Air jet assisted machining of nickel-base superalloy

Nickel-base superalloy has various excellent properties. However, in machining of this alloy, acceleration of tool wear results in short tool life and deterioration of the surface integrity. Therefore, it is difficult to conduct high-speed machining of this alloy. In this study, nickel-base superalloy was finish-turned with a coated cemented carbide tool at higher cutting speeds. A new lubrication method called air jet assisted (AJA) machining was applied for improving cooling and lubrication environment. The results of cutting experiments showed that the air jet assistance to the conventional wet machining extended the tool life to a certain extent effectively. Flow of cutting fluid was visualized through computational fluid dynamics analysis and improvement of cooling environment and tool life by means of air jet assistance in AJA machining were discussed from the heat transfer at the tool flank face.

► A new lubrication method called AJA machining was applied to nickel-base superalloy.
► AJA machining was effective for extending tool life.
► Flow of cutting fluid was visualized using computational fluid dynamic analysis.
► CFD analysis revealed the advantage of AJA machining over wet machining.