Comparative wear behavior studies of coated inserts during milling of NiCrMoV steel

This paper contains the results of a tool wear study conducted to compare the performance of three coated carbide inserts during milling of NiCrMoV steel. Wear behavior of CVD TiCN/Al2O3/TiN and PVD TiAlN/Al2O3/ZrN multilayer coatings was compared on the milling inserts with different designs (various chip breaker groove angles). To understand the wear process, detailed XRD and SEM/EDS analysis combined with Raman spectroscopy of the worn inserts have been performed. It was shown that the high chemical and thermal stability of the TiAlN layer in the PVD coating provides superior protection for the tool substrate after the outer coating layers have detached.

► Milling testing of NiCrMoV steel with different coated inserts.
► Wear performance of TiCN/Al2O3/TiN and TiAlN/Al2O3/ZrN coated WC inserts.
► Wear behavior by SEM/EDX and Raman spectroscopy of coated inserts during milling.
► Correlations between phase composition, microstructure and cutting performance.