Design characteristics of new types of drill and evaluation of their performance drilling cast iron—II. Drills with three major cutting edges

This paper describes the performance characteristics of a new type of carbide head twist drill with four flutes, four major cutting edges, and one chisel edge. This drill shows great potential for significantly improving drilling accuracy and productivity. The drill produces holes that are as good as reamed holes. The body and point geometries and the cutting characteristics of the four-flute drill are described, along with the accuracies of hole location, angularity, size and roundness. Cutting forces, drill wear and chip morphology during cast iron drilling are also discussed. The four-flute drill deflects and vibrates much less than two-flute drills, especially in interrupted cutting cases. A patent is pending for this drill.     

Performance evaluation of endrills

This paper evaluates the performance of a relatively new type of drill called an endrill which is a cross between a drill and an endmill. Investigations into the effects of its cutting conditions on the drilling forces, surface finish, drill wear and hole oversize were carried out. It was found that endrills produced better quality holes than conventional twist drills, better surface finish and less oversize of the holes. Hence, with proper feed, speed and flow rate of the pressurized flushing coolant, a good finish of about R_a = 1 μm can be attained without reaming. Thus, the productivity of finished holes can be remarkably improved. Compared to twist drills, lower torque and thrust were observed which yielded improved tool life and reduced power consumption. No “walking phenomenon” was observed when this kind of drill was used and the amount of hole oversize was found to average about 0.7% of the drill diameter as compared to 1.6% when twist drills were used. Finally, general equations for the drill torque and thrust were derived from the experimental results.     

Effect of deviation on delamination by saw drill

Various cutting techniques are available to drill holes, but drilling is the most common way in secondary machining of composite materials owing to the need for structure joining. Twist drills are widely used in the industry to produce holes rapidly and economically. Since the twist drill has a chisel edge, increasing the length of a chisel edge will result in an increase in the thrust force generated. Whereas, a saw drill has no chisel edge; it utilizes the peripheral distribution of the thrust force for drilling. As a result, the saw drill can achieve better a machining quality in drilling composite laminates than twist drill. The deviation of cutting edge that occurs in saw drill would result in an increase of thrust force during drilling, causing delamination damage when drilling composite materials in particular. A comprehensive model concerning delamination induced by the thrust force of a deviation saw drill during drilling composite materials has been established in the present study. For a deviation saw drill, the critical thrust force that triggers delamination increases with increasing β. A lower feed rate has to be used with an increasing deviation saw drill in order to prevent delamination damage. The results agree with real industrial experience. A guide for avoiding the drill deviation during drill regrinding or drill wear has been proved analytically by the proposed model, especially when the deviation ratio (β) affects the critical thrust force. This approach can be extended to examine similar deviation effects of various drills.     

Effect of MQL on the tool life of small twist drills in deep-hole drilling

Drilling of deep and small boreholes using twist drills has to be considered as one of the most difficult metal cutting operations. There are many reasons for this, one of them being that the cutting fluid has to be supplied externally. This research work investigates in how far the manner of supplying and the type of minimum quantity lubricant have an effect on the tool life of coated and uncoated high-speed steel twist drills of 1.5 mm diameter. Deep-hole drilling is performed as the holes, drilled into plain carbon steel, had a depth of 10 times the diameter. The feasibility of dry machining as an appropriate alternative to MQL in deep-hole drilling has also been investigated. This work shows that, compared to a continuous supply of the minimum quantity lubricant, a discontinuous supply brings about a significant reduction in tool life, especially in the case of heat-sensitive drills. With respect to the type of minimum quantity lubricant, a low-viscous type with a high cooling-capability gave rise to a notably prolonged tool life. It is also shown that dry drilling is associated with strongly accelerated tool wear for most of the twist drills tested, resulting in a significant reduction in tool life.     

