Effect of Temperature on Tool Wear During Milling of Ti64

Abstract

In recent years, the development of new, increasingly resistant materials limit machining productivity. This observation is especially true for titanium alloys. The state-of-the-art shows that one of the phenomena responsible for tool wear is temperature. The high temperature is explained by the low thermal conductivity of the alloy and its high mechanical properties. Consequently, high temperatures generated when cutting speeds are increasing lead to very rapid wear phenomena. However in milling, the period during which the insert is not in contact with the material may allow it to cool but its effect is not clearly established. In order to correlate tool wear and cutting temperatures in milling, an experimental bench has been developed. In turning and therefore with a fixed tool, the milling conditions are recreated and allow to measure the temperatures on the cutting face. Two parameters were tested: (i) radial depth, which influences the tooth stress time, and (ii) the cutting speed, which is the fundamental parameter of the cutting temperature. Experimentally, it appears that increasing radial engagement and cutting speed reduces tool life and increases temperatures. However, the phenomenological analysis is not immediate. The relationship between these phenomena is based on a heat balance of the cutting process. The use of an infrared (IR) camera in this problem and a specific analysis method allow observing the temperature gradients on the cutting face making the analysis more robust compared to the thermocouple technic. It thus appears that the increase in radial engagement leads to a higher tool temperature, but the analyses show above all a higher temperature within the insert and therefore more difficult to evacuate.