1. Cutting-Tool Materials and Cutting Fluids
Chapter 21
Cutting-Tool Materials and Cutting Fluids

2. Introduction Cutting Tool Characteristics:
Maintaining hardness, strength, and wear resistance at elevated temperatures. This property ensures that the tool does not undergo any plastic deformation and thus retains its shape and sharpness.
Toughness and impact strength (or mechanical shock resistance), so that impact forces on the tool that are encountered repeatedly in interrupted cutting operations or forces due to vibration and chatter during machining do not chip or fracture the tool.
Thermal Shock resistance to withstand the rapid temperature cycling encountered in interrupted cutting.
Wear resistance so that an acceptable tool life is obtained before replacement is necessary.
Chemical stability to avoid or minimize any adverse reactions, adhesion, and tool-chip diffusion.

3. Introduction Tool Materials Categories: High-speed steels
Cast-cobalt alloys
Carbides
Coated tools
Alumina-based ceramics
Cubic boron nitride
Silicon-nitride-base ceramics
Diamond
Whisker-reinforced materials

4. Hardness of Cutting Tool Materials as a Function of Temperature
Figure The hardness of various cutting-tool materials as a function of temperature (hot hardness). The wide range in each group of materials is due to the variety of tool compositions and treatments available for that group.

5. General Properties of Tool Materials

6. General Properties of Tool Materials
The properties listed in the first column are useful in determining desirable tool-material characteristics for a particular application. For example,
Hardness and strength are important with respect to the mechanical properties of the workpiece material to be machined.
Impact strength is important in making interrupted cuts in machining, such as in milling.
Melting temperature of the tool material is important as compared to the temperatures developed in the cutting zone.
The physical properties of thermal conductivity and coefficient of thermal expansion are important in determining the resistance of the tool materials to thermal fatigue and shock.

7. General Characteristics of Cutting-Tool Materials

8. Operating Characteristics of Cutting-Tool Materials

9. Operating Characteristics of Cutting-Tool Materials

10. HIGH SPEED STEELS Good wear resistance, relatively inexpensive
Because of their toughness and high resistance to fracture, HSS are especially suitable for:
high +ve rake-angle tools
interrupted cuts
machine tools with low stiffness that are subjected to vibration and chatter.
HSS tools are available in wrought, cast, and sintered forms
They can be coated for improved performance
HSS tools may also be subjected to:
surface treatments for improved hardness and wear resistance such as case hardening for improved hardness and wear resistance
steam treatment at elevated temperatures to develop a black oxide layer for improved performance including a reduced tendency for built-up edge formation

11. HIGH SPEED STEELS Two basic types of HSS: Molybdenum (M series)
Up to about 10% Mo, with Cr, Vn, W, Co as alloying elements
Tungsten (T series)
12% -18% W, with Cr, Vn, and Co as alloying elements
M series generally has higher abrasion resistance than T series, undergoes less distortion during heat treating, and is less expensive

12. HIGH SPEED STEELS
Example 22.1: List the major alloying elements in HSS and describe their effects in cutting tools
Chromium improves toughness, wear resistance, and high-temperature strength.
Vanadium improves toughness, abrasion resistance, and hot hardness.
Tungsten and cobalt have similar effects, namely, improved strength and hot hardness.
Molybdenum improves wear resistance, toughness, and high-temperature strength and hardness.

13. CAST-COBALT ALLOYS 38%-53% Co, 30%-33% Cr, and 10%-20%W
High hardness, good wear resistance, can maintain their hardness at elevated temperatures
They are not as tough as HSS and are sensitive to impact forces
Stellite Tools
These alloys are cast and ground into relatively simple tool shapes.
used only for special applications that involve deep continuous roughing cuts at relatively high feeds and speeds, as much as twice the rates possible with HSS

14. CARBIDES
The previous tools possess the required toughness, impact strength, and thermal shock resistance, but they also have important limitations, particularly with respect to strength and hot hardness.
Carbides have:
Hardness over a wide range of temperatures.
high elastic modulus and thermal conductivity.
low thermal expansion.
Tungsten carbide (WC):
Composite material consisting of WC particles bonded together in a cobalt matrix
Manufactured with powder-metallurgy techniques
WC particles, 1-5 μm in size
As Co content increases, the strength, hardness, and wear resistance of WC decrease, while its toughness increases because of the higher toughness of cobalt

15. CARBIDES Titanium Carbide (TiC):
Higher wear resistance than WC but is not as tough
With a nickel-molybdenum alloy as the matrix, TiC is suitable for machining hard materials, mainly steels and cast irons, and for cutting at speeds higher than those for WC.

