Sustainable Dry Machining of Stainless Steel with Microwave-Treated Tungsten Carbide Cutting Tools

Abstract

This paper presents a research investigation conducted on the turning of stainless steel 316 material under a dry environment using microwave-treated cutting tool inserts. Plain tungsten carbide WC tool inserts were exposed to microwave treatment for enhancement of their performance characteristics. It was found that a 20-min microwave treatment resulted in the best tool hardness and metallurgical characteristics. These tool inserts have been used to machine SS 316 material following the Taguchi L9 design of experimental techniques. A total of eighteen experiments have been conducted by varying three main machining parameters, i.e., cutting speed, feed rate, and depth of cut, at three levels per parameter. It has been found that tool flank wear increased with all three parameters and surface roughness decreased. At the longest dept of cut, surface roughness increased. An abrasion wear mechanism was found on the tool flank face at a high machining speed and adhesion at low speed. Chips with a helical shape and low serrations have been investigated. Turning SS 316 at optimum machining parameters of 170 m/min cutting speed, 0.2 mm/rev feed rate, and 1 mm depth of cut, as obtained by the multiperformance optimization technique grey relational analysis, resulted in the best values of all machinability indicators: 242.21 µm tool flank wear, 3.81 µm mean roughness depth, and 34,000 mm3/min material removal rate, at a single parameter setting. In terms of research achievements, the percentage reduction in surface roughness is approximately 30% and represents an almost ten-fold improvement in the material removal rate. The combination of machining parameters of 70 m/min cutting speed, 0.1 mm/rev feed rate, and 0.5 mm depth of cut is optimum for the lowest value of tool flank wear when considered for single parameter optimization.

Energy Prediction Models and Distributed Analysis of the Grinding Process of Sustainable Manufacturing

“…As the heart of the manufacturing industry, machine tools are the largest contributor to environmental pollution [ 5 ] and have great energy-saving potential [ 6 ]. Numerous studies have addressed energy characteristics and improvement strategies in various machining processes [ 7 ]. Lower energy efficiency—less than 30%—has been identified as the primary cause of the huge waste of energy during machining [ 8 ].…”

Analysis of Tool Wear and Chip Morphology during Turning of AZ31B Magnesium Alloy under Dry Environment

“…Despite having excellent machinability, there are inherent hazards and limitations associated with the machining of magnesium and its alloys such as its high flammability during machining, soft and abrasive nature, poor heat conductivity, burr formation, machining-induced deformation, resulting in excessive tool wear, poor tool life, workpiece deformation, reduced machining efficiency, high tooling replacement cost due to tool wear, higher roughness, and poor dimensional accuracy [5,6]. The major concern in the machining of soft materials like aluminum and magnesium alloy is fire ignition in a dry environment due to the burning of fine chips and dust generated during cutting [7,8]. Therefore, extreme care and necessary machining precautions should be adopted during dry machining.…”

“…Recently, environmental awareness and stringent environmental regulations have motivated and compelled industry users to use dry machining to reduce the consumption of cutting fluids. The storage, use, and disposal of cutting fluids account for approximately 15% of total manufacturing costs [8]. Dry cutting is a key machining aspect of sustainable machining by eliminating cutting fluids and offering advantages such as reduced cost and ecological footprints.…”