Development of a novel cubic boron nitride cutting tool with a textured flank face for high-speed machining of Inconel 718

Nickel-based superalloys such as Inconel 718 offer several advantages, including high-temperature strength and high corrosion resistance; this has led to a rapid increase in the demand for such materials, particularly in the aircraft industry. In contrast, these alloys are known to be among the most difficult-to-cut materials because of their mechanical and chemical properties, and tools used for this purpose have extremely short lifetimes. Recently, cubic boron nitride (CBN), which is the second hardest of all known materials, has received significant attention as a material for cutting tools and has already established itself in many fields of application. However, the performance of CBN tools is still insufficient for practical use, especially in the high-speed machining of Inconel 718. To overcome this problem, we first conducted orthogonal cutting experiments on Inconel 718 and performed cross-sectional observations of the CBN cutting tool in order to identify its wear mechanisms in continuous cutting operations under high-speed machining conditions (300 m/min). As a result, it was found that fatal tool failure occurs through crater and flank wear because of diffusion led by high cutting temperatures and subsequent chip adhesion to the tool flank face, accompanied by cutting edge chipping. Based on these results, a CBN cutting tool with a textured flank face was newly developed to improve the cutting tool life. Experimental: results showed that micro grooves generated on the flank face significantly suppressed the cutting edge chipping and remarkably extended the lifetime of the CBN tool during high-speed machining of Inconel 718.     

Wear behaviour of alumina based ceramic cutting tools on machining steels

The advanced ceramic cutting tools have very good wear resistance, high refractoriness, good mechanical strength and hot hardness. Alumina based ceramic cutting tools have very high abrasion resistance and hot hardness. Chemically they are more stable than high-speed steels and carbides, thus having less tendency to adhere to metals during machining and less tendency to form built-up edge. This results in good surface finish and dimensional accuracy in machining steels. In this paper wear behaviour of alumina based ceramic cutting tools is investigated. The machining tests were conducted using SiC whisker reinforced alumina ceramic cutting tool and Ti[C,N] mixed alumina ceramic cutting tool on martensitic stainless steel-grade 410 and EN 24 steel work pieces. Flank wear in Ti[C,N] mixed alumina ceramic cutting tool is lower than that of the SiC whisker reinforced alumina cutting tool. SiC whisker reinforced alumina cutting tool exhibits poor crater wear resistance while machining. Notch wear in SiC whisker reinforced alumina cutting tool is lower than that of the Ti[C,N] mixed alumina ceramic cutting tool. The flank wear, crater wear and notch wear are higher on machining martensitic stainless steel than on machining hardened steel. In summary Ti[C,N] mixed alumina cutting tool performs better than SiC whisker reinforced alumina cutting tool on machining martensitic stainless steel.     

Cooling performance of micro-texture at the tool flank face under high pressure jet coolant assistance

Micro-texture at the tool face is a state-of-the-art technique to improve cutting performance. In this paper, five types of micro-texture were fabricated at the flank face to improve the cooling performance under the condition of high pressure jet coolant assistance. By using micro-textures consisted of pin fins, plate fins and pits fabricated 0.3 mm away from the cutting edge, heat transfer from the tool face to coolant was enhanced. The conditions of tool wear, adhesion and chip formation were compared between the micro-textured and non-patterned tools in the longitudinal turning of the nickel-based superalloy Inconel 718. As a result, micro-textured tools always exhibited the reduced flank and crater wear compared with the non-patterned tool, and the rate of tool wear was influenced by the array and height of fin. The energy dispersive spectroscopy analysis of worn flank faces and the electromotive forces obtained from the tool-work thermocouple supported better cooling performances of micro-textured tools. In addition, coolant deposition at flank face evidenced that heat transfer could be promoted by micro-texture near the border of the contact area between the flank wear land and machined surface. Finally, the changes of flow patterns with pit depth are analyzed for pit type tools by computational fluid dynamics. This investigation clearly showed the function of micro-textures for increasing the turbulent kinetic energy and cooling the textured tool face.     

