Experimental Investigation of Tapped Thread Surface Roughness for Cast Aluminum Alloys

Abstract

Thread surface roughness is an important issue both in terms of thread quality and the lubricating effect of cutting fluid in the tapping process. In this work, experiments were conducted to investigate the flank surface roughness of tapped threads produced in cast aluminum alloy workpieces. A full factorial experiment was performed to study the effects of the machining parameters (workpiece material, cutting fluid and spindle speed) on the resulting thread flank surface roughness. Metallographic and Scanning Electronic Microscope (SEM) examinations of the thread flank surfaces were performed. Effects were calculated for the variables under study. Workpiece material type was identified as a statistically significant variable in influencing the thread surface roughness. Several other factors that appeared to play a role in producing the thread surface roughness variation observed in the experiments were also examined.