This thesis project was carried out at Sandvik Coromant in Västberga, Sweden with the purpose of developing a new laboratory test method for volumetric assessment of crater wear on inserts for steel turning. The test method was developed with the Sandvik Coromant´s existing crater wear measurement method as a starting point. Crater wear is currently measured as the projected area of exposed substrate, meaning where all coating layers have been removed. Based on earlier research on volume wear assessment, a focus variation microscope was selected to carry out 3D scans. To accurately measure the removed volume, an initial reference scan is required to capture individual variations existing on samples. The insert is then scanned after turning and compared with its reference. Factors affecting accuracy as well as possible improvements were identified as: Sample preparation, scan settings (resolution, quality) and data processing (alignment of scans, volume calculation etc.). Guiding alignment markers were created by laser ablation to help with alignment.  CloudCompare software was used to process the scanned 3D point clouds. A step by step routine was developed to ensure consistent results. The repeatability was assessed showing 8% standard deviation in volume for a shallow crater within the coating to 2% for a large crater worn into the substrate. The new method provides the possibility to measure wear while still inside the coating, which has been previously unavailable data. This enables measurement of the contribution of each specific coating layer on the wear resistance such as wear rate of a single layer instead of a combined wear rate for all layers. Detailed coating wear analysis is a valuable tool for development of optimized coatings. The developed wear measurement method was implemented on a case study which demonstrated the capabilities regarding its ability to resolve performance differences in experimental coatings. Additional wear parameters were used beside crater volume to support wear rate analysis and novel ways of representing volume wear parameters were presented.

The crater wear of alumina coated WC-Co cutting tools is thought to be influenced by the chemical reactions between the coating and the workpiece material. Three different crystal orientations ((001), (012), and (100) of alpha alumina CVD coatings are examined in combination with four workpiece materials of steel to establish what reactions are present, and the extent of diffusion. The alumina coatings and workpiece materials were pressed together as diffusion couples and heat treated at 1250- 1300°C for 10-20hours. It was fond that the types of inclusions present in the workpiece were more impactful on the chemical wear of the coating than the crystal orientation of the coating. EDS measurements show significant amounts of W and Co on the surface of the coatings and on the steel surfaces after heat treatment. This is thought to be connected to the migration of Co through the coating in cooling cracks and other impurities. In the surface of the coating, areas of solidified Co-rich structure have been found, implying that Co has formed an alloy with Fe, C, Al, and W with sufficiently low melting temperature to partially melt during the heat treatment. This has been confirmed as possible by simulations in Thermo-calc. Turning tests and scratch tests were made with the same combinations of coatings and workpiece material and show differences in adhesion of workpiece material on the different coating orientations. The 100-orientation has been found to have the most adhered workpiece material, the reason for this being its higher surface roughness. Ultimately no noticeable differences in chemical reactivity between the coating crystal orientations was found. The Co diffusion though the coating occurred for all the coating orientations and further experiments in turning with the different workpiece materials are required to determine the effect of Ca-rich inclusions on the magnitude of chemical wear. / <p>Handledare på företag:</p><p>Susanne Norgren </p><p>Doc.  Ph.D,  Group Expert Materials Design</p>

Titanium alloys are major materials used in the airplane industry, and prospects show that airplane production will double in the next 20 years. Consequently, the demand for cutting tools for machining of titanium alloys will increase. The primary problem when machining titanium alloys is their low thermal conductivity. Crater wear is the main factor limiting tool life, and is generally caused by thermal diffusion due to high temperatures in the tool-chip interface. This master’s thesis was performed in collaboration with Sandvik Coromant, with the prospect to increase knowledge of how diffusion and chip formation influences crater wear progression. The aim was to study tool wear of cutting tools when turning Ti–6Al–4V. This was done by testing two different rake face geometries, both coated and uncoated, at cutting speeds of 30–115 m/min. Diffusion was investigated to learn about the impact it has on crater wear. Chips were examined to investigate chip formation and shear strain. The coated modified rake face insert showed less crater wear only for the initial few seconds of machining. Uncoated inserts with a modified rake face showed higher diffusion rate and faster crater wear progression than did standard inserts. The standard inserts showed twice as long tool life as did the modified inserts. No significant differences in the chip formation mechanism were found between modified and standard inserts. Cracks were found within shear bands that were thinner than usual, which suggest that the generation of cracks allows less shear deformation.

The usage of titanium alloys in many industries has increased significantly over the years due to their superior properties. However, they are extremely difficult to machine because of their distinctive characteristics such as their high temperature strength, low thermal conductivity, and high chemical affinity for tool materials. Hence, despite their increased usage, they are still expensive to machine when compared to other metals. The current research aims to address the machinability issues of titanium alloys by developing novel compositions of a new generation of self-adaptive Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD) coatings that function by forming beneficial tribo-films through their interaction with the environment. These tribo-films form during cutting and provide enhanced lubricity, hardness, strength, and thermal barrier characteristics to the cutting tool. It was found that during Ti6Al4V machining, significant BUE and crater wear formation occurs; however, one is dominant over the other depending on the cutting conditions. Therefore, the coatings investigated were designed by taking into consideration the dominant tool wear mechanisms and the complex tribological phenomena that occur in the cutting zone. The current research investigated monolayer TiB2 and CrN self-adaptive PVD coatings for the rough (cutting speed - 45 m/min, feed -0.15 mm/rev, and depth of cut – 2 mm) and finish (cutting speed - 150 m/min, feed -0.1225 mm/rev, and depth of cut – 0.25 mm) turning of Ti6Al4V alloy. Detailed experimental studies were performed to study the effectiveness of the coatings during machining. Micro-mechanical characteristics of the coatings were also studied to understand how coating properties affect the coatings performance in machining and tribo-film formation. The results obtained show that both the TiB2 and CrN coatings significantly improve tool performance during the rough turning of Ti6Al4V alloy compared to the current industrial standard, which is due to certain micro-mechanical coating properties and the beneficial tribo-films formed. A coating of CrN coating was found to increase tool life during finish turning. It was also established that for machining applications where intensive adhesive interaction occurs at the tool-chip interface, coatings with lower hardness values perform significantly better than harder ones. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / Titanium alloys are increasingly becoming the material of choice for many industrial applications due to their superior properties. However, they are very difficult to machine since they have high chemical affinity towards tool materials, low thermal conductivity, and high temperature strength. These properties cause rapid failure of the tool. The objective of the current research is to address machinability issues during Ti6Al4V machining and improve tool performance. One effective strategy to minimize tool wear is to apply self-adaptive PVD tool coatings that can form beneficial tribo-films through their interaction with the environment and provide enhanced lubricity, hardness, strength, and thermal barrier characteristics to the cutting tool. In the current research, two self-adaptive PVD coatings were developed that offset the dominant tool wear mechanisms prevalent during the rough and finish turning of Ti6Al4V alloy and reduced the tool wear rate by more than 60% compared to the current industrial standard.