CHAPTER 3

MATERIALS AND METHOD

Operations on metals such as turning, milling, cutting and others generally leave the edges of

such metals with a certain degree of surface roughness. Inasmuch as coolants or cutting fluids

reduce the effects of such operations, it doesn’t entirely eliminate its presence as the molecular

makeup of the fluids is also a factor of consideration. Different cutting fluids yield different

surface finishes as no makeup is conventionally the same. Mild carbon steel which is the

experimental material and is a commonly used metal in the field of engineering will be examined

and testing will be done to verify the effect of the cutting parameters when varied and when held

constant for different cutting fluids to make a detailed illustration of how the cutting parameters

as listed in Chapter 2 will affect the surface finish.

3.1. Materials/Equipments Used

The various materials used in this experiment are seen in the table below
TABLE 3.1: LIST OF MATERIALS USED

S/N MATERIALS QUANTITY RELEVANCE

1 Lathe machine 01 Used in the machining of the

carbon steel
2 Mild Carbon Steel Material required for testing

of parameters
3 Surface roughness testing 01 Verifies the smoothness of the

machine surface of the mild steel

specimen
4 Cooling fluids 03 Reduces the temperature of

the specimen while checking

the various cutting

parameters.
5 Angular grinder 01 Used to reduce the size of the

specimen to fit unto the lathe

machine

3.2. Methodology

3.2.1 Turning
Turning is the first and virtually the most basic operation on a lathe machine amongst all of lathe

machine operations. Turning is the operation of removing the excess material from the work-

piece which in this case is a mild steel sample to produce a cylindrical surface to the desired

length. The job is held between the centre of the lathe machine or a chuck and rotating at a

required speed. The lathe machine was chosen for this test due to its simplicity of operation as all

that is required for this operation is just the turning tool which in most cases is harder than the

material being machined i.e the mild steel sample. The parameters being checked via this

operation as seen from the literature review are as follows

 Cutting speed

 Feed rate

 Depth of cut

All of the above parameters affect the surface roughness of the machined work-piece under

certain circumstances. The lathe machine used in this experiment is manually operated hence an

operator was required to set in alignment the work-piece and the cutting tool to achieve the

desired results during operation. The cutting tool used in this operation and it being used on the

work-piece is shown in the figure below

Fig 3.1 Cutting tool used in turning

(Source: trimantex.com/blogs/t/machining-processes-overview)

Fig 3.2 Cutting tool in operation on a work-piece

(Source: Effects of three different cutting fluids in the turning of mild steel AISI1008 )
 3.2.2 Cutting fluid

Cutting fluids are vital components in the machining processes as they facilitate the cooling,

lubrication and removing the chips and protecting the work-piece. The cutting fluids in a nutshell

enhance the productivity of the machining operation; increases tool life, dimensional accuracy

and surface integrity (roughness). Due to the vitality of cutting fluids in machining operations, 3

different cutting fluids were used in this operation so as to test the effect of the cutting

parameters when subjected to conditions such as these. The 3 cutting fluids are;

1. Conventional cutting fluids

2. Cutting fluid from gmelina seed oil extract

3. Cutting fluid from soybean extract

1. Conventional cutting fluids

Conventional cutting fluids are basically straight oils and water soluble oils (Davim,

2013). Straight oils decrease friction between the tool-chip-workpiece interface due to

excellent lubrication and corrosion resistance properties but poor cooling capacity hence

used at low cutting speeds (Lawal et al., 2013). The water soluble oils are more effective

at relatively high cutting speeds, where heat generation and high temperatures are the

main issues. . The water content in soluble oil increases the specific heat and thermal

conductivity and allows the coolant to remove heat from the machining process, thus

reducing the temperature (Mikell, 1997). During operation, so as to have the effect of

both, the cutting fluids are mixed in equal proportions. While carrying out the turning

operation with the fluid in this case, two of the cutting parameters are held constant while

the third is made to vary after which the roughness or surface integrity of the mild steel is

checked using the testing machine. This process is taken in turns until the surface
 roughness has been tested as a function of the individual parameters taken in turns with

the conventional cutting fluid in use.

