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Effect of lead on the machinability of brass alloys using polycrystalline

diamond cutting tools

Article in The Journal of Strain Analysis for Engineering Design · August 2018
DOI: 10.1177/0309324718796384

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Special Issue Article

J Strain Analysis
1–14
Ó IMechE 2018
Effect of lead on the machinability of Article reuse guidelines:
sagepub.com/journals-permissions
brass alloys using polycrystalline DOI: 10.1177/0309324718796384
journals.sagepub.com/home/sdj

diamond cutting tools

Luis Amaral1, Rafael Quinta1, Tiago E Silva1,2, Rui MB Soares2,

Santiago D Castellanos2,3 and Abı́lio MP de Jesus1,2

Abstract
The international safety regulations are pushing the manufacturers of water systems and equipment to remove lead from
material compositions due to the potential human hazard of lead absorption. The usage of green lead-free brass alloys is
becoming mandatory in many important markets, demanding the manufacturers to quickly adapt their production tech-
niques both casting and machining to this new reality. Regarding machining, lead has been used to facilitate the chip con-
trol, working as a natural chip breaker and reducing the tool wear. Therefore, the reduction of lead composition in brass
alloys contributes to a machinability decrease of the materials leading to higher cutting forces, long chips and higher tool
wear. This work focuses on the machinability characterization of three different brass alloys (leaded, medium-leaded and
minimally leaded) by means of cylindrical external turning process with polycrystalline diamond inserts. A parametric
study covering three different depths of cuts, three feed rates and four cutting speeds was conducted for three brass
alloys with two repetitions. Cutting forces, chip morphology and surface roughness were analysed and compared
between alloys. Complementary microstructural and mechanical characterization of the alloys were performed. Analysis
of variance was performed to analyse the results. Cutting forces, power consumption, specific cutting pressure, rough-
ness and chip morphology identification were used as comparison criteria among the tested materials. Results have
demonstrated the decrease of machinability with the lead reduction, with higher cutting forces and longer chips.
Polycrystalline diamond tools used in this work could be a good option to overcome the machinability challenges of the
lead-free brass alloys.

Keywords
Brass alloys, lead-free alloys, machinability, cutting tests, surface finish, chip control, polycrystalline diamond tool, tensile
behaviour, compressive behaviour, turning

