Investigation of micro-textured cutting tools used for face turning of alloy 718 with high-pressure cooling

Abstract

There is an increasing demand to improve the service life of cutting tools during machining of heat resistant superalloys (HRSA). Various studies showed that textured cutting tools improved the tribological properties and reduced cutting forces, temperature, and tool wear. Surface texturing can be seen as a futuristic design to improve the performance of the cutting tool and to increase productivity. However, only limited research has been conducted in machining superalloys with textured inserts and high-pressure coolant. In this work, three different micro texture designs on both rake and flank face are investigated in combination with high-pressure coolant in machining Alloy 718. Due to better tool life predictability, carbide cutting tools are used in machining components made from superalloys. However, the disadvantage is that machining can only be done at lower cutting speed/feed rate/depth of cut with high tool wear rates. The experimental investigation using different tool wear analysis methods showed that the combination of a cylindrical dimple on the rake and the square pyramid texture on the flank surface improved the wear resistance of the tool. An increase in tool life of about 30% was achieved as compared with a regular insert for the investigated cutting conditions. Different levels of adhering workpiece material were observed on the rake face of textured tools. Furthermore, the chip backside showed imprints from the tool textures. The tool textures on the rake face have influenced the tool-chip friction conditions during cutting.