Experimental investigations on the performance of nanoboric acid suspensions in coconut oil during milling operation on Al 6061-T6 alloy

Abstract

The manufacturing industry nowadays is facing various environmental regulations and is in the process of development of new techniques to minimize use of chemical-based lubricants during machining processes. The heat generated in the cutting zone during machining play critical role in determining the workpiece quality and tool life etc. These cutting fluids are widely employed to dissipate the heat generated during machining; but they also put severe ill effects on the environment and health of workers. Hence, it is important to explore environment friendly alternatives of the chemical based cutting fluids. Coconut oil has been used in machining industries as such cutting fluid because of its higher thermal and oxidative stability. The present work investigates the use of Nanoboric acid suspensions in Coconut oil during milling operation on Al6061-T6 alloy. Variation of cutting tool temperatures and surface roughness under different cutting speeds and fluid flow rates are investigated. The cutting temperature increases with increase in cutting speed and decrease in fluid flow rate. Surface roughness decreases with increase in cutting speed and fluid flow rate, respectively. It was also found that minimum cutting temperature and surface roughness are obtained in case of 0.5% weight of Nanoboric acid suspension in Coconut oil.