16. Inserts and Toolholders
Individual cutting tools with several cutting points
A square insert has 8 cutting points
The holes in the inserts are standardized for interchangeability
Figure Typical carbide inserts with various shapes and chip-breaker features: Round inserts are also available, as can be seen in Figs. 22.3c and The holes in the inserts are standardized for interchangeability in toolholders. Source: Courtesy of Kyocera Engineered Ceramics, Inc.

17. CARBIDES - Insert Attachment
Figure 22.3 Methods of attaching inserts to toolholders:
Clamping
Wing lockpins
Examples of inserts attached to toolholders with threadless lockpins, which are secured with side screws
Insert brazed on a tool shank
Figure Methods of mounting inserts on toolholders: (a) clamping and (b) wing lockpins. (c) Examples of inserts mounted with threadless lockpins, which are secured with side screws. Source: Courtesy of Valenite.

18. Insert Edge Properties
Insert shape affects strength of cutting edge
To further improve edge strength and prevent chipping, all insert edges are usually honed, chamfered, or produced with a negative land.
Figure Relative edge strength and tendency for chipping of inserts with various shapes. Strength refers to the cutting edge indicated by the included angles. Source: Courtesy of Kennametal, Inc.
Figure Edge preparation for inserts to improve edge strength. Source: Courtesy of Kennametal, Inc.

19. Insert Edge Properties

20. CARBIDES – General notes
Stiffness of the machine tool is of major importance when using carbide tools
Light feeds, low speeds, and chatter are detrimental because they tend to damage the tool's cutting edge.
Light feeds, for example, concentrate the forces and temperature closer to the edges of the tool, increasing the tendency for the edges to chip off
Low cutting speeds tend to encourage cold welding of the chip to the tool
Cutting fluids, if used to minimize heating and cooling of the tool in interrupted cutting operations, should be applied continuously and in large quantities.

21. ISO Classification of Carbide Cutting Tools

22. Classification of Tungsten Carbides According to Machining Applications
American National Standards Institute (ANSI),

23. COATED TOOLS
Because of their unique properties, such as lower friction and higher resistance to cracks and wear, coated tools can be used at high cutting speeds, reducing both the time required for machining operations and costs.
Coated tools can have tool lives 10 times longer than those of uncoated tools.

24. Relative Time Required to Machine with Various Cutting-Tool Materials
Figure Relative time required to machine with various cutting-tool materials, indicating the year the tool materials were first introduced. Note that machining time has been reduced by two orders of magnitude with a hundred years. Source: Courtesy of Sandvik.

25. COATED TOOLS - Coating Materials
Coatings thickness of 2-15 μm, are applied on cutting tools and inserts by the following techniques:
Chemical-vapor deposition (CVD), including plasma-assisted
Physical-vapor deposition (PVD)
Coatings for cutting tools, as well as dies, should have the following general characteristics:
High hardness at elevated temperatures
Chemical stability to the workpiece material
Low bonding to the substrate to prevent flaking or spalling
Little or no porosity
Honing of the cutting edges is an important procedure for the maintenance of coating strength; otherwise, the coating may peel or chip off at sharp edges

26. COATED TOOLS - Coating Materials
Titanium Nitride coating (gold in color):
low friction coefficient, high hardness, resistance to high temp, and good adhesion to the substrate.
perform well at higher cutting speeds and feeds
Flank wear is significantly lower than that of uncoated tools
do not perform as well at low cutting speeds because the coating can be worn off by chip adhesion
Titanium Carbide coatings:
on tungsten-carbide inserts have high flank-wear resistance in machining abrasive materials

27. Typical Wear Patterns on High-Speed-Steel Uncoated and Titanium-Nitride Coated Tools
Figure Schematic illustration of typical wear patterns of high-speed-steel uncoated and titanium-nitride coated tools. Note that flank wear is significantly lower for the coated tool.

28. COATED TOOLS - Coating Materials
Ceramics Coatings:
Chemical inertness
Low thermal conductivity
Resistance to high temperature
Resistance to flank and crater wear
Most commonly used ceramic coating aluminum oxide (Al2O3). However oxide coating generally bond weakly to the substrate.

29. COATED TOOLS - Coating Materials
Multiphase Coatings:
Carbide tools with 2 or 3 layers of such coatings.
Particularly effective in machining cast irons and steels.
Typical applications of multiple-coated tools:
High-speed, continuous cutting: TiC/Al2O3.
Heavy-duty, continuous cutting: TiC/Al2O3/TiN.
Light, interrupted cutting: TiC/TiC + TiN/TiN.

30. Multiphase Coatings on a Tungsten-Carbide Substrate
Figure Multiphase coatings on a tungsten-carbide substrate. Three alternating layers of aluminum oxide are separated by very thin layers of titanium nitride. Inserts with as many as thirteen layers of coatings have been made. Coating thicknesses are typically in the range of 2 to 10 μm. Source: Courtesy of Kennametal, Inc.