Date received: 29 June 2018; accepted: 30 July 2018

Introduction less ductility. However, ductility improves with the

Brass is a copper-zinc alloy, with copper content not
less than 55% and zinc in a percentage usually ranging
between 5% and 45%. Due to good corrosion and wear
resistance, good electrical and thermal conductivity,
and excellent antibacterial properties, this material is
commonly used in industries, such as electric and elec-
tronic, automotive and sanitary.
In terms of chemical composition, brass is consid-
ered a biphasic material since it presents a microstruc-
ture composed by two phases: a and b phases. The a
phase is a soft phase, and it is characterized by high
ductility and strength. This phase contributes negatively
to the machining process once it is responsible for the
formation of long and helical chips. On the other hand,
b phase is harder and more resistant than a phase, with
increase in temperature. As far as machining is con-
cerned, the presence of this phase implies a positive
influence once it promotes the fragmentation of the
chip.
In order to increase the machinability of brass, lead
is added to its composition. Free machining brass alloys
may include 3% lead. This element has a low solubility
1
Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
2
INEGI, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
3
Universidad de las Fuerzas Armadas – ESPE, Sangolquı́, Ecuador
Corresponding author:
Abı́lio MP de Jesus, Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Rua Dr.
Roberto Frias, 400, Porto 4200-465, Portugal.
Email: ajesus@fe.up.pt
2 Journal of Strain Analysis 00(0)
in brass, being dispersed into globular forms in the
microstructure, particularly in the boundaries between
a and b phases. During machining operations, the lead
melts and a thin semi-liquid film is formed and acts as a
lubricant, lowering the friction coefficient between the
tool and the material, creating discontinuities that pro-
mote chip fragmentation and reducing cutting tool
wear.1,2
Despite the improvement on machining process, the
use of lead has been restricted in the production of
sanitary articles such as taps or pipes, due to the harm-
ful effect it has on health and environment. Depending
on country and application, maximum lead content has
been restricted by several national laws, with lead-free
brasses being very often targeted. In Europe, a maxi-
mum lead content of 0.1% in copper alloys was pre-
scribed by Directive 2000/53/EC and Directive 2011/
55/EU. These Directives lay down rules on the restric-
tion of use of hazardous substances in electrical and
electronic equipment to contribute to the protection of
human health and the environment. In the United
States, the maximum lead content reaches 0.25%
imposed by Safe Drinking Water Act, USA.
Exceptional rules are still valid in many cases, allowing
a lead content of up to 4%. However, the need for such
exceptional rules requires a periodical audit.3
Lead-free brasses create challenges in the machining
processes, mainly in turning and drilling operations,
due to the susceptibility of the process to generate
excessive long chips and to increase cutting forces with
impact in tool wear. Some studies can be found in liter-
ature addressing the machinability issues of lead-free
brass alloys. Vilarinho et al.4 investigated the machin-
ability of a set of 27 brass alloys and analysed the influ-
ence of the chemical composition on some
machinability parameters such as cutting forces and
chip geometry using turning tests with cemented car-
bide tools. Both lead-free and free cut brass were
included in the study. Besides the Pb content, the Si, Al
and Sn contents were observed to have significant
influence on the brass machinability. Imai et al.3 inves-
tigated the addition of graphite to lead-free powder
metallurgy brass in order to improve the machinability
of the material. The machinability was evaluated
through drilling tests under constant feed loading and
comparing the drilling times for the same total hole
deep. Atsumi et al.5 compared the machinability of two
lead-free brasses, namely, the Cu–40Zn–Cr–Fe–Sn and
the Cu–40Zn–Cr–Fe–Sn–Bi, using the same drilling
tests as Imai et al.3 It was verified that despite these
alloys having higher strength properties than tradi-
tional Cu–40Zn–Pb alloy, they revealed a machinability
reduction with respect to the leaded alloy.
Tam et al.6 compared the machinability of lead-free
and free machining brasses through face turning tests.
Besides the cutting forces, the machining residual stres-
ses were investigated. Besides the higher strength of the
lead-free alloy, this material showed lower residual
stresses.
Nobel et al.7 investigated the machinability of lead-
free brasses (six materials), assessing the effects of the
material microstructure and silicon content in external
turning operations. Also, different tool coatings
were analysed as well as the use of polycrystalline dia-
mond (PCD) tools and high-pressure coolants were
investigated. Despite exploratory, the use of PCD tools
revealed high abrasion resistance and low adhesion ten-
dency as well as the possibility to achieve sharp cutting
edges. However, the usage of chip breakage was recom-
mended to avoid long chips of continuous cutting
operations.
Schultheiss et al.8 compared the machinability of the
CuZn39Pb3 brass with the commercially available
CuZn21Si3P lead-free alternative, using longitudinal
turning and cemented carbides. Additional machining
experiments were also conducted with CuZn21Si3P
while using different tool coatings in order to evaluate
the potential for tool life improvements.
Taha et al.9 evaluated the influence of replacing Pb
by Si contents on the machinability (cutting forces,
roughness, chip control and wear) of Pb-free brasses
within a range of Si content varying between 0% and
4%. Turning tests with cemented carbide tools were
performed and some correlation between machinabil-
ity, alloy strength and the microstructure phases was
found.
Despite existing studies, literature demonstrates that
machinability of lead-free brass is still an open and
emerging issue. The existing studies are mainly focused
on cemented carbide tools; however, the use of PCD
tools could be an interesting option as referred by
Nobel et al.7 to overcome the negative impact of
reduced machinability on wear behaviour of tool mate-
rials. Therefore, this study is focused on the evaluation
of the machinability of three cast brass alloys used in
industry to manufacture sanitary fittings, a sector that
is urged to use lead-free brasses. External cylindrical
turning tests were performed on cast rods with a
PCD cutting tool/insert. Besides the cutting forces,
chip geometry and surface roughness were analysed.
This investigation starts with the general materials
characterization.
Materials
Three Cu-Zn alloys with distinct lead contents have
been investigated, named R, L and Z alloys. They were
produced by casting in the form of 58-mm-diameter
rods and 180 mm in length (see Figure 6). Gravity cast-
ing was performed in a metallic mould previously
coated with a ceramic-based release agent. Metal was
melted at 1000 °C. Six test samples were produced: two
test samples from each alloy composition. These test
samples will be referred as R1, R2, L1, L2, Z1 and Z2.
In order to characterize the samples, microstructural
and chemical analyses were performed. Also, hardness
was measured as well as the compressive and tensile
Amaral et al. 3

Table 1. Chemical composition of brass alloys used in this study.

Element (% mass) L1 L2 R1 R2 Z1 Z2

Cu 59.220 59.070 62.670 62.630 63.250 63.890

Zn 38.970 39.100 34.890 35.020 36.000 35.120
Pb 0.894 0.909 1.450 1.460 0.051 0.159
Al 0.594 0.590 0.506 0.503 0.444 0.438
Sn 0.104 0.104 0.096 0.096 0.102 0.009
Fe 0.095 0.095 0.116 0.114 0.203 0.318
P 0.0025 0.0037 0.0072 0.0057 0.0036 0.0025
Mn 0.0016 0.0016 0.0027 0.0028 \ 0.0003 \ 0.0003
Ni 0.0865 0.0855 0.0606 0.0605 \ 0.0005 0.0012
Si 0.0023 0.0021 \ 0.0006 \ 0.0006 \ 0.0006 \ 0.0006
Mg 0.0003 0.0003 0.0002 0.0002 0.0003 0.0003
Cr 0.0022 0.0022 0.0019 0.0019 0.0003 0.0004
As 0.0140 0.0150 0.0875 0.0872 0.0203 0.0471
Sb 0.0046 0.0046 0.0033 0.0051 \ 0.0030 0.0091
Cd 0.0011 0.0011 0.0010 0.0010 0.0008 0.0008
Bi 0.0027 0.0027 0.0023 0.0023 0.0008 0.00068
Co \ 0.0001 \ 0.0001 \ 0.0001 \ 0.0001 \ 0.0001 \ 0.0001
S 0.0025 0.0030 0.0029 0.0030 0.0029 0.0026
Be \ 0.0001 \ 0.0001 \ 0.0001 \ 0.0001 \ 0.0001 \ 0.0001
B 0.0007 0.0007 0.0006 0.0006 0.0007 0.0008
Se 0.0044 0.0045 0.0038 0.0044 0.0044 0.0036

Bold values represent the main alloying elements.

