Electrical discharge machining (EDM) is a modern technology that is widely used in the production of difficult to cut conductive materials. The basic problem of EDM is the stochastic nature of electrical discharges. The optimal selection of machining parameters to achieve micron surface roughness and the recast layer with the maximal possible value of the material removal rate (MRR) is quite challenging. In this paper, we performed an analytical and experimental investigation of the influence of the EDM parameters: Surface integrity and MRR. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to build empirical models on the influence of the discharge current I, pulse time t_on, and the time interval t_off, on the surface roughness (Sa), the thickness of the white layer (WL), and the MRR, during the machining of tool steel 55NiCrMoV7. The surface and subsurface integrity were evaluated using an optical microscope and a scanning profilometer. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to establish the statistical significance parameters. The calculated contribution indicated that the discharge current had the most influence (over the 50%) on the Sa, WL, and MRR, followed by the discharge time. The multi-response optimization was carried out using the desirability function for the three cases of EDM: Finishing, semi-finishing, and roughing. The confirmation test showed that maximal errors between the predicted and the obtained values did not exceed 6%.

The structure and hardness of the surface-welds and fusion-welds made on a 2017A aluminum alloy waveguide using the MIG and TIG methods with and without the participation of ultrasonic vibrations were examined. Cross-sections of the fusions and surface-welds thus obtained were observed in a microscope and the hardness distributions were determined. The aim of the study was to analyze the effects of the ultrasonic vibrations applied to the melted metal pool by a vibrating substrate which in our experiments was a waveguide. The interactions of the ultrasonic vibrations with the molten metal during its solidification and also with the heat-affected zone were examined at various phases of the vibration wave. The ultrasonic vibrations affected the structure of a weld. These changes are strongly depended on the wave phase.

The paper presents the microstructural investigation of a friction-welded joint made of 316L stainless steel with an ultrafine-grained structure obtained by hydrostatic extrusion (HE). Such a plastically deformed material is characterized by a metastable state of energy equilibrium, increasing, among others, its sensitivity to high temperatures. This feature makes it difficult to weld ultra-fine-grained metals without losing their high mechanical properties. The use of high-speed friction welding and a friction time of <1 s reduced the scale of the weakening of the friction joint in relation to result obtained in conventional rotary friction welding. The study of changes in the microstructure of individual zones of the friction joint was carried out on an optical microscope (OM), scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM) and electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD) analysis system. The correlation between the microstructure and hardness of the friction joint is also presented. The heat released during the high-speed friction welding initiated the process of dynamic recrystallization (DRX) of single grains in the heat-affected zone (HAZ). The additional occurrence of strong plastic deformations (in HAZ) during flash formation and internal friction (in the friction weld and high-temperature HAZ) contributed to the formation of a highly deformed microstructure with numerous sub-grains. The zones with a microstructure other than the base material were characterized by lower hardness. Due to the complexity of the microstructure and its multifactorial impact on the properties of the friction-welded joint, strength should be the criterion for assessing the properties of the joint.

The paper presents the results of research on the production by means of arc spraying of composite coatings from the Fe-Al system with participation of in-situ intermetallic phases. The arc spraying process was carried out by simultaneously melting two different electrode wires, aluminum and steel. The aim of the research is to create protective coatings with a composite structure with a significant participation of Fe_xAl_y as an intermetallic phases reinforcement. The synthesis of intermetallic phases takes place during the (in-situ) spraying process. Currently most coatings involving intermetallic phases are manufactured by different thermal spraying methods using coating materials in the form of prefabricated powders containing intermetallic phases. The obtained results showed the local occurrence of intermetallic phases from the Fe-Al system, and the dominant components of the structure have two phases, aluminum solid solutions in iron and iron in aluminum. The participation of intermetallic phases in the coating is relatively low, but its effect on the properties of the coating material is significant.

The paper describes the microstructure of welded joints produced by the plasma+MAG (Metal Active Gas) method of S700MC high yield strength steel (700 MPa). Welded joints of thermomechanical steel have been made with different values of heat input. The results of metallographic research of welded joints, microstructure of the weld and heat affected zone, hardness distribution and impact toughness are presented. The heat affected zone consists of two sub-zones with different grain size and lowered hardness. The tensile test show that strength of welded joints was slightly reduced and the bending test revealed no crack formation in the weld. The impact toughness of measured welded samples with V-notch in HAZ (heat affected zone) reached high values that are higher comparing to samples with notch placed in the weld area. The investigation results show that the use of plasma concentrated heat source together with MAG welding arc does not significantly change the structure and deteriorate properties of welded S700MC thermomechanically treated high strength steel. The hybrid plasma+MAG welding method has a potential to become a beneficial alternative to other welding processes due to its high efficiency, reduced amount of weld metal content or limited requirements for a preparation of edges of welded joints.

An extremely important issue in quality management is monitoring and diagnosing processes, and, subsequently, supervising them using so-called control charts. In typical production processes, charts with constant parameters are commonly used, such as x-R, x-s, CUSUM, EWMA and others, which, in most cases, are effective tools for process stability evaluation. Charts considered untypical (in statistical process control) are those with variable sample sizes, variable sampling intervals and/or variable control limits. Such charts are used when process analysis based on standard, well-known charts may lead to serious errors. Modern control charts are a response to the requirements of Industry 4.0 and are an excellent tool for supervising production processes. Their use together with Cp and Cpk indices and other process capability indices is a starting point for process improvement. The methodology of nonstandard charts is inadequately recognized and rarely used in practice. The theory of their design and examples of their use will be presented and characterized in this paper.