• Tool life

Tool life is generally defined by the span of actual uninterrupted machining time through
which the tool or tool-tip renders desired service and satisfactory performance and after
which that tool needs replacement.

• Tool Wear Curve:

• The general relationship of tool wear versus cutting time is shown in figure. Three
regions can usually be identified in the typical wear growth curve.

• The first is the break-in period, in which the sharp cutting edge wears rapidly at
the beginning of its use. This first region occurs within the first few minutes of
cutting.
• The break-in period is followed by wear that occurs at a fairly uniform rate. This is
called the steady-state wear region. In our figure, this region is pictured as a linear
function of time, although there are deviations from the straight line in actual
machining.
• Finally, wear reaches a level at which the wear rate begins to accelerate. This marks
the beginning of the failure region, in which cutting temperatures are higher, and
the general efficiency of the machining process is reduced. If allowed to continue,
the tool finally fails by temperature failure..
• Tool Life Determination Process:
Tool wear is a time dependent process. As cutting proceeds, the amount of tool wear
increases gradually. Rather than operating the tool until final catastrophic failure an
alternative way in which a level of tool wear (flank wear at 0.3 to 0.6 mm shown by
horizontal line on wear curve) is set as safe limit. The safe limit is referred to as
allowable wear land (wear criterion), VB. The cutting time required for the cutting tool
to develop a flank wear land of width VB is called tool life, T, a fundamental parameter
in machining. When wear curves intersects that line, the life of the corresponding tool
is defined as ended and the tool is replaced .
Wear and hence tool life of any tool for any work
material is governed mainly by the level of
the machining parameters i.e., cutting velocity,
feed and depth of cut
• Taylor’s Tool Life Equation:
n
VT = C (exponential again!)

• v = cutting speed
• n = cutting exponent
• C = cutting constant

• Note: n and C depend on speed, work material, tool material, etc.

C has units of fpm and is the speed at which the tool life lasts 1 min.
Cutting velocity – tool life relationship
n n
VT = C (1) = C

If the tool lives, T1, T2, T3, T4 etc. are plotted against the corresponding
cutting velocities, V1, V2, V3, V4 etc. as shown in fig. a smooth
curve like a rectangular hyperbola is found to appear. Whereas when
F. W. Taylor plotted the same figure taking both V and T in
log-scale, it shows a distinct linear relationship defined that
the tool life depend mainly upon the tool-work materials and
the cutting Environment (cutting fluid application). The value
of C depends also on the limiting value of VB undertaken
(i.e.,0.3 mm, 0.4 mm, 0.6 mm etc.)
Cutting velocity versus tool life on a log-log scale
• Tool Life Criteria in Production
Tool life is measured by:
• Visual inspection of tool edge when tool
breaks.
• Changes in cutting sounds.
• Chips become ribbony, stringy.
• Surface finish degrades.
• Variables Affecting Tool Life
• Cutting conditions.
• Tool geometry & Tool material.
• Work material & Built-up edge.
• Cutting fluid.

• Tool Wear Control

The rate of tool wear strongly
depends on the cutting temperature; therefore any measures which could be applied to reduce
the cutting temperature would reduce the tool wear as well. Use of cutting fluids, lubricants is
another method. Additional measures to reduce the tool
wear include the application of advanced cutting tool materials, such as coated
carbides, ceramics, etc.
Problem: If in turning of a steel rod by a given cutting tool (material and geometry) at a
given machining condition (feed and depth of cut) under a given environment (cutting
fluid application), the tool life decreases from 80 min to 20 min. due to increase in cutting
velocity, V from 60 m/min to 120 m/min., then at what cutting velocity the life of that tool
under the same condition and environment will be 40 min.?
• Cutting Fluids
Definition: A cutting fluid is any
liquid or gas that is applied directly
to the machining operation to improve

cutting performance.
Purpose:
• Act as lubricant:
Reduce friction and wear by acting as
a film and hence also reduce welding tendency.
• Act as coolant:
• Cooling of cutting zone and hence increasing tool life & improving dimensional
stability,
• Reducing the temperature of the workpart for easier handling.
• Flush away the chips from the cutting zone to avoid interference in
cutting
• Protect the machined surface from environmental corrosion.
• Cutting Fluids

• Act as lubricant: Reduce friction and wear by acting as a film and hence also reduce
welding tendency.
• Reduce forces and energy consumption.
Types of cutting Fluids:
• Air blast or compressed air only
• Cutting oils & soluble oils
• Water
• Chemical fluids
Lubricants – purpose is to reduce friction… usually oil based

Coolants – purpose is to transport heat… usually water based

Both lose their effectiveness at higher cutting speeds!

