Extrusion machining of abrasive paste

Abrasive Flow Machining (AFM) is used to finish surfaces and edges by extruding a viscous abrasive paste through or around a workpiece. Abrasion takes place only in flow-restricted zones; other areas are unaffected. Extrusion machining of abrasive paste enables the simultaneous shaping of several cavities on a single part, as well as the processing of several dozen parts in a single set-up. Tooling can be designed so that it can be changed in a matter of minutes for production applications.

Abrasive paste extrusion is used for deburring and polishing surfaces or radiusing (rounding) edges. A wide variety of results can be achieved by changing process parameters. The process embraces a wide range of applications, from critical aerospace and medical components to mass-produced parts: it can handle production rates of hundreds, even thousands, of parts per hour.