Evaluation of machining performance in cryogenic machining of Inconel 718 and comparison with dry and MQL machining

There has been significant work on establishing relationships between machining performance and the cutting parameters for various work materials. Recent trends in machining research show that major efforts are being made to understand the impact of various cooling/lubrication methods on machining performance and surface integrity characteristics, all aimed at improving process and product performance. This study presents the experimental results of cryogenic machining of Inconel 718, a high-temperature aerospace alloy, and comparison of its performance in dry and minimum quantity lubrication machining. Experimental data on force components, progressive tool wear parameters such as flank wear, notch wear, crater wear, cutting temperature, chip morphology, and surface roughness/topography of machined samples are presented. New findings show that cryogenic machining is a promising research direction for machining of high-temperature aerospace alloy, Inconel 718, as it offers improved machining performance in terms of reduced tool wear, temperature, and improved surface quality. It was also found that the number of nozzles in cryogenic machining plays a vital role in controlling cutting forces and power consumption in cryogenic machining of Inconel 718.     

Finish Machining of Nickel-Base Inconel 718 Alloy with Coated Carbide Tool under Conventional and High-Pressure Coolant Supplies

Single-point turning of Inconel 718 alloy with commercially available Physical Vapour Deposition (PVD)-coated carbide tools under conventional and high-pressure coolant supplies up to 20.3 MPa was carried out. Tool life, surface roughness (Ra), tool wear, and component forces were recorded and analyzed. The test results show that acceptable surface finish and improved tool life can be achieved when machining Inconel 718 with high coolant pressures. The highest improvement in tool life (349%) was achieved when machining with 11 MPa coolant supply pressure at higher speed conditions of 60 m · min^?1. Machining with coolant pressures in excess of 11 MPa at cutting speeds up to 40 m · min^?1 lowered tool life more than when machining under conventional coolant flow at a feed rate of 0.1 mm · rev^?1. This suggests that there is a critical coolant pressure under which the cutting tools performed better under high-pressure coolant supplies.

Cutting forces increased with increasing cutting speed due probably to reactive forces introduced by the high-pressure coolant jet. Tool wear/wear rate increased gradually with prolonged machining with high coolant pressures due to improved coolant access to the cutting interface, hence lowering cutting temperature. Nose wear was the dominant tool failure mode when machining with coated carbide tools due probably to a reduction in the chip-tool and tool-workpiece contact length/area.     

Optimization of surface roughness and flank wear using the Taguchi method in milling of Hadfield steel with PVD and CVD coated inserts

In this paper, the Taguchi method and regression analysis have been applied to evaluate the machinability of Hadfield steel with PVD TiAlN- and CVD TiCN/Al₂O₃-coated carbide inserts under dry milling conditions. Several experiments were conducted using the L₁₈ (2 × 3 × 3) full-factorial design with a mixed orthogonal array on a CNC vertical machining center. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to determine the effects of the machining parameters on surface roughness and flank wear. The cutting tool, cutting speed and feed rate were selected as machining parameters. The analysis results revealed that the feed rate was the dominant factor affecting surface roughness and cutting speed was the dominant factor affecting flank wear. Linear and quadratic regression analyses were applied to predict the outcomes of the experiment. The predicted values and measured values were very close to each other. Confirmation test results showed that the Taguchi method was very successful in the optimization of machining parameters for minimum surface roughness and flank wear in the milling the Hadfield steel.     

镍基合金Inconel718可切削加工性的试验研究

Inconel718是一种高强度耐热镍基合金,具有优良的高温强度、高温硬度和耐蚀性,在高温条件下能长期工作,已被广泛地应用于宇航工业、航空工业的涡轮发动机和相关零件的制造。分析Inconel718的机械性能、微观组织结构及其对切削加工性能的影响并进行了相关的试验验证,在试验数据的基础上,研究Inconel718中含碳量对切削过程中刀具磨损的影响。试验结果表明,Inconel718中含碳量在刀具后刀面磨损中起着非常重要的作用,Inconel718合金中含碳量越高,合金中所含的细微硬质夹杂物也越多,在切削过程中使刀具产生严重的后刀面磨粒磨损,从而降低材料的切削加工性。     

Performance and wear mechanisms of whisker-reinforced alumina, coated and uncoated PCBN tools when high-speed turning aged Inconel 718

