Investigation on effect of TiN, TiAlN & DLC-triple layer coated carbide tool in machining of Al-Si 4032 alloy

Abstract

Aluminium is a widely used metal in the world due to its abundance and easy to work with properties. One of the major users of aluminium are the auto and aero industries, since it reduces the weight of the vehicle significantly. The properties of aluminium can be customized with certain alloying components and there are plenty of combinations, among which Aluminium 4032 alloy is taken for this investigation. This Al -Si 4032 alloy is enriched in silicon content up to 13%. High presence of silicon leads to more amount of friction in machining hence the machining of this particular alloy has to be done with coated materials for enhanced results. The machining is carried out with the carbide inserts triple layer coated with Titanium Nitride (TiN), Titanium Aluminium Nitride (TiAlN) and Diamond like Carbon (DLC). These coated inserts are used to machine Al-Si alloy workpiece under various machining variables of speed, feed, depth of cut as well as in both dry and wet environments. Various parameters are premeditated from the experiments like surface roughness, tool wear, tool life and material removal rate. And the responses were recorded, optimization process is carried out with Minitab software tool to find the finest combinations for machining. The better results are found to be in wet environment machining condition.