31. COATED TOOLS - Coating Materials
Multiphase Coatings:
Functions of coatings:
TiN: low friction
Al2O3: high thermal stability
TiCN: fiber reinforced with a good balance of resistance to flank and crater wear for interrupted cutting
A thin carbide substrate: high fracture toughness
A thick carbide substrate: hard and resistant to plastic deformation at high temperatures.

32. COATED TOOLS - Coating Materials
Diamond-Coated Tools:
Thin films are deposited on substrates with PVD and CVD techniques.
Thick films are obtained by growing a large sheet of pure diamond, which is then laser cut to shape and brazed to a carbide shank.
Diamond-coated tools are particularly effective in machining nonferrous and abrasive materials, such as Al alloys containing Si, fiber-reinforced and metal-matrix composite materials, and graphite.

33. COATED TOOLS - Coating Materials
Miscellaneous Coating Materials
Titanium carbonitride (TiCN) and titanium-aluminum nitride (TiAlN) are effective in cutting stainless steels.
TiCN (which is deposited through physical-vapor deposition) is harder and tougher than TiN and can be used on carbides and high-speed steel tools.
TiAlN is effective in machining aerospace alloys.
Chromium based coatings, such as chromium carbide (CrC), have been found to be effective in machining softer metals that tend to adhere to the cutting tool, such as aluminum, copper, and titanium.
Other new materials include zirconium nitride (ZrN) and hafnium nitride (HfN)
More recent developments are:
nanolayer coatings, including carbide, boride, nitride, oxide & combination
Composite coatings, using a variety of materials.

34. ALUMINA-BASED CERAMICS
Consist primarily of fine-grained, high-purity Al2O3. They are cold-pressed into insert shapes under high pressure and sintered at high temp; the end product is referred to as white, or cold-pressed, ceramics.
Additions of TiC and ZrO help improve toughness and thermal-shock resistance.
Alumina-based ceramic tools have very high abrasion resistance and hot hardness.
More stable than HSS and carbides, so they have less tendency to adhere to metals during cutting leading to lower tendency to form a BUE.

35. ALUMINA-BASED CERAMICS
Consequently, in cutting cast irons and steels, good surface finish is obtained with ceramic tools.
Ceramics lack toughness, and their use may result in premature tool failure by chipping or catastrophic failure.
Effective in high-speed, uninterrupted cutting operations.
-ve rake angles are preferred in order to avoid chipping.
Tool failure can be reduced by increasing stiffness & damping capacity of machine tools, mountings, & workholding devices, thus reducing vibration and chatter.

36. Ranges of Mechanical Properties for Groups of Tool Materials
Figure Ranges of mechanical properties for various groups of tool materials. See also Tables 22.1 through 22.5.

37. CUBIC BORON NITRIDE (CBN)
made by bonding mm layer of polycrystalline CBN to a carbide substrate by sintering under pressure
CBN tools are also made in small sizes without a substrate
Figure Construction of a polycrystalline CBNor a diamond layer on a TiC insert
Because CBN tools are brittle, stiffness of machine tool and fixturing is important in order to avoid vibration and chatter
to avoid cracking due to thermal shock, machining should generally be performed dry, particularly in interrupted cutting operations such as milling.
Figure Inserts with polycrystalline CBN tips (top row) and solid polycrystalline CBN inserts (bottom row)

38. Cubic Boron Nitride Inserts
Figure An insert of polycrystalline cubic boron nitride or a diamond layer on tungsten carbide.
Figure Inserts with polycrystalline cubic boron nitride tips (top row), and solid-polycrystalline cBN inserts (bottom row). Source: Courtesy of Valenite.

39. SILICON-NITRIDE BASED CERAMICS
Consist of SiN with various additions of Al2O3, yttrium oxide, and TiC
Toughness, hot hardness, and good thermal-shock resistance.
An example of a SiN-base material is sialon, composed of : Si, Al, On, and N
It has higher thermal-shock resistance than silicon nitride
recommended for machining cast irons and nickel-based super-alloys at intermediate cutting speeds
Because of chemical affinity to iron, SiN-based tools are not suitable for machining steels

40. DIAMOND Low friction High wear resistance
Ability to maintain sharp edge
Used when good surface finish and dimensional accuracy are req. (soft non-ferrous & abrasive non-metallic materials)
Low rack angles are generally used > strong cutting edge
Used at high speed
Most reasonable for light uninterrupted finishing cut
Diamond is not recommended for machining plain carbon steels or titanium, because of its strong chem. Affinity

42. Proper Methods of Applying Cutting Fluids
Figure Schematic illustration of the proper methods of applying cutting fluids (flooding) in various machining operations: (a) turning, (b) milling, (c) thread grinding, and (d) drilling.