behaviour. The chemical analysis was done in all the
test pieces, using spark emission spectroscopy. The
results are shown in Table 1. From these results, it is
verified that the L and R alloys present lead in their
composition, about 0.9% and 1.45%, respectively,
whereas for the Z alloy this value is residual (with Pb
content in Z1 of 0.05% and Z2 of 0.16%). Elements
like Al, Sn and Fe also gain some notoriety since,
unlike the other elements presented in Table 1, their
percentages cannot be considered residual. For Z alloy,
Fe appears in a content higher than that which is veri-
fied for the R and L alloys, while for the Al element,
the inverse is verified, since this element appears in a
higher percentage for the alloys R and L compared to
the samples of Z alloy. Sb content is practically the
same, for any of the three brasses. Z alloy is considered
a lead-free brass. L alloy is an alloy with low content of
lead; the R brass is the one investigated with higher
lead content but does not correspond to the typical
free-machining brass alloys that could reach 3% of lead
content.
According to their composition, Z alloy can be clas-
sified as C85400 and the R and L alloys as C85700,
using a UNS Numbering System for copper casting
alloys.10
Microstructural analyses were performed using an
Olympus PMG3 optical microscope. Figure 1(a)–(c)
presents typical microstructures of the R, L and Z
alloys, respectively. It is observed that the L alloy cor-
responds to a biphasic brass (brass with a and b
phases). Most black dots in grain boundaries are lead
globules (spheroids), formed upon solidification of the
material. Other points that are in the grain boundaries
are assumed to be inclusions and not porosities, taking
into account their size and the fact that they are not
round. This is also true for the R alloy. Despite having
a similar chemical composition to the L alloy, there are
some microstructural differences. The R alloy is also a
biphasic brass; however, it presents a phase dendrites
together with b phase, but whose grain size varies in
relation to the L alloy.
The microstructure of the Z alloy is quite different
from the other alloys. This alloy has an intermediate
composition between single-phase brass (a) and bipha-
sic (a + b) brass. A large presence of the a phase is
denoted by the amount and size of the dendrites, in
addition to the reduced amount of lead, evidenced
by the rare appearance of spheroids near the grain
boundaries.5,7
Hardness analysis was performed using a Vickers
hardness test (HV) with a pyramidal diamond point
indenter and a 10 kgf loading, for 25 s. For each rod of
material, a disc of 10 mm thickness was cut for the
hardness measurements. Hardness measurements were
performed at the periphery of the discs in a region
where machining was performed. Also a few measure-
ments were performed in the centre of the rod, but no
significant changes in the hardness were observed along
the radial direction. Table 2 summarizes the average
hardness values for the three alloys, obtained at periph-
ery of the discs. The hardness of the Z alloy is, as
expected, the highest of the three tested alloys, about
120.3 HV, while the L alloy exhibited an average hard-
ness of 117.9 HV and the R alloy 95.9 HV. The hard-
ness increased inversely with the reduction in lead
content.
4 Journal of Strain Analysis 00(0)
(a)
(b)
(c)
Figure 1. Micrographs of the brass alloys produced by casting
process: (a) microstructure of R alloy, (b) microstructure of L
alloy and (c) microstructure of Z alloy.
Mechanical properties
To complement the characterization of the three alloys,
tensile and compression tests were performed with sam-
ples extracted from the same machined rods.
Compression tests are typically proposed to evaluate
the flow stress curves which are required to model
Table 2. Hardness of test samples used in this study.
Test sample HV Average Average
R1 100.3 98 100.3 99.5
95.9
R2 93.6 93.6 89.6 92.3
L1 115.9 118.9 121.9 118.9 117.9
L2 115.9 115.9 118.9 116.9
Z1 121.9 102.7 110.3 111.6 120.3
Z2 128.4 131.9 126.4 128.9
Figure 2. Tensile specimen geometry.
cutting processes; alternatively, tensile properties could
be important to understand the chip breakage due to
tensile stresses that may appear due to chip bending.
Two tensile tests were performed for each alloy follow-
ing the EN 10002 standard procedures. An axial
extensometer with gauge length of 50 mm was used to
evaluate strains. Figure 2 illustrates the geometry of the
tensile specimens. Regarding the compression tests,
cylinders of 6 mm in diameter and 6 mm height were
used. Strains were measured through the displacements
between machine compression plates. Tensile tests were
performed at an actuator speed of 0.05 mm/s; regarding
the compression tests, a constant true strain rate of 0.1
was considered. Figure 3(a) and (b) illustrates the true
stress–true strain curves for the tensile and compressive
behaviours, respectively. Tables 3 and 4 summarize the
strength properties, namely, the yield strength, the ulti-
mate strength and the elongation at fracture. The prop-
erties were evaluated for each material sample/cast rod
(two rods per alloy). For each rod, two specimens were
extracted for tensile and compression testing; however,
for Z alloy, one tensile specimen was excluded from
testing due to machining issues.
Unlike the results for L alloy, where higher scatter is
observed, the analysis of Figure 3(a) shows low scatter
for results of alloys R and Z. The two tests for the L alloy
appear in the upper left side of the graph reflecting the
behaviour of the L1 specimen. These data show that this
alloy has greater notch sensitivity, since one of the test
pieces failed prematurely due to a surface defect resulting
from the casting process (see Figure 4(b)) while the sec-
ond test specimen failed at the reference line produced on
specimen surface to confirm the final elongation. From
the analysis of Table 3, it is verified that the maximum
values of sy were registered for the L alloy. It is verified
that in general the value of Young’s modulus agrees with
the reference value for brass alloys (100 GPa), except for
the samples R1_1 and R2_1, which show lower values. It
Amaral et al. 5

Figure 3. (a) Tensile and (b) compressive true stress–true strain curves.

