Experimental analysis of oil based cavitation peening in air

Oil Jet Cavitation Peening in Air (OPA) is capable of inducing compressive residual stress in standard aerospace materials. This paper demonstrates the process capabilities of OPA on Al 2024-T3. Specifically, changes in the workpiece residual stress, microhardness, mass loss and surface roughness are investigated as a function of the control parameters for the system. Additionally, the paper identifies a method to monitor the process in situ through the use of high frequency acoustic emission sensors. The results indicate the OPA process is capable of generating residual stresses comparable to those of standard shot peening, up to 60% of the yield strength of the material, at similar depths, around 300 µm. Finally, the acoustic emission signal may be utilized to monitor the process, specifically in predicting the microhardness and mass loss of the system.MSCommittee Chair: Melkote, Shreyes; Committee Member: Danyluk, Steven; Committee Member: Yoda, Minam