Inconel 718, an efficient superalloy for energy and aerospace applications, is currently machined with cemented carbide tools at low speed (v _c?≈?60 m/min) due to its unfavorable mechanical and thermal properties. The article presents results of a study of superalloy machinability with whisker-reinforced alumina, uncoated and coated polycrystalline cubic boron nitride (PCBN) tools. Turning of age-hardened Inconel 718 (45 HRC) was done under high-speed machining conditions (v _c?=?250…350 m/min). Aspects of tool life, tool wear, and generated surface quality were studied. Application of uncoated PCBN tools resulted in surface quality and force level superior to other tool materials. Considerable sideflow of workpiece material was found to affect surface quality, especially for coated PCBN and ceramic tools. It was found that protective function of the coating, which increases the tool life up to 20 %, is limited only to low cutting speed range. EDX and AFM analyses suggested dominance of chemical and abrasive wear mechanisms. EDX mapping of worn tools pointed absence of diffusional wear for PCBN tools and intensive degradation of whisker reinforcement in ceramic tools due to diffusion of Ni, Fe, and Cr.     

Cutting forces,tool wear and surface finish in high speed diamond machining

We have investigated the cutting forces, the tool wear and the surface finish obtained in high speed diamond turning and milling of OFHC copper, brass CuZn39Pb3, aluminum AlMg5, and electroless nickel. In face turning experiments with constant material removal rate the cutting forces were recorded as a function of cutting speed between v_c = 150 m/min and 4500 m/min revealing a transition to adiabatic shearing which is supported by FEM simulations of the cutting process. Fly-cutting experiments carried out at low (v_c = 380 m/min) and at high cutting speed (v_c = 3800 m/min) showed that the rate of abrasive wear of the cutting edge is significantly higher at ordinary cutting speed than at high cutting speed in contrast to the experience made in conventional machining. Furthermore, it was found that the rate of chemically induced tool wear in diamond milling of steel is decreasing with decreasing tool engagement time per revolution. High speed diamond machining may also yield an improved surface roughness which was confirmed by comparing the step heights at grain boundaries obtained in diamond milling of OFHC copper and brass CuZn39Pb3 at low (v_c = 100 m/min) and high cutting speed (v_c = 2000 m/min). Thus, high speed diamond machining offers several advantages, let alone a major reduction of machining time.     

Wear behavior and mechanisms of alumina-based ceramic tools in machining of ferrous and non-ferrous alloys

In this paper, the machining performance and wear mechanisms of two alumina-based ceramic cutting tools (Al₂O₃/TiB₂ and Al₂O₃/TiB₂/SiC_w) in continuous turning of hardened steel and nickel based alloy (Inconel 718) were examined. Results showed that in turning of hardened steel performed under identical conditions, Al₂O₃/TiB₂/SiC_w tool exhibited lower flank wear resistance than that of Al₂O₃/TiB₂ tool, the mechanisms responsible for this were determined to be the strong atom bonding between SiC and Fe, and the whisker pullout from the matrix for Al₂O₃/TiB₂/SiC_w ceramic tool. In continuous turning of Inconel 718, the Al₂O₃/TiB₂/SiC_w tool showed greatly improved flank wear resistance compared to Al₂O₃/TiB₂ tool, adhesion and abrasion wear were found to be the dominant wear mechanisms, the adhesion and diffusion of Ni, and Cr of Inconel 718 to the tool rake face may accelerate the tool wear rates.     

Wear of Ceramic Cutting Tools in Ni-Based Superalloy Machining

The machining performance of monolithic and composite silicon nitride and Al₂O₃-based cutting tools in continuous turning of Inconel 718 was examined. The character of tool wear has been found to vary, depending on the feed rate and cutting speeds. At a lower cutting speed, of 120 m/min, tool life is restricted by depth-of-cut notching, while at high cutting speeds (300 m/min), tools fail due to nose wear and fracture. The sensitivity of monolithic Si₃N₄ and Al₂O₃ to depth-of-cut notching was found to he significantly reduced with the addition of SiC whiskers, and to a lesser extent with TiC particulates. The ceramic composites also exhibited resistance to nose and flank wear that was higher than that of the monoliths. The internal stress distribution for the cutting tool has been calculated using the finite element method and is the basis for explaining fracture beneath the rake face. Cutting tool wear results are discussed in terms of chemical and mechanical properties of the ceramic tool material, abrasive wear, thermal shock resistance, and metal cutting conditions.     