Table 3. Tensile strength properties of R, L and Z brass alloys (individual and average values).

Sample
R1_1 R1_2 R2_1 R2_2 L1_1 L1_2 L2_1 L2_2 Z1_1 Z1_2 Z2_1

E (GPa) 75.0 93.5 78.5 106.1 99.2 96.9 100.2 94.7 99.4 103.2 96.8
92.7 97.8 99.8
sy (MPa) 183.0 182.0 177.0 177.0 254.0 255.0 231.0 232.0 157.0 163.0 164.0
179.8 243.0 161.3
sUTS (MPa) 562.2 557.5 564.9 564.7 – – 502.2 529.7 493.2 503.5 496.7
562.3 516.0 497.8
eUTS 0.65 0.67 0.71 0.71 – – 0.23 0.27 0.62 0.62 0.61
0.69 0.25 0.62

Table 4. Compression strength properties of R, L and Z brass alloys (individual and average values).

Sample
R1_1 R1_2 R2_1 R2_2 L1_1 L1_2 L2_1 L2_2 Z1_1 Z1_2 Z2_1 Z2_2

sy (MPa) 220.0 240.0 196.0 203.0 388.0 327.0 380.0 380.0 176.0 266.0 232.0 227.0
215.0 215.0 225.0
sUTS (MPa) 603.7 578.4 572.0 579.8 705.4 727.8 699.6 662.6 652.0 565.0 665.3 628.2
583.0 583.0 628.0
eUTS 0.85 0.62 0.66 0.62 0.41 0.42 0.42 0.47 1.00 0.86 0.96 0.88
0.68 0.43 0.93