Effect of laminate configuration and feed rate on cutting performance when drilling holes in carbon fibre reinforced plastic composites

Composites use in the aerospace industry is expanding, in particular carbon fibre reinforced plastics (CFRP) for structural components. Machinability can however be problematic especially when drilling, due to CFRP's inherent anisotropy/in-homogeneity, limited plastic deformation and abrasive characteristics. Following a brief review on composites development and associated machining, the paper outlines experimental results when twist drilling 1.5 mm diameter holes in 3 mm thick CFRP laminate using tungsten carbide (WC) stepped drills. The control variables considered were prepreg type (3 types) and form (unidirectional (UD) and woven), together with drill feed rate (0.2 and 0.4 mm/rev). A full factorial experimental design was used involving 12 tests. Response variables included the number of drilled holes (wear criterion VB_Bmax ≤ 100 μm), thrust force and torque, together with entry and exit delamination (conventional and adjusted delamination factor values calculated) and hole diameter. Best results were obtained with woven MTM44-1/HTS oven cured material (3750 holes) while the effect of prepreg form on tool life was evident only when operating at the higher level of feed rate. Thrust forces were typically under 125 N with torque values generally below 65 Nmm over the range of operating parameters employed. Finally, the delamination factor (F_d) measured at hole entry and exit ranged between ～1.2–1.8 and 1.0–2.1 respectively.     

Increase of chip removal rate in single-lip deep hole drilling at small diameters by low-frequency vibration support

In order to promote active chip breakage in machining with single-lip drills for drilling deep holes with small diameters, vibration-assistance can be effectively applied. The aim of this work is to investigate the influence of low-frequency and high-amplitude vibration-assistance on the chip formation of age-hardened copper-zirconium for small diameters down to 0.94 mm and L/D-ratios up to 40. The interrelation of vibration and process parameters, like the resulting uncut chip thickness and effective velocity, is described by a kinematic model. The influence of the vibration-assistance on the chipping behavior is investigated by means of FEM-simulation and experimental analyses using a piezo-actuated test setup.     

Drill geometry and operating effects when cutting small diameter holes in CFRP

The paper details experimental results when drilling small holes (1.5 mm diameter cemented carbide drills with varying end point and helix geometry) in thin quasi-isotropic, unbacked carbon fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP) laminate (typical cutting time 0.4 s/hole). The study utilised an L12 Taguchi fractional factorial orthogonal array with analysis of variance (ANOVA) employed to evaluate the effect of drill geometry and drilling conditions on tool life and hole quality. Main effects plots and percentage contribution ratios (PCR) are detailed in respect of response variables and process control factors. More conventionally, tool wear and cutting force data are plotted/tabulated, together with micrographs of hole entry/exit condition and internal hole damage. Drill geometry and feed rate in general had the most effect on measured outputs. Thrust force was typically below 100 N at test cessation; however, drill wear progression effectively doubled the magnitude of force from test outset. Entry and exit delamination factors (F_d) of 1.3 were achieved while the maximum number of drilled holes for a tool life criterion VB_Bmax of ≤100 μm was 2900 holes using a stepped, uncoated drill with a feed rate of 0.2 mm/rev.     

麻花钻几何参数对不锈钢钻削性能影响的研究

采用ProE和Deform-3D软件分析了影响麻花钻钻411性能关健的几何参数,主要研究麻花钻横刃和顶角对不锈钢钻削过程中切削力、扭矩、刀具磨损的影响.介绍了缩短横刃长度和采用S形横刃螺旋面钻尖对不锈钢钻削力和扭矩的影响.重点分析了顶角影响主切削刃的长度、单位刃长的切削负荷、切削层中切削宽度与切削厚度的比例、切削中轴向力与扭矩、切屑形成与排屑情况.对于在钻削中,如何提高钻头的寿命,提高钻削加工的生产率和孔的加工质量具有重要的指导意义.     

A new 3D multiphase FE model for micro cutting ferritic–pearlitic carbon steels

A new three-dimensional multiphase finite element computation model is proposed for the simulation of micro drilling two-phase ferritic–pearlitic carbon steels in order to understand the cutting, ploughing, tribological and heat transfer mechanisms at the microscale. Based on the Split-Hopkinson-Pressure-Bar technique, a constitutive material law has been developed to model the thermo-mechanical material behaviour including the effect of the microstructure. Micro drilling tests using solid carbide twist drills with different diameters (d = 50 μm to 1 mm) were performed on ferrite–pearlite two-phase steel AISI 1045 for the verification of the developed 3D FE computation model regarding chip formation, feed force, and torque.     