Wear and Tribological Performance of Different Ceramic Tools in Dry High Speed Machining of Ni-Co-Cr Precipitation Hardenable Aerospace Superalloy

Tool wear is an important machinability criterion. To reduce total machining costs, this study demonstrates the wear and tribological performance of four ceramic tools in dry high-speed turning of Ni-Co-Cr precipitation hardenable superalloy (Inconel 100). Wear of the tool materials and the structural and phase transformations at the tool–chip interface were investigated. Results obtained reveal that SiAlON ceramic outperformed other ceramic tool materials at different cutting speeds due to the formation of a large amount of mullite tribofilms on the tool face, which serve as a thermal barrier layer. Alumina ceramic with the addition of ZrO₂ can be recommended for machining Inconel 100 at speeds above 150 m/min due to its ability to form thermal barrier ZrO₂ tribofilms, which decrease the coefficient of friction at the tool–chip interface. Mixed alumina and an alumina matrix reinforced with SiC_w were found to be unsuitable for machining age-hardened Inconel 100 superalloy.     

Wear mechanisms of WC coated and uncoated tools in finish turning of Inconel 718

This paper presents the results of an experimental investigation on the wear mechanisms of uncoated tungsten carbide (WC) and coated tools (single-layer (TiAlN) PVD, and triple-layer (TiCN/Al₂O₃/TiN) CVD) in oblique finish turning of Inconel 718. Tool wear rate and wear mechanisms were evaluated for cutting speeds, 50<V<100 m/min, and feed rates, 0.075<f<0.125 mm/rev, at a constant depth of cut of 0.25 mm. It was concluded that abrasive and adhesive wear were the most dominant wear mechanisms, controlling the deterioration and final failure of the WC tools. While the triple layer CVD coated tools exhibited the highest wear resistance at high cutting speeds and low feeds, uncoated tools outperformed the single and multi-layer coated tools in the low range of cutting speeds and intermediate feeds. The cutting tool with single-layer PVD coating outperformed the other tools at the medium cutting speed.     

Tool wear analysis and improvement of cutting conditions using the high-pressure water-jet assistance when machining the Ti17 titanium alloy

This paper presents experimental results concerning the machinability of the titanium alloy Ti17 with and without high-pressure water jet assistance (HPWJA) using uncoated WC/Co tools. For this purpose, the influence of the cutting speed and the water jet pressure on the evolution of tool wear and cutting forces have been investigated. The cutting speed has been varied between 50 m/min and 100 m/min and the water jet pressure has been varied from 50 bar to 250 bar. The optimum water jet pressure has been determined, leading to an increase in tool life of approximately 9 times. Compared to conventional lubrication, an increase of about 30% in productivity can be obtained.     

Wear mechanism of coated tools in the turning of ductile cast iron having wide range of tensile strength

In this study different specimens of ductile cast iron with tensile strength ranking from 400 MPa to 675 MPa were turned with K15 carbide, TiN coated and TiAlN coated tool in order to investigate wear mechanism and performance. Cutting forces and cutting temperature were similar for both coated tools, however flank wear and BUE were the lowest on the TiAlN coated tool, for this reason the TiAlN coated tool is suitable in the machining of ductile cast iron. The proposed tool wear mechanism is based on like-intermittent cutting caused by the pass from hard matrix to the soft graphite occasioning wear by adhesion. The analysis of the flank wear on coated tools is proposed by means of the wear curves in logarithmic scale instead of the usual linear scale. In this way, the change in wear rate is easily observed. This phenomenon was related with the wear out of the coating layer. The partial loss of the coating layer on cutting edge was confirmed by the EDS mapping images and SEM photographs.     

Investigation and optimization of lubrication parameters in high speed turning of superalloy Inconel 718

Dry machining is sometimes less effective when higher machining efficiency, better surface finish quality, and severe cutting conditions are required. For these situations, semi-dry operations utilizing very small amount of cutting fluids called minimum quantity lubrication is expected to become a powerful tool and played a significant role in a number of practical applications. It has been observed from the literature survey that a systematic research work has to be carried out to determine the optimum quantity of lubricant with appropriate cutting conditions for achieving better machinability characteristics of a material. Hence, an attempt has been made in this paper to enhance the machinability characteristics in high speed turning of superalloy Inconel 718 using quantity of lubricant, delivery pressure at the nozzle, frequency of pulses, direction of application of cutting fluid, cutting speed, and feed rate as the process parameters. Results indicated that the use of optimized minimum quantity lubrication parameters under pulsed jet mode leads to lower cutting force, cutting temperature, and flank wear.     

