Cryogenic turning of the Ti–6Al–4V alloy with modified cutting tool inserts

Productivity in the machining of titanium alloys is adversely affected by rapid tool wear as a consequence of high cutting zone temperature. Conventional cutting fluids are ineffective in controlling the cutting temperature in the cutting zone. In this research work, an attempt has been made to investigate the effect of liquid nitrogen when it is applied to the rake surface, and the main and auxiliary flank surfaces through holes made in the cutting tool insert during the turning of the Ti–6Al–4V alloy. The cryogenic results of the cutting temperature, cutting forces, surface roughness and tool wear of the modified cutting tool insert have been compared with those of wet machining. It has been observed that in the cryogenic cooling method, the cutting temperature was reduced by 61–66% and the surface roughness was reduced to a maximum of 36% over wet machining. The cutting force was decreased by 35–42% and the flank wear was reduced by 27–39% in cryogenic cooling over that of wet machining. Cryogenic cooling enabled a substantial reduction in the geometry of tool wear through the control of the tool wear mechanisms. The application of liquid nitrogen to the heat generation zones through holes made in the cutting tool insert was considered to be more effective over conventional machining.     

Investigation on tool wear and tool life prediction in micro-milling of Ti-6Al-4V

Short tool life and rapid tool wear in micromachining of hard-to-machine materials remain a barrier to the process being economically viable. In this study, standard procedures and conditions set by the ISO for tool life testing in milling were used to analyze the wear of tungsten carbide micro-end-milling tools through slot milling conducted on titanium alloy Ti-6 Al-4 V. Tool wear was characterized by flank wear rate,cutting-edge radius change, and tool volumetric change. The effect of machining parameters, such as cutting speed and feedrate, on tool wear was investigated with reference to surface roughness and geometric accuracy of the finished workpiece. Experimental data indicate different modes of tool wear throughout machining, where nonuniform flank wear and abrasive wear are the dominant wear modes. High cutting speed and low feedrate can reduce the tool wear rate and improve the tool life during micromachining.However, the low feedrate enhances the plowing effect on the cutting zone, resulting in reduced surface quality and leading to burr formation and premature tool failure. This study concludes with a proposal of tool rejection criteria for micro-milling of Ti-6 Al-4 V.     

钛合金超声振动辅助切削研究进展

超声振动辅助切削（UVAM）作为一种新颖而有效的加工技术,可有效提高工件的切削加工性能,被广泛应用于钛合金切削加工领域。主要综述了钛合金超声振动辅助切削技术的国内外研究进展,主要集中于降低钛合金切削的切削力、切削温度、刀具磨损和提高工件表面质量等方面,可以较好地提高钛合金的切削性能,进而阐述新技术结合应用研究的新进展。最后,展望了该研究领域未来的主要研究方向和发展前景。对工程应用可行性、微观组织演变规律和专用设备的开发等的研究,仍然是当下和未来的研究热点。     

Experimental Study of Surface Roughness and Tool Flank Wear during Hybrid Milling

Two advanced machining methods such as thermally enhanced machining and ultrasonic-assisted machining are recently considered in many studies. In this article, a new hybrid milling process is presented by gathering the characteristics of these two methods. In order to determine the axial depth of cut and engagement in the process, three-dimensional thermal finite-element analysis is applied to determine the dimensions of softened materials. Finite-element modal analysis is used to determine the dimensions and clamping state of the workpiece while cutting area has the highest vibration amplitude. Full factorial experimental design is applied to investigate the effect of hybrid machining parameters on the surface roughness and tool wear. Tool flank wear was investigated under the condition of constant cutting speed during different period of times. Hybrid milling process with an amplitude of 6 µm and a temperature of 900°C creates a surface with 42% lower roughness in comparison to conventional milling in feed 0.08 mm/tooth. In a study of tool flank wear, the results show that application of TEUAM decreases flank wear at least 16% in comparison to all other processes.     

Multiple Performance Optimization of Machining Parameters on the Machining of GFRP Composites Using Carbide (K10) Tool

The present investigation focuses on the multiple performance machining characteristics of GFRP composites produced through filament winding. Grey relational analysis was used for the optimization of the machining parameters on machining GFRP composites using carbide (K10) tool. According to the Taguchi quality concept, a L27, 3-level orthogonal array was chosen for the experiments. The machining parameters namely work piece fiber orientation, cutting speed, feed rate, depth of cut and machining time have been optimized based on the multiple performance characteristics including material removal rate, tool wear, surface roughness and specific cutting pressure. Experimental results have shown that machining performance in the composite machining process can be improved effectively by using this approach.     

