A decision-making framework model of cutting fluid selection for green manufacturing and a case study

Pursuing the green manufacturing (GM) of products is very beneficial in the alleviation of environment burdens. In order to reap such benefits, GM is involved in every aspect of manufacturing processes. During the machining process, cutting fluid is one of the main roots of environmental pollution, with the optimal selection of cutting fluid for GM being an important path to reduce the environmental pollution. The objective factors of decision-making problems in the traditional selection of cutting fluid are usually two: quality and cost; but from the viewpoint of GM, environmental impact (E) should also be considered. In this paper, a multi-object decision-making model of cutting fluid selection for GM is put forward, in which the objects of quality (Q), cost (C) and environmental impact (E) are considered together. In this model, E means to minimize the environmental impact, Q means to maximize the quality, and C means to minimize the cost. Each objective is analyzed in detail also. A case study on a decision-making problem of cutting fluid selection in the hobbing process of a gear is analyzed, the result showing that the model is practical. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.