Amirkabir Journal of Mechanical Engineering

Amirkabir Journal of Mechanical Engineering

Evaluation of Surface Integrity of AISI 304 in Electrochemical Grinding through Simultaneous Analysis of Surface Roughness and Porosity

Document Type : Research Article

Authors
Armin Rezaei 1
amir RASTI 2
mohammad yazdani 3
1 Department of Mechanical engineering , trabiat modares university
2 Department of mechanical enginering, Tarbiat modules university
3 tarbiat modares university
10.22060/mej.2026.25003.7926
Abstract
The electrochemical grinding (ECG) process, as a hybrid technique combining mechanical abrasion and anodic dissolution, offers an efficient approach for improving surface quality and minimizing thermal damage in hard-to-machine steels, particularly AISI 304 stainless steel. However, the surface roughness and porosity in this process are strongly affected by operating conditions, exhibiting inherently nonlinear behavior. In this study, a dedicated experimental setup was designed and developed to investigate the effects of three key parameters: electrolyte concentration (20–180 g/L), applied voltage (5–25 V), and wheel rotational speed (500–2500 rpm). Surface roughness was measured using a laser profilometer, while porosity was quantified through image analysis in ImageJ software. Results indicated that increasing electrolyte concentration gradually reduced surface roughness from approximately 15 to 4 μm, while porosity increased from 1.2% to over 5%. Moreover, voltage variation exhibited a nonlinear trend, and an optimal balance between roughness and porosity was achieved within the range of 10–15 V. Higher voltages led to excessive corrosion and loss of surface uniformity. Increasing wheel speed up to around 1500 rpm also resulted in a moderate improvement in surface finish. Overall, the combination of 180 g/L electrolyte concentration and 15 V applied voltage was identified as the optimal condition for producing a smooth surface with controlled porosity.
Keywords
Electrochemical Grinding (ECG)
AISI 304 Stainless Steel
Surface Roughness
Surface Porosity
Subjects
[1] H.A. Ariza-Figueroa, J. Bosch, M.A. Baltazar-Zamora, R. Croche, G. Santiago-Hurtado, L. Landa-Ruiz, J.M. Mendoza-Rangel, J.M. Bastidas, F. Almeraya-Calderón, D.M. Bastidas, Corrosion behavior of AISI 304 stainless steel reinforcements in SCBA-SF ternary ecological concrete exposed to MgSO4, Materials, 13(10) (2020) 2412.
[2] R. Kumar, A.K. Das, A comprehensive review of AISI 304 steel based on different thick coating process, Materials Today: Proceedings, 98 (2024) 180-186.
[3] E. Messinese, L. Casanova, L. Paterlini, F. Capelli, F. Bolzoni, M. Ormellese, A. Brenna, A Comprehensive Investigation on the Effects of Surface Finishing on the Resistance of Stainless Steel to Localized Corrosion, Metals, 12(10) (2022) 1751.
[4] L. Cao, W. Zhang, C. Jiang, H. Wang, H. An, C. Ye, J. Ren, X. Huang, L. Deng, Effect of Surface Roughness on Corrosion Behaviour of Stainless Steel in Supercritical CO2, Journal of Materials Research and Technology, 36 (2025) 4946-4954.
[5] Y. Yin, M. Chen, Analysis of grindability and surface integrity in creep-feed grinding of high-strength steels, Materials, 17(8) (2024) 1784.
[6] D. Curtis, H. Krain, A. Winder, D. Novovic, Impact of grinding wheel specification on surface integrity and residual stress when grinding Inconel 718, Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part B: Journal of Engineering Manufacture, 235(10) (2021) 1668-1681.
