Research on the feasibility and machining experiment of the laser-milling combination machining for Kevlar fiber reinforced composite

Abstract

The Kevlar fiber-reinforced plastic (KFRP) had been received much attention and wide application in the field of weapon armor protection. There were many problems in mechanical processing, such as furry, difficult to chip removal, severe tool wear and so on. Many processing difficulties still remained. In order to avoid these defects of mechanical processing and these drawbacks, the laser-milling combination machining for KFRP was presented in this paper. The feasibility of the machining laser-milling combination machining was analyzed. The results show that the fiber carbonization zone and resin melting zone are observed after KFRP laser processing. In resin melting zone, the fibers are basically intact. The maximum kerf width is no more than 0.5 mm, and the kerf depth is less than 2 mm. The effects of the laser parameters on the kerf width a are relatively small, but that on the kerf depth h, fiber carbonization zone width A and resin melting zone width Am are significant. During milling of the laser-milling processing, the shape of the chip is big blocked and flocculent. If the fibers are incomplete ablation, the burrs are easy to occur. The burrs not only can be effectively avoided, but also the cutting forces and cutting temperature can be greatly reduced. Therefore, the processing quality can be improved and the degree of the processing difficulty can be reduced by using the laser-milling combination machining for KFRP.