Surface Roughness Analysis in Machining of Titanium Alloy

The use of response surface methodology for minimizing the surface roughness in machining titanium alloy, a topic of current interest, has been discussed in this article. The surface roughness model has been developed in terms of cutting parameters such as cutting speed, feed, and depth of cut. Machining tests have been carried out using CVD (TiN-TiCN-Al₂O₃-TiN) coated carbide insert under different cutting conditions using Taguchi's orthogonal array. The experimental results have been investigated using analysis of variance (ANOVA). The results indicated that the feed rate is the main influencing factor on surface roughness. Surface roughness increased with increasing feed rate, but decreased with increasing cutting speed and depth of cut. The predicted results are fairly close to experimental values and hence, the developed models can be used for prediction satisfactorily.     

Comparison of tool life and surface characteristics of uncoated,coated carbide and ceramic tools during machining of SiC reinforced ZA43 alloy MMC

Abstract

In the present investigation, machinability issues of zinc–aluminium (ZA43) alloy reinforced with silicon carbide particles (SiC) were evaluated. The fabrication of composite was done through liquid metallurgy technique. Metal matrix composite (MMC) was subjected to turning using conventional lathe with three grades of cutting tools, namely, uncoated carbide tool, coated carbide tool and ceramic tool. Surface roughness and tool wear were measured during the machining process. Results reveal that roughness increases with increase in the reinforcement concentration and particle size. Feed has direct influence on roughness, i.e. surface deteriorates with higher feeds. Depth of cut has very minimum effect on the surface roughness, while inverse effect of cutting speed on the roughness was observed (i.e. increase in the cutting speed leads to better finish on the specimen). Tool wear was studied during the investigation, and it was noticed that MMC with higher reinforcement concentration and particle size cause severe wear on the flank of the cutting tool. Increase in the cutting speed, feed and depth of cut also increases the flank wear on the tool. Out of all the three grades of tools, coated carbide tool outperformed uncoated carbide and ceramic tools.     

Improvement of Machinability using Laser-Aided Hybrid Machining for Inconel 718 Alloy

Hybrid machining is an emerging technique for difficult-to-cut materials to overcome the problems associated with conventional machining (CM). Inconel 718, a super alloy of nickel, is a high-temperature alloy commonly used in aircraft and thermal industries and categorized as one among the difficult-to-cut materials. In this study, the influence of cutting conditions of Inconel 718 alloy during laser-assisted hybrid machining (LAHM) is investigated and the results are compared with CM. During LAHM, the process parameters of cutting speed, feed rate, approach angle, and laser power are varied. The present work is carried out in two phases: (i) determination of effective heat-affected depth (HAD) during laser preheating (using central composite design (CCD) in response surface methodology); (ii) optimization of cutting conditions during machining (using Taguchi's method). Compared with CM, the LAHM shows the following reduction benefits: (i) 33% in feed force (Fx), 42% in thrust force (Fy), and 28% in cutting force; (ii) improved surface finish (surface roughness, Ra) of 28%; and (iii) reduction in tool wear by 50%. The chip morphology reveals the decrease in shear angle and increase in chip thickness during LAHM. No change in the hardness value of the machined surface after LAHM indicates the absence of subsurface damage.     

Study of the Effect of Machining Parameters on the Machining Characteristics in Electrical Discharge Machining of Fe-Mn-Al Alloy

In this work we investigated the electrical discharge machining (EDM) of a Fe-Mn-Al alloy. The surface phenomena caused by EDM were studied in terms of machining parameters. An empirical model of the Fe-Mn-Al alloy was also proposed based on the experimental data. Experimental results indicate that the higher the discharge energy, the faster the machining time. This treatment introduces machining damage in the resolidified surface layer and worsens the surface roughness. The optimum pulse-on duration on the basis of the electrode wear ratio for the copper electrode was about 200 μs. The increase of crater depth with the applied pulsed current and pulse-on duration appears minimal under a small input energy.     

Tool wear in cryogenic turning of Ti-6Al-4V alloy

Though titanium alloys are being increasingly sought in a wide variety of engineering and biomedical applications, their manufacturability, especially machining and grinding imposes lot of constraints. Rapid tool wear encountered in machining of titanium alloys is a challenge that needs to be overcome. Cryogenic machining with liquid nitrogen as coolant is being investigated by researchers to reduce the cutting zone temperatures and enhance the tool life. The effects of cryogenic cooling have been studied on growth and nature tool wear in the present investigation while turning Ti-6Al-4V alloy bars with microcrystalline uncoated carbide inserts under dry, wet and cryogenic cooling environments in the cutting velocity range of 70-100 m/min. Cryogenic cooling by liquid nitrogen jets enabled substantial improvement in tool life through reduction in adhesion-dissolution-diffusion tool wear through control of machining temperature desirably at the cutting zone.     