Friction drilling of austenitic stainless steel by uncoated and PVD AlCrN- and TiAlN-coated tungsten carbide tools

Friction drilling utilizes the heat generated from the friction between the tool and the thin workpiece to form a bush for fixtures such as screw threads in plastic deformation process. This process produces no chip, shortens the time required for hole-making and incurs less tool wear, thus lengthening the service life of the drill. In this study, tungsten carbide drills with and without coating were employed to make holes in AISI 304 stainless steel, which is known to have high ductility, low thermal conductivity and great hardness. TiAIN and AlCrN were coated onto the drill surface by physical vapor deposition (PVD). Performance of coated and uncoated cutting tools was examined for drillings made under different spindle speeds. Changes in relationship between drill surface temperature, tool wear and axial thrust force during machining were also explored. Experimental results reveal that lubricating effect of the coating and low thermal conductivity of AlCrN caused AlCrN-coated drill to produce the highest surface temperature but the lowest axial thrust force with the least tool wear. However, the difference in performance between coated and uncoated drills diminished with increase in number of holes drilled.     

微米及纳米金刚石涂层扁钻的制备及其切削性能

目的研究微米金刚石薄膜(Microcrystalline diamond film,MCD film)和纳米金刚石薄膜(Nanocrystalline diamond film,NCD film)的微观组织结构和表面质量,以及由两种薄膜涂覆制成的微米金刚石涂层扁钻(MCD coated spade drill)和纳米金刚石涂层扁钻(NCD coated spade drill)在切削碳纤维增强复合材料(Carbon fiber reinforced plastics,CFRP)时的切削性能。方法采用热丝化学气相沉积法在硬质合金扁钻上分别制备MCD薄膜和NCD薄膜。使用扫描电子显微镜观察金刚石薄膜的表面和横截面形貌,利用白光干涉表面轮廓仪测量薄膜的表面粗糙度值,使用拉曼光谱仪检测薄膜的结构成分,利用X射线衍射仪(XRD)检测薄膜的晶体结构和晶面取向,通过切削实验分析无涂层刀具和微、纳米涂层刀具的切削性能。结果制成的MCD和NCD薄膜涂覆均匀,两种薄膜的厚度都为8μm,晶面取向均以(111)面和(220)面为主。MCD薄膜晶粒棱角分明,平均晶粒尺寸为2~3μm,NCD薄膜的表面更光滑,平均晶粒尺寸为100 nm。MCD和NCD薄膜测定区域的表面粗糙度值分别为0.4μm和0.24μm。在相同的切削条件下,无涂层刀具钻削30个孔后,刀具已经达到了报废标准,不能继续使用。两种金刚石涂层刀具各钻削50个孔后,MCD和NCD涂层刀具后刀面的最大磨损量分别为0.192 mm和0.093 mm,均没有超过磨钝标准VB=0.2 mm(后刀面磨损带宽度),其中NCD涂层刀具的耐磨性最好。结论 MCD和NCD薄膜,尤其是NCD薄膜,能够有效地提高硬质合金刀具的耐磨性,延长刀具的使用寿命。     

CVD diamond coatings on geometrically complex cutting tools

The manufacturing of chemical vapour deposition (CVD) diamond coated shaft type cutting tools is demanding due to the complex design of the cutting edges and the cobalt content of the cemented carbide. The influencing parameters of substrate, pre-treatment and diamond film on the tool cutting performance are discussed. The optimised manufacturing route of CVD diamond coated thread milling drills is identified with the use of material and tribological tests. Following the optimised production of the tools, the thread milling drills are then applied in the machining of AlSi17Cu4Mg, whereby the tool performance is characterised with respect to their wear behaviour, the process forces and temperatures as well as the workpiece quality.     

