Experimental assessment of thermal and rheological properties of coconut oil-silica as green additives in drilling performance based on minimum quantity of cutting fluids

Abstract

Conventional metal working fluids are prepared from petroleum based mineral oils with toxic, carcinogenic, non-biodegradable and unsustainable additives, which can cause serious environmental contamination and health risks to operators. Formulations with non-toxic emulsifiers and natural additives such as vegetable oils are currently being considered for further development and use of non-toxic tribological products. This study is concerned with the thermal and flow properties of a cutting fluid (taladrine, T) mixed with a phase change material (PCM) coconut oil (CO) in a proportion of 1:9 (CO-0.1T) and hydrophilic silica in 0.01, 0.03 and 0.05 vol fractions. The thermal properties were evaluated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermal conductivity measurements while the flow properties were assessed by viscosity temperature curves. The addition of solid particles has demonstrated an enhancement of the thermal conductivities with small differences in the latent heat. The microstructure of the suspensions was established from the DSC cooling dynamic thermogram and the rheological measurements. These results were confirmed by the images of optical polarized microscopy in which plate-like needles were observed. The suspension of 0.03 silica in CO-0.1T demonstrated an adequate gel strength and produced a reduction of 11 °C in drilling performance. A Minimum Quantity of Cutting Fluid (MQCF) of 2 g as an alternative for dry machining and flood cooling. It also prevented evaporative loss and removed metal chips, as a high viscosity complex fluid. In this work the use of phase change materials filled with solid particles as a way of sustainable eco-friendly toxic waste removal in drilling was justified.