Studies on Machining Parameters While Milling Particle Reinforced Hybrid (Al6061/Al2O3/Gr) MMC

In this article, response surface methodology has been used for finding the optimal machining parameters values for cutting force, surface roughness, and tool wear while milling aluminum hybrid composites. In order to perform the experiment, various machining parameters such as feed, cutting speed, depth of cut, and weight (wt) fraction of alumina (Al₂O₃) were planned based on face-centered, central composite design. Stir casting method is used to fabricate the composites with various wt fractions (5%, 10%, and 15%) of Al₂O₃. The multiple regression analysis is used to develop mathematical models, and the models are tested using analysis of variance (ANOVA). Evaluation on the effects and interactions of the machining parameters on the cutting force, surface roughness, and tool wear was carried out using ANOVA. The developed models were used for multiple-response optimization by desirability function approach to determine the optimum machining parameters. The optimum machining parameters obtained from the experimental results showed that lower cutting force, surface roughness, and tool wear can be obtained by employing the combination of higher cutting speed, low feed, lower depth of cut, and higher wt fraction of alumina when face milling hybrid composites using polycrystalline diamond insert.     

On Applicability of Multilayer Coated Tool in Dry Machining of Aerospace Grade Stainless Steel

The present research work has been undertaken with a view to investigate the influence of CVD multilayer coated (TiN/TiCN/Al₂O₃/ZrCN) and cutting speed on various machining characteristics such as chip morphology, tool wear, cutting temperature, and machined surface roughness during dry turning of 17-4 PH stainless steel. In order to understand the effectiveness of CVD multilayer coated tool a comparison has been carried out with that of uncoated carbide insert. The surface roughness and cutting temperature obtained during machining with chemical vapor deposition (CVD) multilayer coated tool was higher than that of uncoated carbide insert at all cutting velocity. However, the results clearly indicated that CVD multilayer coated tool played a significant role in restricting various modes of tool failure and reducing chip deformation compared to its uncoated counterpart. Adhesion and abrasion were found to be dominating wear mechanism with flank wear, plastic deformation, and catastrophic failure being major tool wear modes.     

Vibration-Assisted Precision Machining of Steel with PCD Tools

This article presents experimental results of precision machining of steel alloys with polycrystalline diamond tools. Ultrasonic vibration-assisted cutting was tried out for expanding the application of diamond tools for high-precision and high-quality machining of ferrous materials. The experimental results show that compared with conventional turning, the cutting performance, in terms of cutting force, surface finish, and tool life, was improved by applying ultrasonic vibration to the cutting tool. The cutting forces and tool wear measured in vibration cutting are much lower than those in conventional cutting. The tool wear mechanism was discussed on the basis of the observation of wear zone.     

Experimental studies on the cryogenic machining of biodegradable ZK60 Mg alloy using micro-textured tools

Reducing the contact area between the cutting tool rake surface and chip promotes the machining performance of the work material and increases the tool life. Magnesium alloys are ductile-lightweight materials that form continuous chips during machining. The present investigation discusses the orthogonal turning of ZK60 magnesium alloy with linearly textured cutting inserts under both dry and liquid nitrogen (LN₂) cooling conditions. Linear grooves that are parallel and perpendicular to chip flow direction were created using Nd-YAG laser on the tungsten carbide cutting inserts. The effect of texturing combined with the application of LN₂ cooling is studied by evaluating the machining temperature and forces, microhardness, surface roughness and tool wear. Textured tools considerably minimize the liaison area of the chip with the rake plane compared to non-textured tools, which resulted in favorable effects in machinability. In case of cryogenic machining, textured tools substantially minimize the friction by the coupled effect of micro-pool lubrication and the formation of thin-film lubrication between the tool–chip/tool–work interfaces. Parallel-textured tools aided with cryogenic cooling exhibit superior performance during machining among the different types of tools employed in the present investigation.     