• Chips: Metal chips are sheared not cut from the work piece.

• Chip Formation
Three Characteristic types of chips
1. Discontinuous (Segmented)
2. Continuous Chip
3. Continuous with built-up edge
4. Serrated Chips

• Types of Chips:
• Discontinuous or segmental chip:
• When relatively brittle materials (e.g., cast irons)
are machined at low cutting speeds, the chips often
form into separate segments (sometimes the segments
are loosely attached). This tends to impart an irregular
texture to the machined surface. High tool–chip friction
and large feed and depth of cut promote the formation of this chip type.
• Continuous chip:
When ductile work materials are cut at high speeds
and relatively small feeds and depths, long continuous
chips are formed. A good surface finish typically
results when this chip type is formed. A sharp cutting
edge on the tool and low tool–chip friction encourage
the formation of continuous chips. Long, continuous
chips (as in turning) can cause problems with
regard to chip disposal and/or tangling about the tool. To solve these problems, turning
tools are often equipped with chip breakers
• Continuous Chip with Built up Edge:
• This type of chip is very similar to the continuous chip.
With the difference that it has a built up edge adjacent to
tool face and also it is not so smooth. It is obtained by
machining on ductile material, in this condition of high
local temperature and extreme pressure in the cutting and
high friction in the tool chip interference, may cause the work material to adhere or
weld to the cutting edge of the tool. Successive layers of work material are then added
to the built up edge. When this edge becomes larger and unstable , it breaks up and part
of it is carried up the face of the tool along with the chip while the remaining is left
over the surface being machined, which contributes to the roughness of the surface.
The built up edge changes its size during the cutting operation.
• Serrated Chips:
• Non homogeneous.
• Semi continuous chip formed due to
non uniform strain at work piece.
• Materials whose mechanical strength is
decreasing with increase in temperature.
• Suitable for nickel alloys.
• Chip Thickness Ratio:
During cutting, the cutting edge of the tool is
positioned a certain distance below the original
work surface. This corresponds to the thickness of the chip
before the chip formation = to. As the chip is formed along the shear plane, its
thickness increases to = tc.

• The ratio of to to tc is called the chip thickness

ratio (or simply the chip ratio) r.

• Since the chip thickness after cutting is always greater than the corresponding
thickness before cutting, the chip ratio will always be less than 1.
• Chip Breakers:
Chip disposal is a problem that is often encountered in turning and other continuous operations.
Long, stringy chips are often generated, especially when turning ductile materials at high speeds.
These chips cause a hazard to the machine operator and the work part. Chip breakers are
frequently used with single-point tools to force the chips to curl more tightly than they would
naturally be inclined to do, thus causing them to fracture.
There are two principal forms of chip breaker design commonly used on single-point turning
tools.
(a) Groove-type chip breaker designed into the cutting tool itself,
(b) Obstruction-type chip breaker designed as an additional device on the rake face of the tool.
• Principles of chip-breaking
• Self breaking:
This is accomplished without using a separate
chip-breaker either as an attachment or
an additional geometrical modification
of the tool.

• Forced chip breaking:

By additional tool geometrical features
or devices.

• Clamped type chip-breaker

Clamped type chip breakers work basically in
the principle of stepped type chip-breaker but
have the provision of varying the width of the
step and / or the angle of the heel.
• Chip Curl:
Single point cutting tool (without a chip breaker)
showing a long chip curl.

• Groove-type:
Groove-type chip breaker designed into
the cutting tool itself.

• Integrated Obstruction Type :

Chip breakers are in the form of step made as an
integral part on the rake face of the tool.

• Clamped On Obstruction Type :

Chip breaker designed as an additional device
on the rake face of the tool.