Assessment of cutting force and surface roughness in LM6/SiCp using response surface methodology

Metal matrix composites are replacing the traditional material world because of their superior mechanical properties. Consequently, the necessity for accurate machining of the composite has increased drastically. The major problems while machining metal matrix composites are surface roughness and cutting force. The present work focuses on the study of the cutting conditions which influence the cutting force and surface roughness in terms of spindle speed, feed rate, axial, radial depth of cut and weight percentage of silicon carbide particle (SiCp). Central composite rotatable second order response surface methodology has been employed to create the mathematical model. The adequacy of the model has been verified using analysis of variance. The direct and interaction effects of the process parameters have been studied to keep the cutting force and surface roughness minimal.