should be noted that the R alloy (higher lead content)
presents superior ductility than the other alloys and only
Z alloy specimens (lower lead content) had a clear reduc-
tion of cross-sectional area (see Figure 4(a)). In these spe-
cimens, there is some localized plastic deformations/
necking. In summary, the ductility decreases with
decreasing lead content; yield strength of the R alloy is
intermediate between the L and Z alloys; L alloy is the
more brittle and Z alloy is the one showing necking.
Lead content variation cannot be the only explanation
for the variation of tensile behaviour; other elements var-
iation should also play an important role as well as the
different microstructures.
From the analysis of the curves from the compres-
sion tests, all tested specimens of the same alloy showed
satisfactory scatter despite slightly higher than observed
for Z alloy in tensile tests. In general, the results
obtained for the compression tests showed similar
trends as those that were verified for the tensile tests,
with the highest values of yield and ultimate strengths,
sy and sUTS, obtained for the L alloy, with the lower
ductility. However, in these tests, it is the Z alloy that
presents greater ductility. The L and R alloys exhibited
a final strength drop due to the specimens cracking (see
Figure 5(a)). The Z alloy did not exhibit clear final
cracking (see Figure 5(b)). This is consistent with the
6 Journal of Strain Analysis 00(0)
Figure 4. Examples of tensile specimens after testing: (a) typical necking for Z alloy and (b) casting defect on L1_1 specimen.
Figure 5. Examples of compression specimens after testing: (a)
R and L alloys and (b) Z alloy.
fact that this alloy was the one exhibiting necking under
tensile loading.
Experimental procedure of the cutting
tests
Machining tests were performed with the objective of
evaluating the machinability of each investigated brass
(two samples/repetitions) per alloy (R, L, Z). External
cylindrical turning was performed using PCD tools.
Test samples were pre-machined after casting to elimi-
nate irregularities, with a centring hole and a length of
180 mm and diameter of 55 mm (see Figure 6). This
yields a length/diameter ratio of 3.3 which is less than
10, as being recommended for this type of tests (ISO
3685-1993).
The cutting tests were performed using a cutting tool
with a square cross section (25 3 25 mm2) alloy steel
tool holder and a carbide insert with a brazed flat PCD
plate (without a chip-breaker), provided by MAPAL
(insert ref. DCGW11T304F01N-0AA). The resulting
geometry of the tool holder plus insert is summarized
in Table 5. Figure 7(c) illustrates the tool used in the
tests which were performed under dry cutting condi-
tions. Tool condition was observed during the tests and
confirmed negligible wear at the end.
Figure 6. Cylindrical specimens used in the turning tests
(casted plus pre-machined specimens).
Table 5. Geometry of the tool used in the turning tests.
Insert geometry Value
Position angle, x 90°
Rake angle, g 0°
Inclination angle 0°
Clearance angle, a 7°
Nose angle, e 55°
Nose radius, re 0.4 mm
Tests were performed in a conventional parallel
lathe with a 5.9 kW power and a maximum rotation
frequency of 2500 r/min. The available rotation fre-
quencies (n) and feed rates (fn) are predefined according
to the lathe transmission. A KISTLER 9257B piezo-
electric dynamometer was used to measure the three
machining force components: cutting force (Fc), feed
force (Ff) and the penetration force (Fp). The specimens
were fixed using four grips chuck and a counterpoint.
The choice of cutting speeds (Vc), feed rates (fn) and
depth of cuts (ap) to be tested was made according to
the studies previously performed on the machinability
of brass alloys with similar compositions.3,4,6 It was
decided to use cutting velocities between 80 and 430 m/
min. To guarantee those values, spindle frequencies of
2500, 1800, 900 and 630 r/min were combined with
three different feed rates, 0.05, 0.14 and 0.25 mm/rev,
except for the lowest cutting speed (resulting from
630 r/min) that was not allowed the feed of 0.05 mm/
rev due to lathe restrictions. The sequence of the tests is
outlined in Table 6. Since a conventional lathe was
used, the cutting speed varied in a small range for each
spindle rotation frequency, as the depth of cut is chang-
ing. Nevertheless, the cutting speed was kept constant
for each set of three feed values and one depth of cut,
Amaral et al.
Figure 7. (a) Load cell with tool mounted in the lathe, (b) tool and tool holder view and (c) insert geometry with a PCD tip.
since the total length of cut (120 mm) was divided into
three segments (40 mm), each one cut with a constant
feed.
In addition to the analysis of the cutting forces per-
formed in the first phase of tests, the types of chips pro-
duced and the surface roughness were also evaluated
for the different machining tests. In each test, samples
of chips were collected and the surface quality of the
samples was analysed with three different roughness cri-
teria (Ra, Rz and Rmax) for each of the test conditions
with the aid of a portable roughness meter, Hommel
Tester T500. The measurements of the roughness for
each test were performed in the longitudinal direction
of the cylinder and according to two different longitudi-
nal lines, apart from each other by approximately 180°.
Results and discussion
Cutting forces, power and specific cutting pressure
The cutting forces depend on the properties of the
workpiece material, the cutting parameters and the
tools involved in the cutting process. Different combi-
nations of these elements result in different friction
effects between the tool and the workpiece, as well as
different types of chips.
The evaluation of the cutting forces obtained with
the machining tests allows a more appropriate analysis
and choice of the cutting parameters to be used to
machine these brass alloys. Feed force (Fa) and
7
penetration force (Fp) are usually less significant than
cutting forces (Fc), so their analyses are not considered
as relevant as the cutting forces. According to Figure 8,
it was verified that for a depth of cut of 1.5 mm, the
feed forces are approximately four times smaller than
the cutting forces, and this ratio tends to decrease with
the increase in the feed rate. The same situation was
verified for the relationship between the depth of cut
forces and the cutting forces, but for this ratio the cut-
ting forces are roughly 10 times greater than the depth
of cut forces. It was also observed that for the same
material, the cutting speed does not represent signifi-
cant variations in the mentioned ratios. Since the cut-
ting forces are dominant relative to the other load
components (feed and penetration), the following anal-
ysis will focus on the cutting force.
Figure 9 represents the cutting force (Fc) evolution
with the feed rate and depth of cut for the different
alloys. From the analysis of results, it is verified the sig-
nificant influence of the feed and depth of cut on the
cutting force, since the chip section is directly defined
by these two parameters. The cutting force increases
monotonically with the increase in the chip cross sec-
tion. Regarding the cutting speed influence, it is clear
that its effect on cutting force is lower than the chip
section. Also, the cutting force does not follow any
monotonic relation with the cutting speed and that
relation depends on the depth of cut and feed values.
For example, for the smallest depth of cut one realizes
that the highest tested cutting speed led to the lowest
8 Journal of Strain Analysis 00(0)

Table 6. Test matrix for the cutting tests.

n (r/min) ap (mm) fn (mm/rev) Vc (m/min)

2500 0.25 0.05 431.97

0.14
0.25
0.5 0.05 428.04
0.14
0.25
1.5 0.05 420.19
0.14
0.25
1800 0.25 0.05 285.57
0.14
0.25
0.5 0.05 282.74
0.14
0.25
1.5 0.05 277.09
0.14
0.25
900 0.25 0.05 130.06
0.14
0.25
0.5 0.05 128.65
0.14
0.25
1.5 0.05 125.82
0.14
0.25
630 00.5 0.05 81.15
0.14
0.25
1.5 0.05 79.17
0.14
0.25

Figure 9. Influence of cutting speed, feed rate and depth of cut

on cutting force, Fc: (a) ap = 0.25 mm, (b) ap = 0.5 mm and (c)
ap = 1.5 mm.

cutting forces. However, for the other depths of cut,

Figure 8. Ratio between (a) feed force (Fa) and cutting force
and (b) penetration force (Fp) and cutting force for a depth of
cut of 1.5 mm.
this observation is not verified and in some cases could
even be contradictory.
The different alloys have very clear and consistent
influence on the cutting force, with the cutting force
increasing with the lead reduction, attaining the maxi-
mum for the lead-free brass (Z). For the Z alloy, it
seems that the effect of the depth of cut is even higher
than for the other two alloys. The Z alloy yielded maxi-
mum cutting forces of 450 N, while the remaining alloys
reached only 300 N. According to the literature review,
it was expected that the alloy with higher content of Pb
have lower cutting forces, as verified with these results
where the R and L alloys (with lead) exhibit cutting
forces about 1.5 times lower than the lead-free alloy in
test (Z). This may be due to the reduction of the friction
Amaral et al. 9

