Effect of Cryo-Treated Cutting Tool End Milling on Custom 450 Stainless Steel

Custom 450 stainless steel is the most desirable material across industries due to its widespread application in the aerospace, defense and marine industries. Stainless-steel materials are challenging to deal with and fall into the list of hard-to-process materials due to their low heat conduction coefficient and high mechanical properties. In this research work, end milling was carried out on Custom 450 stainless steel machined using TiAlN coated with tungsten carbide inserts that have been cryo-treated (CT) for 24 h (24 h) and 36 h (36 h), as well as untreated (UT) inserts. The inserts were evaluated in terms of feed force, feed rate and consistent depth of cut (ap) at various spindle speeds (S). Also examined were the tool morphology, chip anatomy and surface morphology of cryo-treated material compared to untreated inserts at various responses to cutting force (Fx, Fy, Fz), cutting temperature (Tc), vibration and surface abrasion. For inserts that have been cryo-treated for 36 h, the feed force (Fx) value was 44% and 5% less compared to inserts treated for 24 h and in UT inserts, respectively. Furthermore, for 24-h and 36-h CT inserts, feed force (Fx) was 12% and 20% less compared to a UT insert. Using 24-h cryo-treated inserts as opposed to UT inserts significantly reduced the surface roughness by 20%. Cutting inserts that have undergone cryogenic treatment have been observed to exhibit longer cutting tool life due to less wear and friction on the cutting edges.