This study investigates a novel short electric arc vertical turning method for machining titanium alloy shafts. The method was successfully applied to titanium alloy rods, and its effects on material removal rate (MRR), surface roughness, roundness, and cross-sectional morphology were analyzed at varying processing voltages. The results indicate that the MRR and surface quality improve with increased voltage, reaching a maximum of 231 mm³/min and 26 μm surface roughness at 32 V. However, surface roughness deteriorates with higher duty cycles and voltages due to unstable discharges. Roundness deviations are minimized with higher rotational speeds, which enhance uniform material removal and arc stability. Metallographic analysis revealed an increased heat-affected zone and recast layer thickness at higher voltages. This method demonstrates high machining efficiency and improved surface quality, making it suitable for titanium alloy shaft manufacturing in advanced engineering applications.

In this study, characteristics of Ti6Al4V alloy are studied by pulse short electric arc milling (SEAM). In this regard, the influence of SEAM parameters on the material removal rate (MRR), relative electrode wear rate (REWR) and surface integrity of Ti6Al4V is studied. A wide variety of processing parameters, including different voltages, frequencies, duty cycles, flushing pressures, electrode rotation speeds and electrode feed rates are considered in the investigation. Scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy dispersive spectrograph (EDS) and micro-hardness analysis are applied to analyze results. Moreover, a multi-channel data acquisition system is used to measure gap voltage and gap current. Obtained results cover the variation of MRR, REWR, surface roughness (Ra), average re-solidified layer thickness and average heat-affected zone thickness with different processing parameters. Furthermore, the electrode surface morphology and chemical composition of the negative growth of REWR are studied. Based on the obtained results, the microstructure of the re-solidified layer and heat-affected zone of the workpiece cross-section is confirmed. This study provides a technological basis for the high-quality pulse SEAM technology of difficult-to-machine (DTM) materials to enter the semi-finishing field.