coefficient between the workpiece and chips and the

tool rack face caused by the lubricating effect of lead.8
Also, generically the strength of the alloys reduces with
the Pb content which also contributes to facilitate the
cutting process by shear (Z alloy exhibited lowest yield
and strength values and higher ductility). Previous stud-
ies made by Vilarinho et al.4 show that for a cutting
velocity (Vc) of 165 m/min, feed rate (fn) of 0.1 mm/rev
and depth of cut (ap) of 1.5 mm, the values of cutting
forces were obtained for alloys of composition similar
to those discussed here, and values for the alloy Z were
registered in the order of 280 N, with R and L alloys
having approximate values, 170 and 190 N, respec-
tively. Those results support the results obtained.
Cutting power (Pc) is one of the parameters used to
measure the amount of energy required per unit of time
to remove the material during the machining process.
It was calculated by Pc = Fc
Vc. Besides the cutting
speed, the same factors influencing the cutting forces
also influence the cutting power, such as the feed rate
and the depth of cut, as illustrated in Figure 10. As
expected, with the increasing of the depth of cut (ap)
from 0.25 to 0.5 mm, the cutting power has an increase
near to 100%. For depth of cuts of 0.5 and 1.5 mm, the
Z alloy showed significantly higher cutting powers than
the other alloys; the L and R alloys exhibited closer
cutting powers for these two depths of cuts, but with
consistently higher results for the L alloy. For ap =
0.25 mm, there is some contradictory results with the R
alloy exhibiting higher power consumption than the
other alloys.
Specific cutting pressure (Ks) is usually used in
industrial applications to estimate cutting forces and
cutting strength of a material, as well as the machining
costs associated with the process and to establish the
machinability index of a material. This can be calcu-
lated by the ratio between the machining power and the
material removal rate; thus, it is found that the machin-
ability of a material increases as the value of the specific Figure 10. Influence of cutting speed, feed rate and depth of
cutting pressure decreases. The Ks values can also be cut on cutting power, Pc: (a) ap = 0.25 mm, (b) ap = 0.5 mm and
obtained by the ratio between the cutting force (Fc) and (c) ap = 1.5 mm.
the cross-sectional area of the undeformed chip (S)
which is the product of depth of cut (ap) and feed rate for increasing cutting depths, there is convergence
(fn). Although the analysis of the section area variable between the specific cutting pressures; however, with an
is useful, it will be more productive to analyse the depth increase in the cutting speed, the decrease in Ks is
of cut and the feed separately, as illustrated in Figures verified.
11 and 12. In general, the specific cutting pressure
increases with decreasing feed rates. Also, the specific
cutting pressures increases with lead reduction with the
Surface roughness evaluation
Z (lead-free) alloy exhibiting the highest specific cutting The surface finishing is also a parameter indicative of
pressures. There was an exception for Z and L alloys at the machinability of the materials. Ra, Rz and Rmax
ap = 0.25 mm and the highest cutting speeds, revealing roughness values were measured and average values
exceptional specific low cutting pressures. For R and L presented in Figures 13–15. It is verified that the cut-
alloys, it is found that for a depth of cut of 0.25 mm, ting speed and depth of cut do not have a significant
the specific cutting pressure increases as the cutting impact on the surface quality. However, as expected,
speed decreases. While on the other tests (ap equal to the feed rates have very significant impact on surface
0.5 and 1.5 mm), there is no influence of Vc, since the roughness, with a reduction of roughness with decreas-
values of Ks are very similar. In the case of the Z alloy, ing feed values.
10
Figure 11. Influence of cutting speed and feed rate and depth
of cut on specific cutting pressure: (a) ap = 0.25 mm, (b)
ap = 0.5 mm and (c) ap = 1.5 mm.
Figure 12. Relation between specific cutting pressure, depth of
cut and feed rate (average values of Figure 11).
Journal of Strain Analysis 00(0)
Figure 13. Influence of cutting speed and feed rate and depth
of cut on Ra: (a) ap = 0.25 mm, (b) ap = 0.5 mm and (c)
ap = 1.5 mm.
Ra values were similar between the three alloys with
the L alloy showing in most of the cases the lowest val-
ues. Analysing the Rz and Rmax values, it is verified that
L and R alloys show very similar values on each test; Z
alloy resulted in very large and higher Rz and Rmax val-
ues meaning the presence of significant extreme peaks
and valleys in the surfaces not present in the L and R
alloys.
Chip morphology evaluation
The chips were collected and registered for each set of
parameters, for the six test samples. Even though there
are several classifications for the chip formed during
the machining process, chips will be assessed based on
their acceptability, in this analysis. Thus, acceptable
Amaral et al.
Figure 14. Influence of cutting speed and feed rate and depth
of cut on Rz: (a) ap = 0.25 mm, (b) ap = 0.5 mm and (c)
ap = 1.5 mm.
chips can be found and they are characterized by not
interfering with the process and its removal from the
machining zone is easy, while unacceptable chips dis-
rupt normal operation or introduce malfunctions to the
machining process.
Figure 16 illustrates a selection of chips for different
combinations of cutting parameters and for the three
alloys. The influence of the cutting speed (Vc), feed rate
(fn), depth of cut (ap) and alloy (percentage of lead, Pb)
on chip geometry is illustrated in a brief way. From the
analysis of the collected chips, it is possible to observe a
certain periodicity of the type of chips for the L and R
alloys. This repeatability is visible in every three tests
(where cutting speed and depth of cut are maintained,
varying only the feed rate). The repeating sequence
begins with a long and helical chip (for fn = 0.05 mm/
11
Figure 15. Influence of cutting speed and feed rate and depth
of cut on Rmax: (a) ap = 0.25 mm, (b) ap = 0.5 mm and (c)
ap = 1.5 mm.
rev), followed by an arc-shaped chips (for fn = 0.14
mm/rev) and a third and last type corresponding to
fragmented chips (for fn = 0.25 mm/rev), as shown in
Figure 16(a). For the L and R alloys, it is also possible
to verify that, for the same cutting speed, increasing the
depth of cut implies the transition from helical chips to
helical conical chips.
Alloy Z is analysed separately because the type of
chips differs significantly from the other alloys, and this
alloy mainly generates ribbon chips and spiral helixes.
The chips formed for Z alloy does not show sensitivity
to the cutting parameters. However, for lower cutting
speeds, it has been found that the chips are always
spiral helical.
It is found that the alloys having the highest lead
content (L and R, respectively) guarantee chips control,
12 Journal of Strain Analysis 00(0)