Improvement of Drill Performance in Metal Cutting Using MoST Solid Lubricant Coatings

METAL CUTTING or MACHINING plays a crucialrole in most manufacturing industries.New alloys andengineered materials that have to be machined are hard,tough,and abrasive and can also cause chemical wearof cutting tool materials.Depositing hard coatings on cutting tools is animportant development,which has enhanced cuttingtool performance as a result of providing higher wearresistance,lower friction,lower cutting forces,bettersurface finish of the workpieces,and longer tool life,which ena…     

Experimental characterization of micro-drilling process using nanofluid minimum quantity lubrication

This paper discusses the experimental characterization of the micro-drilling process with the nanofluid minimum quantity lubrication (MQL). The miniaturized drilling machine tool system is developed, and then a series of micro-drilling experiments are conducted in the cases of compressed air lubrication, pure MQL and nanofluid MQL. For the nanofluid MQL, nano-diamond particles having the diameter of 30 nm are used with the base fluids of paraffin and vegetable oils. For the micro-drilling process, an uncoated carbide twist drill having the diameter of 200 μm is used for making holes in the aluminum 6061 workpiece. The experimental results show that the nanofluid MQL significantly increases the number of drilled holes and reduces the drilling torques and thrust forces. In addition, the nanofluid MQL effectively eliminates remaining chips and burrs to enhance the quality of drilled holes.     

Cutting performance of different coatings during minimum quantity lubrication drilling of aluminum silicon B319 cast alloy

Cutting performance of cemented carbide drills with various coatings was investigated in detail under minimum quantity lubrication (MQL) conditions. An advanced dual-channel Bielomatik MQL system was installed in an Okuma machining center. A specially designed Mapal drill was selected for the studies to eliminate voids between the tool and the MQL tool holder that can interfere with mist delivery. Using this design, a mist flow rate of 25 mL/min was achieved through the drills.Progressive frictional/wear studies were performed. Coated drills were tested in three stages (50, 500, and 7000 holes). During short term drilling tests (50-hole level), cutting performance was comprehensively evaluated for a range of coatings by measuring several in-situ frictional characteristics of the cutting process, such as cutting forces, and related characteristics including, chip type and undersurface morphology. Wear patterns of the cutting tools were indentified as well. Selected coatings were tested further. The best cutting performance based on the 500-hole testing was found with the diamond coating. However, excessive brittleness of the entire coating/substrate system led to premature failure of the drill after 4300 holes. The low-hydrogen DLC coating that also showed promising cutting performance based on the 500-hole test was selected as the next candidate for further testing. Drills with low-hydrogen DLC coating achieved 7200 drilled holes with a flank wear of only 110 μm and moderate intensity of workpiece material pickup. This results in a better surface finish of drilled holes.Based on this study, the Mapal drills with the low-hydrogen DLC coating provided comparable machining performance to that possible with traditional wet machining, but with the environmental and cost advantages possible with MQL.     

基于枪钻的薄壁深孔加工工艺设计

在分析热交换板的深孔特点和枪钻加工工艺的基础上,提出了通过减小刀具径向切削力、增加导向条长度和增大薄壁处强度来改善薄壁深孔加工中孔轴线偏斜问题的加工方法,依此设计了4种枪钻加工工艺方法,并通过试验进行了对比,获得了理想的加工效果。     

Electro-spark coatings for enhanced performance of twist drills

Surface engineering approaches are being increasingly employed for enhancing the effective life of twist drills with a view to reduce machining costs. The electro-spark coating (ESC) technique provides a promising means of depositing wear resistant coatings that can potentially enhance the performance of these tools. However, it is often necessary to also optimize the machining conditions for coated tools to achieve an enhanced tool life. In the present investigation, varying spindle speeds were employed at a fixed vertical feed to evaluate the performance of WC-8Co ESC coated HSS drills in comparison to bare HSS drills. The number of holes drilled before reaching a preset average flank wear (0.5 mm), or catastrophic failure of the drill, was taken as the measure of tool life. The drill flank wear, monitored at regular intervals, as well as the cutting torque and thrust measured for all holes, were considered to be the key criteria for optimizing the cutting conditions. Results indicate that the WC-8Co coated drill tool life can be increased by a factor of more than 5, depending on the machining conditions selected. Furthermore, flank wear of the drill was found to increase rapidly at the end of drill life. Cutting torque data was also found to provide a useful indicator for predicting the end of tool life.     

