Metal Cutting

There are two basic types of metal cutting:

 Orthogonal Cutting
 Oblique cutting

Orthogonal Cutting

If the cutting face of the tool is at 90o to the direction of the tool travel the cutting action is
called as orthogonal cutting.

Oblique Cutting

If the cutting face of the tool is inclined at less than 90 o to the path of the tool then the cutting
action is called as oblique cutting.

Orthogonal metal cutting Oblique metal cutting

Cutting edge of the tool is The cutting edge is inclined at

perpendicular to the direction
of tool travel.
The direction of chip flow is
perpendicular to the cutting
edge.
The chip coils in a tight flat
spiral
an angle less than 90o to the
direction of tool travel.
The chip flows on the tool
face making an angle.
The chip flows side ways in a
long curl.

Produces sharp corners. Produces a chamfer at the end

of the cut

Smaller length of cutting edge For the same depth of cut

is in contact with the work.
Generally parting off in lathe,
broaching and slotting
operations are done in this
method.
greater length of cutting edge
is in contact with the work.
This method of cutting is used
in almost all machining
operations.
Different types of chips produced during machining process :

There are three different types of chips. They are

 Continuous chips,
 Discontinuous chips and
 Chips with built up edge.

Continuous chips

 These are long spiral shape chips that are produced when cutting ductile materials at high
cutting speed with efficient lubrication.
 It produces a good surface finish.
 They are difficult to handle and dispose of. To break them off you need to use a chip breaker.

Discontinuous chips

 These are short chips.

 They are produced from machining hard/ brittle materials.
 They are easy to dispose of.
 They result in a good surface finish.

Chips with built up edge

 This is the same continuous chips but their edges are built up and it welds onto the cutting tool.
 They follow a pattern of increase- decrease- increase
Cutting tools

A cutting tool or cutter in the context of machining is any tool that is used to remove material
from the workpiece by means of shear deformation. Cutting tools can be classified as either:

 Single point cutting tool

 Multi point cutting tool

Single-point tools remove material by means of one cutting edge. They are used in turning, shaping,
planing and similar operations,

Multi point cutting tools remove material by means of more than one cutting edge. They are used in
drilling, milling, grinding.
Cutting tools must be made of a material harder than the material which is to be cut, and the tool must
be able to withstand the heat generated in the metal-cutting process.

Also, the tool must have a specific geometry, with clearance angles designed so that the cutting edge
can contact the workpiece without the rest of the tool dragging on the workpiece surface.
Required properties of cutting tool material:

Hot hardness:

This is the ability of the material to with stand very high temperature without loosing its cutting
edge. The hardness of the tool material can be improved by adding molybdenum, tungsten, vanadium,
chromium etc which form hard carbides. High hardness gives good wear resistance but poor mechanical
shock resistance.

Wear resistance:

The ability of the tool to withstand wear is called as wear resistance. During the process of
machining, the tool is affected because of the abrasive action of the work piece. If the tool does not
have sufficient wear resistance then there are possibilities of failure of cutting edge. Lack of chemical
affinity between the tool and work piece also improve wear resistance.

Toughness:

This property posses limitation on the hardness of the tool because of very high hardness the
material becomes brittle and weak.

Low friction:

In order to have a low tool wear and better surface finish the co-efficient of friction between the
tool and chip must be low. The thermal conductivity must be high for quick removal of heat from chip
tool interface.

In addition to the above, it must possess the following mentioned properties.

 Mechanical and thermal shock resistance,

 Ability to maintain the above properties at the high operating temperatures.
 Should be easy to regrind and easy to weld the tool.
Tool geometries:

Rake Angles

This is the angle the cutting face makes with the work.

There are two rake angles, namely the back rake angle and side rake angle, both of which
help to guide chip flow.

There are three types of rake angles: positive, negative, and zero.

Positive is suitable for machining soft, ductile materials (like aluminum) and negative is for cutting hard
materials, where the cutting forces are high (Hard material, high speed and feed).
Clearance Angle

This is the angle between the flank of the cutting tool and the direction of the cutting action.

*flank- the surface of the tool facing the work piece

There are two basic clearance angles:

 Side clearance
 Back clearance

Factors affecting the life of a cutting tool

Tool life is the time for which the tool will operate satisfactorily until it becomes blunt. It is the time
between two successive grinds.

Following are the factors influencing tool life.

Cutting speed:

It has the greatest influence. When the cutting speed increases, the cutting temperature increases. Due
to this, hardness of the tool decreases. Hence the tool flank wear and crater wear also occurs easily.

Feed and depth of cut:

The tool life depends upon the amount of material removed by the tool per minute. For a given cutting
speed if the feed or depth of cut is increased, tool life will be reduced.
Tool geometry:

Large rake angle reduces the tool cross section. Area of the tool which will absorb heat is reduced. So
the tool will become weak. Hence correct rake angle must be used for longer tool life. If the cutting
angle increases, more power will be required for cutting. Clearance angle of 10o to 15o is optimal.