Machining Characteristics of Inconel 718 by Sinking-EDM and Wire-EDM

Inconel 718 superalloy has wide applications in several industries due to its excellent mechanical properties. However, it is very difficult to machine using conventional cutting and grinding because of its high strength at elevated temperatures. Electrical discharge machining (EDM) is an alternative competitive process to machine Inconel alloys by electrical erosion. However, machinability and surface characteristics of EDMed Inconel surfaces are poorly understood. This study focuses on the machining characteristics of Inconel 718 by Wire-EDM and Sinking-EDM with a new Cu-SiC electrode, respectively. Material removal efficiency, surface roughness, surface topography, surface alloying, and electrode wear have been characterized. It is found that the high toughness of Inconel 718 would be the major contributing factor to the absence of microcracks on the EDMed surface. The new fabricated Cu-SiC electrode for Sinking-EDM has better performance in terms of material removal rate (MRR), surface roughness, and electrode wear. The higher melting temperature and fine microstructure of SiC contribute to the lower electrode wear of the new Cu-SiC electrode than the traditional Cu electrode.     

Machining of 6061 aluminium alloy with MQL, dry and flooded lubricant conditions

This paper reports on the effect of different lubricant environments when 6061 aluminium alloy is machined with diamond-coated carbide tools. The effect of dry machining, minimum quantity of lubricant (MQL), and flooded coolant conditions was analyzed with respect to the cutting forces, surface roughness of the machined work-piece and tool wear. The three types of coolant environments are compared. It is found that MQL condition will be a very good alternative to flooded coolant/lubricant conditions. Therefore, it appears that if MQL properly employed can replace the flooded coolant/lubricant environment which is presently employed in most of the cutting/machining applications, thereby not only the machining will be environmental friendly but also will improve the machinability characteristics.     

Characterization of tool wear when machining alloy 718 with high-pressure cooling using conventional and surface-modified WC–Co tools

Coolant supplied by high pressure into the cutting zone has shown the lower thermal loads on the tool when machining difficult-to-cut materials as the Alloy 718. In this study, we investigate how the combination of high-pressure cooling and tool–surface modifications can lead to further improvements regarding tool life. The general approach is to enhance the coolant–tool interaction by increasing the contact area. Therefore, we machined cooling features into flank and rake faces of commercially available cemented tungsten carbide inserts. In this way, the surface area was increased by ~ 12%. After the cutting tests, the tools were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy combined with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. Compared with conventional tools, the tool modifications reduced the flank wear by 45% for the investigated cutting parameters. Furthermore, we were able to significantly increase the cutting speed and feed rate without failure of the tool. The investigated surface modifications have great potential to enhance the productivity of metal cutting processes.     

Materials and machining trends in terms of the existing axioms of the machining theory

The paper provides new insight into existing axioms of theory of machining. The existing theory of metalworking was based on the development of cutting materials during the 20^th century. In particular, the improvement of cutting materials, the new special materials and progressive technologies and the trends to increase cutting speed call for a review of existing definitions and relations. Appling previously defined relations between cutting conditions and results of machining, the inaccuracies occur and this may lead to an incorrect choice of cutting conditions in the specific conditions of machining. The paper analyses existing well‐known equations used in practice and on the basis of extensive experimental analysis it modifies them. Furthermore, the paper concerns the evaluation of physical and technological parameters, such as chips compression, machined surface roughness, cutting forces, cutting tool‐wear and tool‐life.     

Optimization of Machining Characteristics for Al／SiCp Composites using ANN／GA

The present work is focused on optimization of machining characteristics of Al/SiCp composites.The machining characteristics such as specific energy,tool wear and surface roughness were studied.The parameters such as volume fraction of SiC,cutting speed and feed rate were considered.Artificial neural networks(NN) was used to train and simulate the experimental data.Genetic algorithms(GA) was interfaced with ANN to optimize the machining conditions for the desired machining characteristics .Validation of optimized results was also performed by confirmation experiments.     

Experimental investigation of tool wear and chip formation in cryogenic machining of titanium alloys

Titanium alloys are one of the most important design materials for the aircraft industry.The high strength-to-density-ratio and the compatibility with carbon fibre reinforced plastic are the reasons for a raising application in this field.The outstanding properties lead to challenging machining processes.High strength and low heat conductivity affect high mechanical and thermal loads for the cutting edge.Thus,the machining process is characterized by a rapid development of tool wear even at low cutting parameter.To reach a sufficient productivity it is necessary to dissipate the resulting heat from the cutting edge by a coolant.Therefore the cryogenic machining of two different titanium alloys is investigated in this work.The results point out the different behavior of the machining processes under cryogenic conditions because of the reduced thermal load for the cutting tool.According to this investigation,the cryogenic cooling with CO_2enables an increase of the tool life in comparison to emulsion based cooling principles when machining theα+β-titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V.The machining process of the high strength titanium alloy Ti-6Al-2Sn-4Zr-6Mo requires an additional lubrication realized by a minimum quantity lubrication(MQL) with oil.This combined cooling leads to a smoother chip underside and to slender shear bands between the different chip segments.