Energy Efficiency in Machining of Aircraft Components

High production costs and material removal rates characterize the manufacturing of aircraft components made of titanium. Due to competitive pressure, the manufacturing processes are highly optimized from an economical perspective, whereas environmental aspects are usually not considered. One example is the recycling of titanium chips. Because of process-induced contaminations they do not meet the quality required for recycling in high-grade titanium alloys. Thus the components need to be manufactured from primary material, which leads to a poor energy balance. This paper describes a methodology to increase the recycling rate and energy efficiency of the manufacturing process by investigating the influencing parameters on chip quality of the machining process with the aim to increase the chip quality to a recyclable degree under monetary aspects. The analysis shows that the recycling rate can be significantly increased through dry cutting, which also brings economic benefits.