Selection of the optimal electrochemical machining process parameters using biogeography-based optimization algorithm

TLDR: In this paper, the machining parameters of an ECM process and a wire electrochemical turning process are optimized using the biogeography-based optimization (BBO) algorithm.

Abstract: Electrochemical machining (ECM) has become one of the most potential and useful non-traditional machining processes because of its capability of machining complex and intricate shapes in high-strength and heat-resistant materials. For effective utilization of the ECM process, it is often required to set its different machining parameters at their optimal levels. Various mathematical techniques have already been proposed by past researchers to determine the optimal combinations of the different machining parameters of the ECM process. In this paper, the machining parameters of an ECM process and a wire electrochemical turning process are optimized using the biogeography-based optimization (BBO) algorithm. Both the single- and multi-response optimization models are considered. The optimization performance of the BBO algorithm is also compared with that of other population-based algorithms, e.g., genetic algorithm and artificial bee colony algorithm. It is observed that the BBO algorithm outperforms the others with respect to the optimal values of different process responses and computation time.