Cutiing-Tool Materials and

Cutting Fluids

 Introduction
Cutting-tool material must possess the
following characteristics:

Hot hardness
Toughness and impact strength
Thermal shock resistance
Wear resistance
Chemical stability and inertness

 High-speed Steels
High-speed steel (HSS) tools are so named
because they were developed to machine at
higher speeds than was previously possible

Cast-cobalt Alloys
cast-cobalt alloys have the following
composition ranges: 38 to 53% Co, 30 to
33% Cr, and 10 to 20% W. Because of their
high hardness (typically 58 to 64 HRC), they
have good wear resistance and can maintain
their hardness at elevated temperatures.
They are not as tough as high-speed steels
and are sensitive to impact forces.

 Carbides
Tungsten Carbide
Tungsten-carbide tools generally are used
for cutting steels, cast irons, and abrasive
nonferrous materials and largely have
replaced HSS tools because of their better
performance.

Micrograin Carbides
These tool materials are stronger, harder,
and more Wear resistant, thus improving
productivity.

 Titanium Carbide
Titanium carbide is suitable for machining
hard materials (mainly steels and cast irons)
and for cutting at speeds higher than those
appropriate for tungsten carbide.

Inserts
Are individual cutting tools With several
cutting points.
Clamping is the preferred method of securing an
insert.

 Classification of Carbides

 Coated Tools

Lower friction
Higher adhesion
Higher resistance to wear and cracking
Acting as a diffusion barrier
Higher hot hardness and impact resistance

Coating Materials and Coating Methods

Commonly used coating materials are
titanium nitride (TiN), titanium carbide (TiC),
titanium carbonitride (TiCN), and aluminum
oxide (Al2O3)

 Coatings for cutting tools and dies should

have the following general characteristics.
High hardness at elevated temperatures, to
resist wear.
Chemical stability and inertness to the
workpiece material, to reduce wear.

 Low thermal conductivity, to prevent

temperature rise in the substrate.
Compatibility and good bonding to the
substrate, to prevent flaking or spalling.
Little or no porosity in the coating, to maintain
its integrity and strength.

Titanium-nitride Coatings
Titanium-nitride coatings have low friction
coefficients,high hardness, resistance to high
temperature, and good adhesion to the
substrate.

Titanium-carbide Coatings
Titanium-carbide coatings on tungstencarbide
inserts have high flank-wear resistance in
machining abrasive materials.

 Ceramic Coatings
chemical inertness, low thermal conductivity,
resistance to high temperature, and resistance
to flank and crater wear, ceramics are suitable
coating materials for tools.

Multiphase Coatings
Typical applications of multiple-coated tools are
as follows:
High-speed, continuous cutting: TiC/A1203
Heavy-duty, continuous cutting: TiC/ A1203/ TiN
Light, interrupted cutting: TiC/TiC + TiN/ TiN.

TiN: low friction

Al2O3: high thermal stability
TiCN: fiber reinforced with a good balance of
resistance to flank wear and crater wear,
particularly for interrupted cutting

 A thin-carbide substrate: high fracture

toughness
A thick-carbide substrate: hard and resistant to
plastic deformation at high temperatures.

Diamond Coatings
Diamond-coated tools are particularly effective
in machining nonferrous metals, abrasive
materials such as aluminum alloys containing
silicon, fiber-reinforced and metal-matrix
composite materials, and graphite.

Miscellaneous Coating Materials

Titanium carbonitride (TiCN) and titaniumaluminum nitride (TiAlN) chromium carbide
(CrC), zirconium nitride (ZrN) and hafnium
nitride (HfN).

 lon lmplantation
In this process, ions are introduced into the surface of
the cutting tool, improving its surface properties.The
process does not change the dimensions of tools.
Nitrogen-ion implanted carbide tools have been used
successfully on alloy steels and stainless steels. Xenonion implantation of tools is also under development.

Alumina-based Ceramics
Alumina-based ceramic tools have very high
abrasion resistance and hot hardness.
Chemically, they are more stable than high-speed
steels and carbides, so they have less tendency
to adhere to metals during cutting and a
correspondingly lower tendency to form a built-up
edge.

 Cubic Boron Nitride

Cubic boron nitride (CBN) is the hardest
material available. it is particularly suitable
for cutting hardened ferrous Braze and hightemperature alloys (see /mm' machining,and
for high-speed machining operations.

Silicon-nitride-based Ceramics
silicon-nitride (SiN) based ceramic tool
materials consist of silicon nitride with
various additions of aluminum oxide, yttrium
oxide, and titanium carbide. These tools have
high toughness, hot hardness, and good
thermal-shock resistance.

 Diamond
Of all known materials, the hardest
substance is diamond, As a cutting tool, it
has highly desirable properties, such as
low friction,high wear resistance, and the
ability to maintain a sharp cutting edge.
Diamond is used when a good surface
finish and dimensional accuracy are
required, particularly with soft nonferrous
alloys and abrasive nonmetallic and
metallic materials (especially some
aluminum-silicon alloys).

 Whisker-reinforced Materials and

Nanomaterials
Advances include the use of whiskers as
reinforcing fibers in composite cutting
tool materials.

High fracture toughness

Resistance to thermal shock
Cutting-edge strength
Creep resistance
Hot hardness

 Tool Costs and Reconditioning of

Tools
Tool costs vary widely, depending on the
tool material, size, shape, chip-breaker
features, and quality. The cost for a
typical 12.5-mm insert is approximately
(a) $5 to $10 for uncoated carbides, (b)
$6 to $10 for coated carbides, (c) $8 to
$15 for ceramics,(d) $50 to $60 for
diamond-coated carbides, (e) $60 to
$100 for cubic boron nitride, and (f) $90
to $125 for a diamond-tipped insert.

 Cutting Fluids
Cutting fluids have been used extensively in
machining operations to achieve the following
results:
Reduce friction and wear, thus improving tool life and the
surface finish of the work piece.
Cool the cutting zone, thus improving tool life and
reducing the temperature and thermal distortion of the
work piece.
Reduce forces and energy consumption.
Flush away the chips from the cutting zone, thus
preventing the chips from interfering with the cutting
process, particularly in operations such as drilling and
tapping.
Protect the machined surface from environmental
corrosion.