A novel method to improve finish on non-magnetic surfaces in magneto-rheological abrasive honing process

Magneto-Rheological Abrasive Honing (MRAH) is a recently developed process that makes use of magnetically stiffened abrasive-mixed magneto-rheological fluid and combined rotary and reciprocating motions to finish engineering surfaces. Effect of magnetic field has been investigated on specimens mounted in a holder and subjected to MRAH. It is observed that the change in the surface finish on magnetic specimens is insignificant, while the surface finish on non-magnetic specimens improves appreciably. By a novel method of introducing magnetic specimens along with non-magnetic specimens, the magnetic field near the non-magnetic specimens is enhanced. The results obtained on the non-magnetic specimens by this approach for different magnetic field and process duration confirm that the finishing capability of the process is greatly improved, and yields a maximum improvement in finish of 41.7% and 43.5%, respectively while the previously reported results are 6.7% and 24.2%. © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.