Abstract
Carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) composites are widely used in the aerospace field because of their outstanding lightweight material characteristics, tensile strength, and stiffness properties. The tools used in composite machining exhibits different cutting performance and machining quality under different cutting conditions. The combination of tool material, tool geometry, and cutting conditions strongly influence the tool life and surface quality of the machined parts. Edge trimming of CFRP blanks with tungsten carbide two flute end mill cutter was conducted. The operation was carried out on a computer numerical control (CNC) router by varying cutting speed, feed speed, and depth of cut. Experimental results indicated that the wear of carbide tools is characterized by abrasive wear and rounding of the cutting edge. This occurred mainly by hard abrasion of the carbide grains. Tool life was observed to be inversely proportional to cutting speed, feed speed, and depth of cut. An expanded tool wear equation with power, average temperature, and resultant force as independent variables provided higher tool wear predictive capabilities. To check the adequacy of the regression model, validation runs were conducted. The experimental tool wear obtained from validation experiments were compared with the tool wear obtained using regression. An approximate average error of 5 % confirms that the experimental and regression tool wear values are very close. The equations and analysis permit trimming of CFRP to be designed such that tool wear is optimized and well forecasted.
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Abbreviations
- f :
-
Feed rate
- V :
-
Cutting speed
- L :
-
Cutting length
- d :
-
Depth of cut
- A :
-
Average temperature
- F :
-
Resultant force
- P :
-
Power
- T w :
-
Tool wear
- R :
-
Correlation coefficient
- R 2 :
-
Coefficient of determination
- SEE :
-
Standard error of estimate
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Acknowledgments
This work is supported by the applied research program of Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi and Strata Manufacturing PJSC, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates.
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Deviprakash Jyothi Devan is a Ph.D. student at the Oklahoma State University, United States. He completed his Master’s degree from Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi, UAE and Bachelor’s degree from Kerala University, India. All his majors are in Mechanical Engineering. His research interest is in composite machining, electromechanical and surface characterization, energy storage devices and batteries.
Fahad Almaskari is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Aerospace Engineering, Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi. He received a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from University of Manchester, UK. His specialization is in solid mechanics and his research interests include modeling and testing of composite materials.
Jamal Sheikh-Ahmad is a Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi. He received a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from North Carolina State University, United States in 1993. His research focuses in the areas of machining polymer composites, friction stir welding and energy efficiency, metal machining by both traditional and nontraditional techniques.
Farrukh Hafeez is a Lecturer in the Department of Mechanical Engineering in the School of Engineering, University of Birmingham, Dubai. He received a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from University of Manchester, UK in 2010. His research interest is in mechanics, machining, and damage of composites.
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Devan, D.J., Almaskari, F., Sheikh-Ahmad, J. et al. A study on tool wear of tungsten carbide cutters in edge trimming of CFRP. J Mech Sci Technol 36, 2499–2510 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12206-022-0432-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12206-022-0432-z