspended abrasive grains must be predicted accurately. To do so, the Johnson-Cook plasticity and dynamic failure models are implemented and the obtained results are compared to finite element method (FEM) simulations. The comparison shows a good agreement between SPH and FEM results. Moreover, a major aspect of MAFM is the role of magnetic forces which also incorporated in our SPH model. Finally, the developed SPH scheme was used to simulate the MAFM process in 2D and investigate the magnetic field gradient effects on the final surface quality and the material removal rate. The results clearly showed that a magnetic field gradient can enhance the material removal rate.