[7] F. Wang, Y. He, X. Wu, M. Kang, Flow field characteristics and experimental research on inner-jet electrochemical face grinding of SUS420J2 stainless steel, Scientific Reports, 12(1) (2022) 11789.
[8] G. Yang, P. Ming, S. Niu, G. Qin, H. Liu, D. Li, A. Zhang, An Investigation of the Efficient–Precise Continuous Electrochemical Grinding Process of Ti–6Al–4V, Materials, 17(8) (2024) 1729.
[9] M. Yazdani, A. Rasti, Assessment on surface integrity in electrochemical grinding of AISI 304, Heliyon, 11(1) (2025) 1-14.
[10] Y. Yan, D. Bajaj, D. Chen, O. Kesler, Porous 430L Stainless Steel as a Support Layer for Planar Solid Oxide Cells: Effect of Porosity on Mechanical Properties, High-Temperature Materials, 1(2) (2024) 10011.
[11] F.W. DelRio, R.M. Khan, M.J. Heiden, P.G. Kotula, P.A. Renner, E.K. Karasz, M.A. Melia, Porosity, roughness, and passive film morphology influence the corrosion behavior of 316L stainless steel manufactured by laser powder bed fusion, Journal of Manufacturing Processes, 102 (2023) 654-662.
[12] H. Saito, M. Nishimoto, I. Muto, Pitting corrosion characteristics of sintered Type 316 L stainless steel: relationship between pores and MnS, npj Materials Degradation, 8(1) (2024) 61.
[13] A.R. Chaudhari, K.B. Judal, Experimental investigation of electro-chemical magnetic abrasive finishing of SS 304 workpiece, Materials Today: Proceedings, 49 (2022) 390-396.
[14] X. Tan, R. Lan, Q. Yao, Q. Tu, L. Lei, J. Zhang, Y. Sun, J. Li, Y. Jiang, Influence of the machined surface roughness on the pitting behavior of 304 stainless steel, Materials and Corrosion, 74(5) (2023) 660-669.
[15] Z. Hou, S. Xiu, Y. Yao, C. Sun, The residual stress and martensitic transformation of 304 stainless steel in pre-stress grinding: influence and control on chloride induced SCC, Journal of Materials Research and Technology, 24 (2023) 4601-4617.
[16] H. Suárez-Miranda, G. Vargas-Gutiérrez, F. Martinez-Baltodano, W. Pech-Rodríguez, Eco-friendly electrochemical polishing of stainless steel using a NaCl-based electrolyte to reduce deterioration in seawater, Electrochimica Acta, 536 (2025) 1-10.
[17] A. Ghezri, K. Pratama, Y. Scholl, A. Küenzi, T. Nelis, J. Burger, C. Bessire, Energy Efficient Jet Polishing via Electrolytic Plasma Enhances Corrosion Resistance in Stainless Steel, Journal of Manufacturing and Materials Processing, 8(6) (2024) 289.
[18] S. Prabagaran, N. Dhandapani, S. Elukaturi, G. Karuna, M.H. Fallah, Investigation of electrochemical micro-machining process parameters on stainless steel 316 by sodium chloride electrolyte, in:  E3S Web of Conferences, EDP Sciences, 2024, pp. 11003.
[19] G. Liu, Z. Gong, Y. Yang, J. Shi, Y. Liu, X. Dou, C. Li, Electrochemical dissolution behavior of stainless steels with different metallographic phases and its effects on micro electrochemical machining performance, Electrochemistry Communications, 160 (2024) 107677.
[20] G. Ji, L. Ma, S. Zhang, J. Zhang, L. Wu, Study of Electrochemical Behavior and a Material Removal Mechanism During Electrolytic Plasma Polishing of 316L Stainless Steel, Materials, 18(6) (2025) 1307.
[21] M.K. Syahputra, K. Nur ‘Anisa’, R.A. Rahmania, F. Yusof, P. Dixit, M. Mahardika, G.S. Prihandana, Optimization of Process Parameters in Electropolishing of SS 316L Utilizing Taguchi Robust Design, Journal of Manufacturing and Materials Processing, 9(4) (2025) 127.
Amirkabir Journal of Mechanical Engineering
Volume 57, Issue 12
March 2026
Pages 1619-1636