Numerical study on surface treatment of vibration-impact composite electric spark based on ABAQUS

Abstract Through numerical simulation, this study explores the effect of vibration-impact composite electric spark (VIES) surface treatment technology on the temperature and thermal stress fields of 2024-T3 aluminum alloy surfaces. The depth of the molten pool and residual stress are evaluated using orthogonal experiments to score different experimental schemes, resulting in three experimental parameters categorized as good, medium, and poor. The study then examines the temperature and thermal stress fields for these three sets of parameters during the strengthening process. The results indicate that, considering the temperature field, the distance between the heat source and the work piece directly affects the heating efficiency and temperature distribution. An appropriate distance and sufficient dwell time are essential for creating the ideal molten pool thickness. Analysis of the stress field results shows that in the early stage of strengthening, the inertia force of the small spheres is dominant, while in the later stage, the stress field created by the electric current becomes decisively dominant. This indicates that the electric current is the core of the three influencing factors in the orthogonal experiment.