Machining austempered ductile iron - impact of the cutting edge geometry on tool wear and surface quality

Abstract

In general, the performance of cutting tools is determined by its cutting material specification, macrogeometrical shape, cutting edge design and coating. The cutting edge geometry can be considered as one of the most important factors for optimising cutting tools. By using cutting edge preparation, tools can be tailored to the machining task. A homogeneous preparation is either applied to resist high loads in the machining process or to optimise the resulting surface. Inhomogeneous cutting edge preparations can individually be designed to the machining task to match both target criteria simultaneously. In the following article, the cutting edges of tungsten carbide indexable inserts were prepared homogeneously and inhomogeneously. Tool wear and machining results during turning and drilling austempered ductile iron (ADI) 900 were investigated.