Thermally Assisted Ductile Mode Cutting

Abstract

The growing necessity for advanced manufacturing technologies brings forth initiatives to incorporate thermal effects in micromachining of difficult-to-machine brittle material. While conventional heating methods exist in the macroform and are infeasible for micro-cutting applications, the fundamental concepts of heating are miniaturized to enable ductile mode micro-cutting of brittle single crystals. In general, ductile–brittle transition of these hard materials undergoes a significant improvement with thermal assistance, but the fundamental cause is material specific and could be attributed to the thermal softening effect, phase transition, and slip system activation. In addition, several aspects of the most promising technological advancements in thermally assisted machining, micro-laser assisted machining, are discussed in relation to machining conditions and tool wear. Temperature measurement techniques are also covered with the emphasis on its importance in ensuring proper thermal control of the machining system.