Experimental investigation to study the effect of solid lubricants on cutting forces and surface quality in end milling

Milling is a widely employed material removal process for different materials. It is characterized by high material removal rate. Machining leads to high friction between tool and workpiece, and can result in high temperatures, impairing the dimensional accuracy and the surface quality of products. Application of conventional cutting fluid may not effectively control the heat generation in milling. Besides, cutting fluids are a major source of pollution. Solid lubricant assisted machining is an environmental friendly clean technology for desirable control of cutting temperature. The present work investigates the role of solid lubricant assisted machining with graphite and molybdenum disulphide lubricants on surface quality, cutting forces and specific energy while machining AISI 1045 steel using cutting tools of different tool geometry (radial rake angle and nose radius). The performance of solid lubricant assisted machining has been studied in comparison with that of wet machining. The results indicate that there is a considerable improvement in the process performance with solid lubricant assisted machining as compared to that of machining with cutting fluids.