Figure 16. Influence of cutting speed (Vc), feed rate (fn), depth of cut (ap) and alloy (percentage of Pb) on formed chips.

Table 7. Percentage contribution of the variables, according to the ANOVA test (L alloy).

Parameter Fc Ks Pc Ra Rmax Rz
P % P % P % P % P % P %

Vc 0.0072 0.0 0.0001 3.0 0.0001 17.4 0.9814 0.0 0.3856 0.0 0.8777 0.0
ap 0.0001 60.6 0.0001 8.4 0.0001 40.5 0.0001 0.2 0.1320 0.2 0.0001 0.4
fn 0.0001 27.1 0.0001 76.6 0.0001 18.5 0.0001 99.5 0.0001 93.7 0.0001 98.5
Vc
ap 0.0002 0.1 0.0001 6.3 0.0001 8.8 0.0430 0.0 0.4223 0.0 0.3549 0.0
Vc
fn 0.0031 0.1 0.0680 0.4 0.0001 3.7 0.0217 0.0 0.1267 0.3 0.6621 0.0
ap
fn 0.0001 11.9 0.0013 1.4 0.0001 8.0 0.0001 0.2 0.0010 1.6 0.0001 0.7
Residual 0.2 4.0 3.0 0.2 4.3 0.6

since the shortest and more brittle type of chips are
formed, unlike the Z alloy with lower lead content,
which has undesirable long chip behaviour. In general,
it has been found that the decrease in the lead content
has a negative effect on the type of chip desired in the
process. This is verified for any of the cutting para-
meters studied, since at the same cutting speed or feed
rate, the decrease in the lead level introduces increas-
ingly longer chips; the same is true for the depth of cut.
Therefore, for lead-free brasses and continuous cutting
processes, tools must possess chip breakers. An alterna-
tive to chip breaking geometries could be the usage of
bismuth, tin or silicon as lead replacement in the chemi-
cal composition of the alloy.
Analysis of variance
In addition to the previous analysis, analysis of variance
(ANOVA) was applied to the text matrix on the mea-
surable data which allow characterizing the
Amaral et al. 13

Table 8. Percentage contribution of the variables, according to the ANOVA test (R alloy).

Parameter Fc Ks Pc Ra Rmax Rz
P % P % P % P % P % P %

Vc 0.0684 0.1 0.6674 0.0 0.0001 18.4 0.9156 0.0 0.9737 0.0 0.8734 0.0
ap 0.0001 58.9 0.0001 13.1 0.0001 38.4 0.0001 0.4 0.0001 2.2 0.0001 1.4
fn 0.0001 28.6 0.0001 63.7 0.0001 19.6 0.0001 98.6 0.0001 90.8 0.0001 95.0
Vc
ap 0.0789 0.1 0.5069 0.0 0.0001 8.2 0.9227 0.0 0.7328 0.0 0.9872 0.0
Vc
fn 0.0252 0.2 0.6009 0.0 0.0001 4.4 0.9960 0.0 0.9874 0.0 0.9807 0.0
ap
fn 0.0001 11.0 0.2728 0.6 0.0001 7.5 0.0001 0.5 0.0004 2.4 0.0001 1.4
Residual 1.1 22.5 3.5 0.6 4.6 2.2

Table 9. Percentage contribution of the variables, according to the ANOVA test (Z alloy).

Parameter Fc Ks Pc Ra Rmax Rz
P % P % P % P % P % P %

Vc 0.0002 0.1 0.0001 17.5 0.0001 13.8 0.9221 0.0 0.9692 0.0 0.9543 0.0
ap 0.0001 55.7 0.0001 12.2 0.0001 29.8 0.0001 0.7 0.0049 16.9 0.0053 16.2
fn 0.0001 29.1 0.0001 36.3 0.0001 21.1 0.0001 98.4 0.0101 13.8 0.0054 16.1
Vc
ap 0.3754 0.0 0.0001 13.1 0.0001 7.7 0.5616 0.0 1.0000 0.0 1.0000 0.0
Vc
fn 0.8396 0.0 0.2110 0.8 0.0001 3.6 0.0052 0.0 1.0000 0.0 1.0000 0.0
ap
fn 0.0001 15.0 0.4328 0.0 0.0001 10.5 0.0001 0.7 0.4865 0.0 0.4857 0.0
Residual 0.2 20.1 3.4 0.2 69.2 67.7

