Methodological and parametric studies of machinability of carbon and alloy steels

Abstract

The carbon and alloy steels form an increasingly diverse variety and range of steels in manufacturing industries. The assessment of the machinability of an engineering material becomes a matter of prime activity to improve productivity. The machinability of carbon and alloy steels is affected by many factors, such as the composition, microstructure, and strength level of the steel; the feeds, speeds, and depth of cut; and the choice of cutting fluid, cutting tool material and its geometry. Thus the machinability is an intrinsic technological property which is complex to understand and difficult to determine. This paper discusses different methodology of determining the machinability and its rating/index. One of the methodologies, the face turning method in particular, shall be used to determine the machinability of carbon and alloy steel. Further it deals with identifying the appropriate cutting parameters to test the machinability in an effective, simple and easy way. The research work findings here provide useful economic machining solution of knowing, in advance, the machinability of steels to gain and maintain a competitive advantage. © 2013 CAFET-INNOVA TECHNICAL SOCIETY.