The torque and thrust force in twist drilling—II. Comparison of experimental observations with deductions from theory

Published data are shown to conform with previously derived expressions relating the torque and the thrust to feed and drill diameter in drilling operations conducted with a set of geometrically similar twist drills. The model from which the theoretical expressions are derived is shown to be capable of explaining the apparently deviant behaviour observed when drilling workpieces which exhibit high adhesion. The model is based on the assumption that the removal process at the drill lips is quasi-orthogonal which is valid provided the drill diameter is sufficiently large compared to the chisel edge length. The behaviour observed with small diameter drills is shown to be consistent with the removal process becoming noticeably oblique. The consequences of geometric dissimilarity of drill shape are discussed.     

The application of polycrystalline diamond (PCD) tool materials when drilling and reaming aluminium based alloys including MMC

Following a review of metal matrix composite (MMC) materials and production methods, the paper outlines the development and application of PCD cutting tools. Experimental data are presented for the drilling and single blade reaming of aluminium-silicon alloys containing 7% and 13% silicon and aluminium 2618 MMC alloy reinforced with 15 vol% silicon carbide (SiC) particulate. Though initially aimed only at aerospace and defence products, MMCs have progressively moved into higher volume applications and are currently under evaluation for volume automotive components. Compared with standard hypoeutectic and hypereutectic cast aluminium-silicon alloys, tool wear when machining MMC is shown to be up to seven times more severe. Tools used for drilling include HSS-M2, diamond plated HSS, WC, TiN coated WC and PCD. Other than when using PCD drills, tool life was extremely short due to the abrasive nature of the (SiC) reinforcement. Similarly, results from PCD reaming tests confirmed that diamond tooling provides the only realistic tooling option.     

The performance of hydrogenated and non-hydrogenated diamond-like carbon tool coatings during the dry drilling of 319 Al

Aluminium alloys, though widely used in the automotive industry, are difficult to machine, particularly by drilling and tapping without the use of metal removal fluids, because of aluminium's strong tendency to adhere to the cutting tool. Tribological tests have revealed that carbon-based tool coatings, such as diamond-like carbon (DLC), promise an improved performance due to their low friction and adhesion. However, the tribological performance of DLC coatings depends on both their hydrogen content and the testing environments. Hence the experimental approach taken in this study was designed to understand the cutting performance of hydrogenated DLC (H-DLC) and non-hydrogenated DLC (NH-DLC) tool coatings during the dry drilling of a 319 Al (Al–6%Si) alloy. An experimental drilling station was built to measure torque and thrust force changes using a cutting speed of 2500 rpm and a feed rate of 0.25 mm/rev. The cutting performance was assessed by measuring the torques and thrust forces generated during the drilling of the first 150 holes or by drill failure—depending on which occurred first. The results indicated that superior cutting performance was achieved, in both torque and thrust force responses, using DLC-coated drills rather than uncoated high-speed steel (HSS) drills. The uncoated HSS drills failed after drilling only 49 holes as a result of excessive aluminium adhesion. At least 150 holes could be drilled using the DLC-coated drills, and both the torque and thrust forces generated during drilling were lower than those with uncoated HSS drills. In addition, a smaller proportion of holes exhibited abrupt increases in torque (at the end of the drilling cycle) during drilling with the DLC-coated drills. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) investigations showed that the H-DLC drill flutes displayed minimal aluminium clogging—resulting in lower torque. H-DLC coating also diminished metal transfer and buildup edge formation on the drill's flank face and cutting edge. Thus, torque and thrust force measurements, supported by metallographic data, indicated that H-DLC-coated drills provided better dry drilling performance than NH-DLC.