The year 2023 was successful for the Scientific Technical Committee STC "G". Forty-four people attended the STC G Winter Meeting in Paris in February, and seventy-two people attended the STC G meeting during Part II of the 72nd General Assembly in Dublin, Ireland, in August. The Winter Meeting and the General Assembly were both held in person.
Highlights of the STC G Winter Meeting included seven technical contributions and status updates for the 2023, 2024, and 2025 keynote papers. A proposal for a future keynote paper was also included. The technical contributions covered grinding of superhard cutting materials and SiC wafers, the impact on grinding conditions using PVD coatings for galvanic bonded superabrasives, simulation and modeling of tool grinding and unidirectional carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP), investigations on the use of 3D-printed metal-working fluid nozzles in energy efficiency and grinding performance, and the mechano-chemical surface treatment of precision components.
A future keynote paper “Abrasive finishing of additively manufactured components” was proposed and discussed. It was agreed that a formal proposal for the future keynote paper would be discussed and that the decision would be made in the STC G meeting during the 72nd CIRP General Assembly Part II in Dublin, Ireland, in August. The status of CIRP Novel Topics in Production Engineering (CNTPE) was updated followed by the CNTPE STC G section essay “Intelligent Grinding.” The STC G section editor will participate as a co-author in the STC G section essay. It was, therefore, agreed that the STC G secretary will review the essay as a substitute STC G section editor to avoid a conflict of interest.
The STC G contributions to Part I of the 72nd General Assembly included nine regular papers and the keynote paper entitled “Grinding of composite materials.” The keynote paper provided a comprehensive review, including a critical analysis of the material removal mechanisms and the surface integrity when grinding composite materials. Advanced grinding techniques, such as wheel and cooling-lubrication techniques, ultrasonic vibration-assisted grinding, belt grinding, and high-speed grinding, were presented. The common problems, strategies, and research directions were presented. Strategies for suppressing composite grinding damage were detailed. The keynote paper was well received.
The regular papers presented covered a wide range of topics, studies on single-grit wear and modeling in different materials, such as hardened steel and carbide fiber reinforced silicon carbide (SiCf/SiC), advanced process configuration in point grinding, machinability studies using a low-temperature nano-lubrification method in ultra-precision grinding of binderless tungsten carbide, fundamental studies on the plunge-roll rotary dressing of grinding wheels, development of a hybrid tool for compliant polishing of thin-walled freeform workpieces, design of a polishing pad for uniform material removal in double-sided polishing and the development of a chemo-mechanical slurry for close-to-atomic-scale polishing of LuNbO3 crystal.
Highlights of the STC G meeting in Part II of the 72nd General Assembly included six technical contributions, one laboratory presentation, recognition of the successful 2023 keynote paper, status updates of the 2024 and 2025 keynote papers, and a formal proposal for the 2026 keynote paper. The topics of the technical contributions included grinding optimization by combining thermal process modelling and Barkhausen noise measurement, the challenges in process design for industrial application of cryogenic grinding, the modeling of complex relations in tool grinding using clustering methods, simulation of process principles and material removal in vacuum suction blasting used for repair preparation of carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) structures, the aspects related to the magnetic abrasive finishing of perforated parts, and the smart ultraprecision finishing of fuel capsules for internal nuclear fusion.
The laboratory presentation showed the unique capabilities of the Advanced Manufacturing Research and Laboratories at the Raytheon Technologies Research Center (RTRC). The RTRC technology-focus areas include complex integrated systems, advanced materials and manufacturing, model-based digital thread (MBDT), autonomy-enabling technologies, electrification and sustainability, and disruptive technologies. A broad list of equipment for measuring force, power, vibration, and temperature and for studying the surfaces, subsurfaces, and topographies of machined and as-built parts was introduced. The success of the 2023 keynote paper was recognized. The progress of the 2024 and 2025 keynote papers was presented, and the contents were all approved. A formal proposal for the 2026 keynote paper “Abrasive finishing of the components made by additive manufacturing” was approved. It was decided that this keynote paper topic be forwarded to Liaison Committee as the future 2026 STC G keynote paper. Furthermore, ideas for potential future keynote paper topics were discussed among the audience. Suggestions included AI-enabled abrasive processing, abrasive processes for nonmetallic parts, sustainability in abrasive processes, tool grinding, grinding tools made using additive manufacturing, abrasive technology for polymers, and the future of grinding. It was suggested that proposals of the potential topics be presented for discussion in the STC G meeting in February 2024. The status of the essay “Intelligent Grinding” for the CNTPE was presented, and the contents were approved. A new essay “Efficiency Increase in Grinding Through Integrated Sensor Technology” for Volume 2 of the CNTPE was discussed, and the contents were provisionally approved. The decision for the proposed essay would be made in the February 2024 STC G meeting. STC G Chairwoman encouraged the audience to present technical contributions in the Winter Meeting in February 2024, especially in the fields covered by the future keynote papers. Any abrasive-related topics are also welcome.
Hitomi Yamaguchi, Chairwoman, STC G, 27th of October 2023