Intelligent optimization and selection of machining parameters in finish turning and facing of Inconel 718

The heat-resistant super alloy material like Inconel 718 machining is an inevitable and challenging task even in modern manufacturing processes. This paper describes the genetic algorithm coupled with artificial neural network (ANN) as an intelligent optimization technique for machining parameters optimization of Inconel 718. The machining experiments were conducted based on the design of experiments full-factorial type by varying the cutting speed, feed, and depth of cut as machining parameters against the responses of flank wear and surface roughness. The combined effects of cutting speed, feed, and depth of cut on the performance measures of surface roughness and flank wear were investigated by the analysis of variance. Using these experimental data, the mathematical model and ANN model were developed for constraints and fitness function evaluation in the intelligent optimization process. The optimization results were plotted as Pareto optimal front. Optimal machining parameters were obtained from the Pareto front graph. The confirmation experiments were conducted for the optimal machining parameters, and the betterment has been proved.     

Improving machinability of Inconel 718 with a new hybrid machining technique

In this paper, by joining three non-traditional machining methods — plasma-enhanced machining, cryogenic machining, and ultrasonic vibration assisted machining — a new hybrid machining technique for machining of Inconel 718 is presented. Cryogenic machining reduces the temperature in the cutting zone, and therefore decrease tool wear and increases tool life, while plasma-enhanced machining helps to increase the temperature in the workpiece to make it softer. Also, applying ultrasonic vibrations to the tool helps to improve cutting quality and to prolong tool life by lowering, mainly, the cutting force and improving the dynamic cutting stability. This study experimentally investigates the effect of cutting parameters on cutting performance in the machining of Inconel 718 and compares the results of hybrid machining and conventional machining (CM). It is found that the hybrid method results in better surface finish and improves tool life in hard cutting at low cutting speeds as compared to the CM method.     

Effect of coating layer loss on the wear rate change of coated carbide tools in turning process

This paper reports an experimental study of flank wear on TiN- and TiAlN-coated carbide tools in the turning of AISI 1045, AISI 4135, ductile cast iron, and Inconel 718, and it was conducted with the purpose of showing the relationship between the change in wear rate and the loss of coating layer on the cutting edge. It was found that the relation between cutting distance and flank wear in log-log scale clearly shows the change in wear rate, thus providing a straightforward way to determine the relation between worn out coating layer and increase in wear rate. This relation was confirmed by analyzing the presence of coating layer before and after the inflection point appears by means of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) photographs. It was observed that the coating layer on the flank face is worn away and finally is worn out. However, even if the layer on the flank face is worn out, tool wear is suppressed as long as the coating layer on the cutting edge exists. On the other hand, when the coating layer on the cutting edge is worn out, the wear resistance of the tool depends on the substrate; thus, the wear rate increases. According to the results, as the cutting speed increases, the change in wear rate appears in a shorter cutting distance, making flank wear to be high. High pressure and high temperature act on the rake face; thus, thermal stability of the coating layer in the cutting edge is important. A low cutting speed decreases cutting efficiency, but a high cutting speed causes flank wear to be high; therefore, in order to optimize machining cost, an acceptable cutting speed, from the standpoint of tool wear, should be selected.     

Evaluation of the Machinability of Nickel-Base,Inconel 718, Alloy with Nano-Ceramic Cutting Tools

The machinability of difficult-to-cut aerospace alloys can be enhanced by the rapid development of cutting tool materials that can withstand machining at high-speed conditions. The performance of nano-grain size ceramic tool materials were evaluated when machining nickel base, Inconel 718, in terms of tool life, tool failure modes and wear mechanisms as well as component forces generated under different roughing conditions. Comparison tests were carried out with commercially available ceramic tool materials of micron-grain composition.

The test results show that the micron grain size commercially available tool materials generally gave the longest tool life. The dominant failure mode is nose wear, while some of the nano-ceramic tools were rejected mainly due to chipping at the cutting edge. This suggests that physical properties and mechanical stability of the cutting edge of the ceramic tools influence their overall performance. It is also evident that chemical compositions of the tool materials played a significant role in their failure. The alumina base ceramics are more susceptible to premature fracture than the silicon nitride base ceramics with higher fracture toughness.