Flank Wear on Rotary Tool When Turning Magnesium AZ31 at Air Cooling Condition

Abstract

Magnesium alloy is one of materials that the most used in industrial manufacturing was due to their characteristics are very light, unique strength-to-weight ratio, resistance to corrosion, and good thermal conductivity. However, the magnesium is also known as the material which has low flash point, so it is very easy to burn. High cutting temperature generated as long as machining process is considered as disadvantage, because the tool experiences wear rapidly, so that machining process efficiency decrease. It is automatically increase the total cost production. One of methods to decrease the temperature cutting generated by applying the rotary cutting system, in which the cutting edge experience cooling as far as a cutting period. The aims of this research is to get minimal wear on the cutting tool and then to imply the rotary tool system in cutting magnesium alloy at air cooling condition. Machining parameter setting are use carbide insert with diameter of 16 mm, magnesium AZ31 as work piece, air cooling with pressure of 6 bar, cutting speed of 80, 120, 180 m/min, feed rate of 0.10, 0.15, 0.20 mm/rev, and depth of cut constant at 3 mm. The flank wear on the cutting edge of tools were measured by using the microscope USB digital with maximum magnification by 1000x. The minimum flank wear is 0.286 mm and the wear rate average is 5.6%. Whereas the maximum flank wear is 0.448 mm and the wear rate average is 13.5%. Increasing of rotary tool speed, work piece speed and feed rate because the wear on cutting tool also increased. The wear progression pattern on the cutting tool is very fast at initial cutting and follows to regularly growth as long as the cutting process.