2/17/2011 Cool Tips for Cutting Titanium

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James Benes
12/21/2007

It is not difficult to understand why automotive, medical,

chemical, micro-component and, especially, aerospace
designers love titanium. Its density is only about half of steel,
so titanium parts weigh roughly half as much as steel parts.

But its high strength — 80,000 psi for pure titanium and
180,000 psi-plus for its alloys — is far greater than the strength
of many alloy steels giving it an extremely high strength-to-
weight ratio.

Titanium has twice the elasticity of steel, making it an ideal

choice for applications that require flexible materials that don’t
crack or rupture. Also, titanium alloys resist corrosion and
oxidation better than stainless steels.

Many of the same qualities that enhance titanium’s appeal for

most applications also contribute to its being one of the most Because of its high strength and
difficult to machine materials. light weight, titanium is a favorite
with aircraft engine designers.
However, shops that understand this material’s peculiarities
(Photo courtesy Pratt & Whitney.)
can machine them successfully and cost-effectively.

Most titanium alloys are poor thermal conductors. Heat generated during cutting doesn’t dissipate
through the part and machine structure, but concentrates in the cutting area. The high
temperatures that can be reached — 2,000°F in some cases — can lead to cutting edge chipping
and deformation, and dull edges on tools generate even more heat and further reduce tool life.
C utting temperatures can get so high that titanium chips sometimes burst into flames.

The high temperature generated during the cutting process also causes a work hardening
phenomenon that affects the surface integrity of titanium, and could lead to geometric inaccuracies
in the part and severe reduction in its fatigue strength.

Titanium alloys’ elasticity, which is beneficial and desirable for finished parts, encourages deflection
and vibration during heavy machining cuts. Under cutting pressures, the “springy” material moves
away from the tool. C onsequently, the cutting edges rub rather than cut, particularly in light cuts.
This rubbing process also generates heat, compounding problems caused by the material’s poor
thermal conductivity.

Machining a thin-wall part or ring — common operations — with

anything but a positive-rake tool will push and deflect the part
rather than cut it. This makes it difficult to cut to size. Instead
of cutting the part, the wrong tool pushes it, straining the
material. As the material moves away from the cutting edge it
deforms plastically, instead of elastically, and that increases
the material’s strength and its hardness at the point of cut. As
the alloy gets harder and stronger, cutting speeds that were
appropriate at the start of the cut become excessive, and the
tool wears dramatically.

The alloy the workpiece is made from determines the cutting

speed needed to cut it. Unalloyed titanium can be machined at
speeds to 180 sfm, while tougher beta alloys require speeds as
low as 30 sfm. In general, the more vanadium and chromium
in a particular alloy, the lower the cutting speed that is called
for. In all cases, titanium alloys demand heavy chip loads to
overcome the problem of rubbing and the work-hardening that
results.

The magnitude of cutting forces generated when machining

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2/17/2011 Cool Tips for Cutting Titanium
titanium is only slightly higher than those developed when
cutting steels with an equivalent hardness, even though
machining titanium appears to be more difficult and complex.

Flank wear, notching and built-up edge are the common types
of tool wear when cutting titanium. Edge notching appears as a
localized abrasive wear on both the flank and rake face, along
the line corresponding with the depth-of-cut parameter. This
wear is caused partially by the presence of a hardened layer
that typically is formed by previous casting, forging, heat
treating, or prior machining operations.
The 4E turning geometry from ATI
Stellram, that has a micrograin C hemical reaction between the cutting tool material and the
carbide substrate and a super workpiece also could lead to a notching-wear mechanism. This
hard Nano TiAlN PVD coating, occurs when machining temperatures exceed 800° C ., and
provides positive cutting action to induce diffusion between the tool and the workpiece.
reduce built-up edge in high-
temperature titanium machining. In contrast, during the machining process, deposits of titanium
work materials tend to accumulate on the rake face of the
insert. The high pressure developed in this area can weld these particles to the cutting edge,
forming a built-up edge phenomenon. These particles, over successively shorter intervals, are
inclined to peel off the cutting edge, pulling some carbide content from the cutting insert away with
it.

The best tool substrate and coating for machining titanium alloys and super alloys is a submicron
substrate that is combined with a physical vapor deposition (PVD) TiAlN coating. The thin, smooth
surface of the PVD coating, together with sufficient residual stress, enhances tool resistance to
chipping and notching wear, so PVD coatings provide enhanced wear resistance, chemical stability
and resistance to built-up edge. Machining problems that were seen in the past that arose from
earlier coatings, no longer exist with PVD coatings because of the improved adhesion techniques
and the uniformity of the coatings.

Titanium and its alloys

Titanium alloys are available in four varieties: alpha, alpha/ beta, beta and the newer titanium
aluminide. Because more alloying elements are being added to the particular grades, these alloys
are progressively more difficult to machine.

The Alpha phase of titanium is pure titanium, relatively soft and can be machined at high speeds.

This material presents no significant machining problems.

However, the material lacks the beneficial properties of the
other alloys, primarily strength and flexibility, so its uses are
limited.

Alpha/beta alloys are the most common titanium alloys, and Ti-
6A1-4V (6% aluminum, 4% vanadium) is used extensively in
the aerospace industry, particularly for jet engines. Ti-6A-4V is
used to a lesser extent in the medical and chemical industries.

These alloys are moderately difficult to machine, and relatively

short tool life can be a problem because alpha/beta chips are
difficult to break and are abrasive.

Beta phase titanium alloys do not have the toughness of the

alpha/betas, but they are harder and more brittle. They also
are more difficult to machine because of the higher A complicated-shaped jet engine
percentages of vanadium, molybdenum and chromium with diffuser required ultistage
which they are made. Beta phase alloys of titanium are groove-turn operations that
becoming more common, and present serious machining removed a large amount of
challenges. material from solid-ring shaped
workpiece. Photo courtesy of Iscar
Titanium aluminides are very difficult to machine, but they are
Metals Inc.
extremely lightweight and strong. Earlier, a lack of toughness
limited their application. However, material science research
has addressed their lack of toughness, and applications are beginning to be developed in auto
racing engines, where they are used for push rods and valve stems, and in components for jet
engines.

A strategy for success in cutting Ti

• Use positive cutting geometries to minimize cutting forces, heat generation and part deflection.
• Use constant feed to prevent work hardening of the workpiece. Never stop feeding while the tool
is in the cut.
• Use large volumes of coolant to preserve thermal stability and to prevent temperature build-up
that can lead to subsurface irregularities and possible tool failure.
•Keep tools sharp. Dull tools accentuate heat build-up, and cause galling and seizing that lead to
tool failure.
• Machine titanium alloys in the softest state possible. Because many alloys are age hardenable –
they get harder when heat is applied – they become stronger and more abrasive as second-
phase particles form.

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2/17/2011 Cool Tips for Cutting Titanium
• Use a large tool nose radius or round inserts whenever possible to put more of the tool into the
cut. This decreases the cutting force at any one point and prevents localized damage.

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