Development of alumina–ceria ceramic composite cutting tool

Abstract

Ceramic cutting tool technology is advancing rapidly and new ceramic composite cutting tools are developed by improving their mechanical properties. In the present work, a new alumina ceramic composite cutting tool is developed by adding ceria to the alumina matrix. The alumina–ceria ceramic composite cutting tool insert shows improvement in the mechanical properties such as hardness and fracture toughness than the pure alumina ceramic cutting tool insert. Machining studies have been conducted using the newly developed alumina–ceria insert on grey cast iron workpiece. The machining performance is compared with the pure alumina insert and a commercial zirconia toughened alumina (ZTA) insert. The machining performance of the alumina–ceria insert is better than the pure alumina insert and is comparable with the commercial ZTA insert.