Everything was ready except for the final touch. Liu Li was eager to begin her first principle verification. She chose a thin aluminum plate, the easiest to deform, as the test piece and carefully clamped it onto the makeshift fixture she had created.
Following the parameters she and Fu Jingchen had repeatedly calculated and determined, she began to crank the fine-tuning screws, attempting to apply a preset, inward prestress to the aluminum plate. Her movements were very gentle, her eyes fixed on the dial indicator pointer, watching it deflect slightly until it reached the predetermined mark.
"Okay..." she thought to herself, took a deep breath, and started the lathe.
The old lathe emitted a familiar hum as the spindle slowly turned. She selected a very low speed and a small feed rate, carefully bringing the cutting tool close to the edge of the aluminum plate, preparing to machine a simple step.
The blade made a slight cutting sound as soon as it touched the aluminum plate. Liu Li's heart jumped into her throat as she stared intently at the dial indicator, eagerly awaiting a stable reading after the deformation was compensated for.
However, things did not go as she had hoped.
The dial indicator needle jerked violently at first, then began to slowly but steadily deflect in one direction—the very direction she feared most: the aluminum plate bulging outwards!
Although the amount of offset was smaller than when no prestress was applied, the trend was completely wrong! The "reverse force" she applied did not seem to effectively resist the deformation caused by the cutting force.
After the turning was completed, she stopped the machine and removed the workpiece. A measurement with calipers confirmed that the dimensions of the machined area were indeed out of tolerance. While this was better than allowing the deformation to continue unchecked, it was far from achieving a "compensation and offsetting" effect.
The first experiment failed.
Looking at the still slightly bulging aluminum part in her hand, and then at the clamp on the bedside table that had consumed countless efforts of hers but now seemed somewhat useless, Liu Li felt a lump in her throat, heavy and a little astringent.
The mechanics who had been watching the commotion exchanged glances without saying anything, but their knowing looks still stung Liu Li.
The message was quickly relayed back to the technical team.
"As expected, it won't work. I told you it was too far-fetched."
"Several days were wasted, and materials from the warehouse were used up..."
"Her fixture is too crudely made; its precision is definitely insufficient."
The doubts and discussions were clearer and more jarring than before the experiment. Even colleagues who had previously remained neutral were secretly shaking their heads.
Zhou Wei found her, his tone relatively calm: "Liu Li, don't be discouraged. Failure is common when exploring new ideas. How about we put it aside for now and focus our energy on more stable directions?"
Liu Li lowered her head and didn't speak. She knew Zhou Wei meant well, but she was unwilling to give up.
She didn't rush to explain, nor did she immediately start a second attempt. She carefully put away the failed workpiece and fixture, then took the notebook containing her experimental notes and went alone to the small courtyard outside the workshop.
The cold wind blowing on her face made her feel much more awake.
Failure is a fact. But why did it fail?
She recalled every detail of the experiment: the process of applying prestress? Was the force still incorrect? Or was there a problem with the timing of application? Was the rigidity of the fixture insufficient, causing it to deform under the cutting force? Or had she simply not grasped the deformation pattern of the aluminum plate in this state?
The problem must be somewhere, and she has to find it.
She opened her notebook and, in the dim light of the yard, carefully checked every piece of data, recalling the feel of the operation and all the subtle phenomena she observed.
This failure, like a bucket of cold water, extinguished her initial excitement and eagerness, but it also made her more calm and clear-headed. She knew that the road to new ideas was never smooth. She had to find clues to success from this failure.
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