2. Cutting fluid from Gmelina seed oil extract

GmelinaArborea is a fruit of the gmelinaarborea tree. It is a long green fruit that ripens

to yellow color, the hairless fruits are 10 to 15mm in diameter and is glossy yellow when

they mature; they are recorded as having a bittersweet taste. The fruit is mainly used to

extract its juice for the making of polish. The chemical composition of the

gmelinaarborea is a combination of arboreal and premnazole (Nwanekezie et al., 2017).

The oil extracted from this falls under the family of the High Performance Water Based

Fluids (HPWBF) which has undergone tests and research has shown it to be better than

the oil-based fluids (Yassin et al., 1991). The following tables below outline the

properties of the fluid gotten from gmelina seed oil in comparison to an oil-based fluid

(diesel)
 TABLE 3.2: MUD DENSITY MEASUREMENT

Sample Measured Calculated Error Barite(g)

Density (ppg.) Density (ppg.)

Diesel 8.26 8.261 0.01 119.1
Gmelina 8.32 8.326 0.06 154.5

TABLE 3.3: RHEOLOGICAL PROPERTIES

RHEOLOGICAL PROPERTIES DIESEL GMELINA

Plastic Viscosity 15 21
Apparent Viscosity 92.5 77
Gel Strength 50/51 54/55
Yield Point 92.5 77.0
Consistency Index 0.1219 0.2113
Flow Index 79.51 35.61

TABLE 3.4: HYDROGEN ION POTENTIAL

TYPE OF OIL DIESEL GMELINA

pH value 8 11.06

(Source: Nwanekezie and Ogbeide, 2017)

The fluid was chosen due to the above data in the tables. Its properties shows promising

significant effect in the effect of the cutting parameters mentioned afore in the checking

of the surface integrity. As afore mentioned, two parameters are held constant while one

is varied and the surface integrity is checked using the surface roughness testing machine.

The data gotten is then recorded.

3. Cutting Fluid from Soybean Extract

 Soybean one of the leguminous crops called Glycine Max(L) was first known in 1940

when Americans established it as a major crop. It origin was traced to North-eastern

province of China and Manchuria hence it commerce name was Glycine Max (L) Merrill

because Taxonomist believed it was developed from Glycine Ussuriansis (Geoffery,

1978). Soybean oil was extracted from the Soya beans which was obtained after the

removal of the shell (nut), the extraction was done by using solvent extraction method.

The tables below show the chemical composition of the extracted soybean oil.

TABLE 3.5 COMPOSITION OF CRUDE SOYBEAN OIL

CHEMICAL COMPOSITION CRUDE SOYBEAN OIL

Triglycerides (%) 96
Unsaponifiable matter (%) 1.6
Free fatty acid (%) 0.3-0.7
Iron (ppm) 1.3
Copper(ppm) 0.03-0.05
Phosphatides (%) 15-24
Sources: Adejuyigbe and Ayodeji (2000)
 TABLE 3.6: COMPOSITION OF EXTRACTED SOYBEAN OIL

CHEMICAL COMPOSITION EXTRACTED SOYBEAN OIL

Relative density 25⁰C/Water 25⁰C 0.919
Refractive index (nDs 40⁰C) 1.448
Saponification value (Mg KOH/g oil) 192
Unsaponifiable matter (g/Kg) 10
Free fatty acid (%) 0.75
Peroxide value (mm/Kg) 5
Soap 0.05
Source: Ekundayo et al.,(2016)

The data above shows that soybean oil extract is a good cutting fluid so it was also

engaged in the experiment while following the steps afore mentioned under the other two

cooling fluids. The data obtained from the various cutting parameters on the finishing

surface integrity are tabulated and analysis drawn from the obtained values as will be

seen in the next chapter.