A finite element model of high speed metal cutting with adiabatic shearing

A finite element model of a two-dimensional orthogonal cutting process is developed. The simulation uses standard finite element software together with a special mesh generator that is able to mesh the chip completely with regular quadrilateral elements and a strong mesh refinement in the shear zone for continuous and segmented chips. The techniques of remeshing and to ensure convergence of the implicit calculation is described. Results for the formation of segmented chips are presented and the segmentation process is studied. Of special interest is the occurrence of split shear bands. The influence of the elastic properties and of the cutting speed is also discussed. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.