Material Construction

The type of material from which the cutting tool is made also affects the tool life. Harder materials will
last longer.

Use of cutting fluids and lubricants

Using cutting fluids will increase tool life and vice versa.

Cutting Fluids

These are the fluids we use during the cutting operation.

Functions of cutting fluids:

 To cool the tool and work piece and carry away the heat generated from cutting zone. It is
essential to maintain a temperature of 200o C for carbon tools and 600o C for HSS.
 At low speeds the surface finish obtained by using cutting fluids is better than what is obtained
without using cutting fluids.
 To wash away the chips and keep the cutting region free.
 It helps to keep the freshly machined surface bright by giving a protective coating against
atmospheric oxygen and thus protect the finished surface from corrosion.
 Cutting fluids improves machinability and reduces machining forces.
 To prevent the expansion of work piece and
 To cause the chips to break into small parts rather than remain as long ribbons which are hot
and sharp and difficult to remove from work piece.

Requirements of cutting fluid:

A cutting fluid should posses the following properties:

 High heat absorption to remove the heat developed immediately,

 Good lubricating properties to have a low coefficient of friction,
 High flash point to avoid fire hazard,
 Stability must be high to that it does not oxidize with air,
 It must not react with chemical and must be neutral,
 Odorless, so that at high temperatures, it does not give a bad smell,
 Harmless to the skin of operators,
 Harmless to the bearings,
  Should not have a corrosive action on the machine or work piece,
 Cutting tool must be transparent so that the cutting action could be observed,
 Low viscosity to permit the free flow of the cutting tool and
 It must be economic.

Choice of a cutting fluid depends upon type of operation, material of tool and work piece, rate of metal
removal and cost of cutting fluid.

Types of cutting fluids:

Water based cutting fluids:

In this water is mixed with soluble oil and soaps. Following are the important characteristic features.

It is an excellent cooling medium having maximum amount of specific heat,

The disadvantage in using this is that it causes rust and corrosion,

But a mixture of water and oil provides the best lubricating properties

The ratio of oil to water is different for different machining process. The usual ratio are

Operation Ratio

Turning 1:25

Milling 1:10

Drilling 1:25

Grinding 1:50
Oil based cutting fluids:

These are fixed oil and mineral oil. Fixed oil has greater oiliness to become gummy and decompose
when heated.

To combine stability of mineral oil with lubricating properties of fixed oils they are often mixed.

There are different types of oil based cutting fluids. They are soluble oils, straight fatty cutting oils,
sulphurised and aqueous solution.

Following are the different types of cutting fluids based on different operating conditions.

 Straight mineral oils for light duty and high speed work.
 Mineral oil for light and medium duty.
 Mineral oil with extreme pressure additives, such that they are suitable for heavy duty and
 Mineral oil and extreme pressure additives for the heaviest duty.

Application of cutting fluids:

The cutting fluids may be applied to the cutting tool in the following ways.

1. Flood application (Hi-jet application):

Here there is a continuous stream of cutting fluid is directed to the cutting zone with the help of
nozzle. The used cutting fluid drops into a tank at the bottom. Before it is re-circulated by the pump, it
passes through many filters to remove chips and dirt. In some applications the cutting fluid is supplied
through the tool itself and directed along the flank face of the tool. Though economic it is not adopted
universally because the high pressure jet may be dangerous to the operation.

2. Mist method of application:

In this the cutting fluid is atomized the order of 10 - 25 m. The mist is sprayed on cutting zone at
high velocities of about 300 mpm and more under high pressure. This method is used in all cutting
operation, but is generally more useful with high hardness work materials. The benefits of this process
are listed below.

 Due to high velocity the heat is dispersed immediately and maintains desired temperature
gradient near tool surface.
 The surface area of coolant is greater when compared to flood application and hence increases
the cooling capacity.
 Due to expansion of the mist in the issuing nozzle, it temperature falls down considerably.
The basic components of the system are:

 Air pump with air storage,

 Cutting fluid container
 Piping and
 Spray nozzle.

Effect of cutting fluid on cutting speed, tool life and chip concentration:

Cutting speed:

When a cutting fluid is used for machining the productivity may be increased from 15% to 30% more
when compared with dry operation as high speeds may be used.

Tool life:

By using cutting fluids effectively during machining operations the tool life increases. Carbon steel rods
have less heat resistant have maximum increase in tool life for HSS it is around 25%.

Chip concentration:

Without the use of cutting fluid chips are accumulated near the work tool interface and are difficult to
remove because of its high temperature. By the use of cutting fluid the temperature of the chip is
reduced and also the chips are washed away from the work tool interface.