Discrete Element Simulation of Orthogonal Machining of Soda-Lime Glass

Abstract

Transparent, brittle materials, like glass, are used in various applications due to their advantages of mechanical and optical properties. However, their hard and brittle nature causes significant challenges to researchers when they design and test a new machining process. In order to optimize this time-consuming process, discrete element method (DEM) is applied to simulate the cutting process of soda-lime glass in this study. The first step is to create a synthetic material that behaves like soda-lime glass. Then, the macroproperties are calibrated by adjusting the microparameters of the DEM model to match the mechanical properties of the real soda-lime glass. Finally, orthogonal machining simulations are conducted and model validation are conducted by comparing the predicted cutting forces with those from the orthogonal cutting experiments.

Keywords

• discrete element method
• soda-lime glass
• flat-joint model
• orthogonal cutting