An investigation into cutting fluid additives performance during machining processing of Ti-6Al-4V

The application of cutting fluids to the machining of titanium alloys has received increasing interest due to the severe tribological conditions occurring during this process. Cutting fluids are applied during the machining process to reduce tool wear, friction, and heat generation. This study was carried out to investigate the effect of polymer-based additives and phosphorus-based additives on the cutting fluid performance during the drilling of a titanium alloy, Ti-6Al-4V, under a constant metal removal rate (MRR) of 4.2 mm(3)/s. The tool wear and specific cutting energy (SCE) were evaluated to assess the performance of the additives in a cutting fluid. The performance of the additives was dependent on the drilling conditions. At the lower limit of the drilling conditions tested (500 RPM under 4.2 mm(3)/s MRR), the cutting fluid with high phosphorus concentration was able to achieve better lubricity. While at the higher limit drilling conditions (700-2500 RPM under 4.2 mm(3)/s MRR), the cutting fluid with primarily polymer-based additives was more effective at providing improved drilling performance. The improvement in the drilling performance of the cutting fluids was related to the formation of boundary layers associated with additives employed. An optimum range (providing the lowest SCE value) within the tested drilling conditions was noted for the cutting fluids.

Automated summary

This study investigated the effect of polymer-based and phosphorus-based additives on cutting fluid performance during the drilling of a titanium alloy, showing that different additives had varying effects on the performance under different drilling conditions.