Analysis of energy consumption in micro-drilling processes

The paper analyzes energy consumption as a performance indicator for micro-manufacturing. A comparative analysis between micro-EDM and ultrashort pulse laser drilling is performed on the basis of similar process outputs like drilled thickness of 350 μm, hole diameter of 180 ± 3 μm, drilling time, micro-hole shape and inner surface quality. Experimental data revealed that ultrashort pulse laser drilling enabled root mean squared surface roughness of about 100 nm in a drilling time of 2.5 s, whereas using a conventional micro-EDM drilling operation with a 10 s duration yielded surface roughness of 380 nm. For ultrashort pulse laser ablation the specific energy consumption is increased, as the drilling time is decreased due to an increase of the adopted pulse energy up to 50 μJ but the surface roughness and the capability of obtaining very sharp edges remain unchanged. With a calculated energy intensity in the order of 1010 J/kg and a process rate in the order of 10−6 kg/h, ultrashort pulse laser drilling can be considered as a valid alternative from both technology point of view and specific energy consumption to similar drilling process, like micro-EDM which is characterized by a lower process rate and a higher energy intensity.