Durability of micro diamond tools with different crystallographic planes

Abstract

Micro diamond tools are indispensable for machining microstructured arrays. The cutting edge durability and consistency of micro diamond tools are the determinants of the microstructure quality and accuracy, in addition to the motion accuracy of the machine tool. A strength distribution model of the working area including the cutting edge and rake and flank faces was established considering diamond anisotropy and chip flow direction. Comprehensive wear resistances of micro diamond tools with different crystal orientation combinations were analyzed based on the model, and the wear prone areas of different tools were successfully predicted. The evolution processes of the sharpness and wear topography were monitored for every micro diamond tool in the micromachining experiments. The morphologies, profile errors and topological characteristic of the microstructures machined with different micro diamond tools with increasing cutting distance were analyzed. Finally, a conclusion was drawn that the wear resistances of the micro diamond tools in ascending order are Aγ{100}Aα{100}, Aγ{100}Aα{110}, Aγ{110}Aα{100}, and Aγ{110}Aα{110}. The three working areas of the Aγ{100}Aα{100} tool are prone to wear; in contrast, those of the Aγ{110}Aα{110}tool are resistant to wear. The tool wear of Aγ{100}Aα{110}is caused by flank face wear, and that of Aγ{110}Aα{100} is caused by rake face wear.