Grindability improvement of Ti-6Al-4V using cryogenic cooling

Abstract

Titanium and its alloys are well known for their difficult machinability nature. Because of Ti-6Al-4V alloy’s strong chemical affinity, high temperature and pressure during the grinding process, the formed chips easily weld onto the grinding wheel surface. This phenomenon reduces the wheel life and diminish the surface quality. To control the effect of temperature, most grinding operations today employ cutting fluids. These fluids help in improving the surface quality and increasing the wheel life. However, because of environmental and economic concerns, industries are now looking for sustainable alternative cooling techniques such as cryogenic cooling. The aim of this study is to present the application of liquid nitrogen cryogenic cooling as an alternative cooling technique for grinding Ti-6Al-4V alloys. To compare the effect of cryogenic condition, experiments were conducted under both dry and wet (soluble oil) conditions. Experimental results proved the effectiveness of cryogenic cooling in reducing the grinding force, obtaining better surface finish, and being less damaging to the surface condition. Finally, multiple regression models were developed to predict the normal force and tangential force in cryogenic condition. The developed models have been validated with experimental data, and the maximum prediction error of the model for normal and tangential forces was less than 12% and 9%, respectively.