Influence of the Workpiece Material and Cooling Condition on the Texture Obtained through Ultrasonic Vibration-Assisted Machining

Abstract

Ultrasonic Vibration-Assisted Machining (UVAM) has been investigated as one of the most suitable methods to imprint patterns on metal surfaces. Actually, UVAM, as a consequence of the superimposition of a high-frequency and small-amplitude vibration to the cutting tool motion, makes possible the generation of micro-textured surfaces. On the basis of the vibration pattern and parameters, cutting process and tool characteristics, micro-dimples of different morphology and dimension can be obtained. However, the literature review has evidenced that none of the available studies considered the influence of the cooling conditions as well as the workpiece material on the obtainable dimples geometry. To this aim an UVAM experimental campaign was carried out at varying cutting speed, workpiece material and cooling conditions. Then, the surface finish was evaluated in terms of dimples size and surface roughness. Experimental results showed that deeper dimples are obtained for materials characterized by higher elastic modulus and machined under cryogenic cooling.