Modelling of CBN tool crater wear in finish hard turning

The wear of cubic boron nitride (CBN) cutters, commonly used now in the finish turning of hardened parts, is an important issue that needs to be addressed for hard turning to be a viable technology due to the high costs of CBN cutters and the down-time for tool change. Chipping and tool breakage, which lead to early tool failure, are both prone to take place under the effect of crater wear. The objective of this study is to develop a methodology to model the CBN tool crater wear rate to both guide the design of CBN tool geometry and optimise cutting parameters in finish hard turning. First, the wear volume losses due to the main wear mechanisms (abrasion, adhesion, and diffusion) are modelled as functions of cutting temperature, stress, and other process attributes respectively. Then, the crater wear rate is predicted in terms of tool/work material properties and cutting configuration. Finally, the proposed model is experimentally validated in finish turning of hardened 52100 bearing steel using a low CBN content insert. The comparison between the prediction and the measurement shows reasonable agreement and the results suggest that adhesion is the main wear mechanism over the investigated range of cutting conditions .