machinability of brass alloys. The purpose of this anal-
ysis is to determine if a certain input parameter has or
not significant statistical influence on specific results
and thus complementing the previous discussion. The
input variables and their interactions used in this study
were Vc, fn, ap, Vc
ap, Vc
fn and ap
fn for the results Fc,
Ks, Pc, Ra, Rmax and Rz. In this case, Fa and Fp were not
analysed because their contributions to the total
machining force, Fm, do not represent half of the contri-
bution of Fc. Tables 7–9 summarize the ANOVA analy-
sis results for each alloy.
For the three alloys analysed, the range of cutting
speeds tested had practically no influence on the cutting
force, while ap and fn are the factors that most contrib-
uted, in this order of importance, and the remaining
contribution to Fc is given by the interaction ap
fn with
contributions of 60%, 30% and 10%, respectively.
Regarding the specific cutting pressure (Ks), the
influencing factors change according to the alloy. The
feed is the most influencing factor in any material, but
its influence reduces for the Z alloy where other factors
appear with significant influence which is the case of
the cutting speed. The depth of cut shows similar influ-
ence on Ks for the three materials. For the L and Z
alloys, the cutting speed–depth of cut interaction shows
some contribution to the variation of the Ks.
From the analysis of the cutting powers (Pc), a con-
tribution of all factors was found, with higher impor-
tance of ap, fn and Vc, in the order presented.
Physically, this result is quite consistent, since the varia-
tion in any of the inputs will directly affect the energy
required for the process.
Regarding roughness analysis, roughness (Ra, Rmax
and Rz) for the L and R alloys, the fn factor is practi-
cally the only responsible factor, with a general contri-
bution of more than 95%. For the Z alloy, the effect of
fn on Ra is identical, but for Rmax and Rz the results are
inconclusive, with residuals showing a contribution of
about 70%.
Conclusion
The effect of lead on the machinability of three brass
alloys was experimentally evaluated, and the following
conclusions were drawn:
 ANOVA proved to be very useful for the analysis
of the cutting parameters and their influence on the
different results, confirming the analysis of the
obtained results. With this analysis, it was possible
to quantify the effects of the input parameters ana-
lysed on Pc, Ks, Fc and roughness. It was also possi-
ble to verify the effects of interactions between the
parameters, such as Vcãap and apãfn that also
showed some influence on the machining results
analysed.
 Even though there is a difference in lead content of
R and L alloys (1.45% and 0.3%, respectively), the
resultant cutting forces did not show a significant
difference (less than 3%). On the other hand, the
higher cutting loads are verified for the Z alloy with
residual lead content (0.1%). As the depth of cut
increases, the difference between the cutting efforts
14
between the R and L alloys and the Z alloy becomes
more significant. Same conclusions can be drawn
for the calculated machining power, for the differ-
ent alloys under study.
 Considering the value of the specific cutting pres-
sure as a measurement factor of the machinability
of a material, the R and L alloys present higher
machinability taking into account the tendency of
Ks to show lower values than those recorded for the
Z alloy. In general, the specific cutting pressure (Ks)
is strongly influenced by the feed rate (fn). However,
while in the L and R alloys only the depth of cut
(ap) has some influence on the variation of this
parameter, for Z alloy, the results are similarly
influenced by the cutting speed and depth of cut.
The results of the analysis to the different samples
showed that the depth of cut (ap), the feed rate (fn)
and the interaction between them (ap
fn) influenced
cutting forces.
 It was verified that the variation of lead content
introduces great changes in the type of chip pro-
duced. Long ribbon- and helical-shaped chips were
obtained for low lead content brass alloys.
However, it was noticed that for an increase in
depth of cut and feed rate, chip breakage happened
more easily. L and R alloys present similar chip
geometry. The higher lead content alloy (L) consis-
tently showed shorter and chipped chip geometry.
In the course of the tests, no built up edge on cut-
ting tools was detected.
 All roughness parameters evaluated (Ra, Rmax and
Rz) have the same type of behaviour depending on
the different parameters. When the depth of cut
and feed rate was increased, it was verified that the
roughness also increases. The cutting speed has low
influence on these parameters. The influence of lead
is only significant in the analysis of Rmax and Rz;
instead, Ra presents approximate values for all
alloys. According to ANOVA, the roughness is
almost exclusively influenced by the feed rate in the
case of L and R alloys, with an average contribu-
tion of 96%. Thus, it was verified that the absence
of lead in the composition of the alloys translates
into a notorious increase in the values of Rz and
Rmax, but in this case, the ANOVA is not conclu-
sive due to the high scattered results.
 Tests performed with the PCD inserts showed no
noticeable wear. Therefore, the PCD tools can be
an appropriate choice to handle the lower machin-
ability resulted from lead-free brass alloys.
Nevertheless, chip breakers are required to avoid
the long chips that are unavoidable in continuous
and finishing cutting processes. Laser machining
View publication stats
Journal of Strain Analysis 00(0)
could be used to customize the chip breakers in
PCD insert tips.
Acknowledgements
The authors acknowledge MAPAL Company which
offered the PCD cutting inserts.
Declaration of conflicting interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest
with respect to the research, authorship and/or publica-
tion of this article.
Funding
The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following finan-
cial support for the research, authorship, and/or publi-
cation of this article: This work was funded by the
Project NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000022–SciTech, co-
financed by NORTE2020, through FEDER.
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