Effect of PCBN tool grade and cutting type on hard turning of high-chromium white cast iron

Abstract

The turning of mechanical construction and bearing steels is widely carried out using PCBN and oxide ceramic tools, even when materials have high hardness (40 to 60 HRC), reached after quenching and tempering heat treatment. However, mechanical components submitted to severe abrasive loads show, in addition to matrix hardness, the presence of a high-volume fraction of hard particles in the microstructure. Turning materials with a high content of hard particles in the microstructure will result in high rates of abrasive wear or damage to the cutting edges of the tool. Information regarding the turning of materials characterized by a high-volume fraction of carbides in the microstructure is limited in literature. The objective of this study was to determine the performance of two grades of PCBN tools (high CBN and low CBN content with an added ceramic phase) in the turning of high-chromium white cast iron applying continuous and interrupted cutting. Evaluations of tools’ life, wear mechanisms at the tool cutting edges, roughness, and microstructure remaining on the turned surface were carried out. The results show that the grades with low CBN content and the addition of a ceramic phase, the tool life was three times longer than that of the grades with high CBN content. The most interesting result obtained concerns the microstructural modifications in a narrow subsurface layer of the turned material. Carbide fragmentation and alignment in the direction of the cutting shear plane were identified, which may potentiate the use of the material.