Experimental Evaluation of Laser-Assisted Micromilling in a Slotting Configuration

Abstract

Micromilling can be difficult to apply to many engineering materials due to a variety of scaling induced factors including low cutting speeds, high relative tool deflections and runout, and increased material strength at smaller size scales. To alleviate these problems, laser-assisted micromilling (LAMM) was evaluated on Ti6Al4V, AISI 422, and AISI 316 using 100 μm diameter endmills in slotting operations. A three-dimensional transient finite-volume based thermal model was used to analytically predict appropriate process parameters on the basis of material removal temperatures. A two-dimensional finite element model was created and used to show the effects of cutting edge radius, uncut chip thickness, and material removal temperature on the cutting force. A thorough experimental investigation of acoustic emissions (AEs) during LAMM was performed. In particular, the effects of depth of cut, tool wear, and material removal temperature on the root-mean-square of AEs were studied. The effects of LAMM on the machined surface finish and edge burrs were also evaluated.