Mechanism of chip formation in machining
Machining is a semi-finishing or finishing process essentially done to impart required or stipulated dimensional and form accuracy and surface finish to enable the product to
• fulfill its basic functional requirements
• provide better or improved performance
• render long service life.
Machining is a process of gradual removal of excess material from the preformed blanks in the form of chips. The form of the chips is an important index of machining because it directly or indirectly indicates:
• Nature and behavior of the work material under machining condition
• Specific energy requirement (amount of energy required to remove unit volume of work material) in machining work
• Nature and degree of interaction at the chip-tool interfaces.
The form of machined chips depends mainly upon
•Work material
• Material and geometry of the cutting tool
• Levels of cutting velocity and feed and also to some extent on depth of cut
• Machining environment or cutting fluid that affects temperature and friction at the chip-tool and work-tool interfaces Knowledge of basic mechanism(s) of chip formation helps to understand the characteristics of chips and to attain favorable chip forms.
Mechanism of chip formation in machining ductile
materials During continuous machining the uncut layer of the work material just ahead of the cutting tool (edge) is subjected to almost all sided compression as indicated in Fig.
The force exerted by the tool on the chip arises out of the normal force, N and frictional force, F as indicated in Fig. Due to such compression, shear stress develops, within that compressed region, in different magnitude, in different directions and rapidly increases in magnitude.
Whenever and wherever the value of the shear stress reaches or exceeds the shear strength of that work material in the deformation region, yielding or slip takes place resulting shear deformation in that region and the plane of maximum shear stress. But the forces causing the shear stresses in the region of the chip quickly diminishes and finally disappears while that region moves along the tool rake surface towards and then goes beyond the point of chip-tool engagement. As a result the slip or shear stops propagating long before total separation takes place.
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| Compression of work material (layer) ahead of the tool tip |
In the mean time the succeeding portion of the chip starts undergoing compression followed by yielding and shear. This phenomenon repeats rapidly resulting in formation and removal of chips in thin layer by layer. This phenomenon has been explained in a simple way by using a card analogy as shown in Fig.
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| Shifting of the postcards by partial sliding against each other |
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| Primary and secondary deformation zones in the chip. |
In actual machining chips also, such serrations are visible at their upper surface as indicated in Fig. The lower surface becomes smooth due to further plastic deformation due to intensive rubbing with the tool at high pressure and temperature. The pattern of shear deformation by lamellar sliding, indicated in the model, can also be seen in actual chips by proper mounting, etching and polishing the side surface of the machining chip and observing under microscope.
The pattern and extent of total deformation of the chips due to the primary and the secondary shear deformations of the chips ahead and along the tool face, as indicated in Fig. 15, depend upon
• work material
• Tool material and geometry
• The machining speed (VC) and feed (so)
• cutting fluid application
The overall deformation process causing chip formation is quite complex and hence needs thorough experimental studies for clear understanding the phenomena and its dependence on the affecting parameters. The feasible and popular experimental methods for this purpose are:
• Study of deformation of rectangular or circular grids marked on the side surface as shown in Fig.
• Microscopic study of chips frozen by drop tool or quick stop apparatus
• Study of running chips by high speed camera fitted with low magnification microscope.
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| Rectangular grids |
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| circular grids |
It has been established by several analytical and experimental methods including circular grid deformation that though the chips are initially compressed ahead of the tool tip, the final deformation is accomplished mostly by shear in machining ductile materials. However, machining of ductile materials generally produces flat, curved or coiled continuous chips.
Mechanism of chip formation in machining brittle materials
The basic two mechanisms involved in chip formation are
• Yielding – generally for ductile materials
• Brittle fracture – generally for brittle materials
During machining, first a small crack develops at the tool tip as shown in Fig. due to wedging action of the cutting edge. At the sharp crack-tip stress concentration takes place. In case of ductile materials immediately yielding takes place at the crack-tip and reduces the effect of stress concentration and prevents its propagation as crack. But in case of brittle materials the initiated crack quickly propagates, under stressing action, and total separation takes place from the parent work piece through the minimum resistance path as indicated in Fig.
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| Development and propagation of crack causing chip separation |
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| Schematic view of chip formation in machining brittle materials |
Machining of brittle material produces discontinuous chips and mostly of irregular size and shape.
Geometry and characteristics of chip forms
The geometry of the chips being formed at the cutting zone follow a particular pattern especially in machining ductile materials. The major sections of the engineering materials being machined are ductile in nature, even some semi ductile or semi-brittle materials behave ductile under the compressive forces at the cutting zone during machining. The pattern and degree of deformation during chip formation are quantitatively assessed and expressed by some factors, the values of which indicate about the forces and energy required for a particular machining work.
Chip reduction coefficient or cutting ratio
The usual geometrical features of formation of continuous chips are schematically shown in Fig.
The chip thickness (a2) usually becomes larger than the uncut chip thickness (a1). The reason can be attributed to
• Compression of the chip ahead of the tool
• Frictional resistance to chip flow
• Lamellar sliding