Finite element analysis of stainless steel AISI 420 cutting process to predict cutting forces and temperature distribution in duratomic-coated cutting tool

Abstract

. The machining of stainless steel and other hard-to-machine materials in our days has become possible with the development of new cutting tools such as substrates and coating technologies. However, turning on high speeds results in high temperature and stress development at the chip-tool and workpiece-tool interfaces leading to faster tool wear, distortion of the workpiece surface finish, and increased tooling cost for processing the same amount of the parts. It is evident that the cost-effective application of this technology requires a fundamental understanding of the relationships between process variables (cutting forces, tool stresses, and temperatures developed) and performance measures (tool wear, tool life, and surface finish). Thus, modelling the high-speed machining (or HSM) process to predict process variables is an essential development to improve the cutting tool design and optimize the cutting conditions. During the process of changing cutting parameters, also the result might be different. It is possible to receive not appropriate machined surface roughness or the machining process itself (chip forming process could affect the machined result, as the cutting tool chipbreaker does not provide the recommended chip-breaking process). It is necessary to pre-define the experimental result using metal cutting simulation software. Several CAE programs are possible to be used for this process. The idea of this paper is to represent the theoretical simulation part of the research in the metal cutting process on the turning method, using Third Wave Advant Edge finite element (FEM) software. Today such methodology has become more popular. Calculation of areas of different physical dimensions using the finite element method (FEM) in the field under study requires determining the materials of the elements and their properties. First, deformation tasks determine the plastic properties – the modulus of elasticity and the Poisson coefficient. When performing 2-D analysis, it is possible to create the necessary geometry of the cutting tool in cross-section and enter all the material properties. The basic principle of analysing the finite element method is to divide the complex task into several simple ones and solve it with maximum accuracy. FEM is used for the particle formation process, temperature field, cutting force, voltage, and residual deformation distribution studies. In this paper the theoretical part of some machining process options and solving variants are given. In the practical part - the simulation result before practical experiment is represented.