0316-Manu 144 7 074501
0316-Manu 144 7 074501
Da
Silva et al. [1] used aluminum oxide (Al2O3)-coated tungsten
New Machining Processes carbide milling cutters to face mill CrCuSn, and CrCuSnMo gray
cast iron alloy and vermicular graphite cast iron with fixed cutting
parameters to observe side wear of the cutter. Arif G. et al. [2]
Yu-Yuan Hsieh applied the best cutting parameter values and tool path strategies
Department of Mechanical Engineering, for ball-end milling of the EN X40CrMoV5-1 tool steel using the
National Chin-Yi University of Technology, Taguchi method with three coated cutters and established a
Taichung 41170, Taiwan model, using the response-surface methodology, for the tool accel-
eration as a function of the cutting parameters. Qin et al. [3] used
e-mail: hsiehyuyuan@ncut.edu.tw Si3N4 ceramic tools coated with TiN/Al2O3 and uncoated ceramic
tools at different cutting depths to determine tool life, tool wear,
Ming-Yi Tsai1
Journal of Manufacturing Science and Engineering JULY 2022, Vol. 144 / 074501-1
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Fig. 1 A rotor and the design details of a side seal
The aforementioned situation will increase variables in the The finish milling process is to complete the accuracy of the inner
component manufacturing process, resulting in unstable quality radius (IR), thickness (T ), and length (L) of each side seal compo-
and low yield rate. The study develops a new machining process nent. The tolerance of the width (W ) dimension is reserved to facil-
for side seal components. Milling process will be combined with itate the grinding process. The CNC milling machine is used with a
new grinding wheels and self-made polishing tools for grinding four-blade tungsten steel end milling cutter to remove the thermal
and polishing, which can produce better quality side seal deformation of the heat treatment in the milling finishing process.
components. Then, a six-blade tungsten steel end milling cutter is used to
make the surface of the inner and outer radius of the side seal com-
ponent reach the standard of 0.8a average surface roughness by
high-speed cutting, and then the IR and thickness (T ) reach the stan-
2.3 New Manufacturing Process. In this study, the new dard. Next, slot milling is performed, which can make the length (L)
process, milling process, has been proposed for the manufacture of the side seal component reach the required accuracy. A T-shaped
of rotary engine side seal components. Self-made grinding wheels cutter is used to cut off tolerances of the thickness of the side seal
and ball-polishing tools were used to grind and polish the gray component. Finally, the width of the side seal component is
cast iron alloy in the processing machines. grinded with an numerical control (NC) surface grinder.
The study applies a new machining process to improve the pro- The material used to make the side seals in this study was a gray
duction of traditional side seal components. The ring-shaped cast iron alloy blank in the form of a cast cylinder produced by the
casting was fixed as shown in Fig. 4. A vertical positive force is NCSIST. The material was annealed, quenched, and tempered in
applied to fix the casting in the computer numerical control three sequential heat treatment steps. After tempering, the hardness
(CNC) milling machine. It can improve the deformation of the and strength of the gray cast iron alloy are close to that of the
side seal component due to the clamping of the ring-shaped
casting under the radial force.
The main purpose of rough turning is to remove residual material
and to get rid of the dimension given a machining allowance caused
by the stress deformation resulted from heat treatment. CNC lathe
was applied in this rough machining operation, which can save
time and cost. The milling finishing process is shown in Fig. 5.
Journal of Manufacturing Science and Engineering JULY 2022, Vol. 144 / 074501-3
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Fig. 6 Metallographic microstructure of the gray cast iron alloy: (a) quenched and
(b) tempered states
Fig. 7 (a) Optical microscopic images of patterns on the cutting edge (left) and back (right) of new milling cutters coated with
AlTiN, TiSiN, and AlTiSiN and (b) optical microscopic images of the wear patterns on the cutting edge (left) and back (right) of
milling cutters coated with AlTiN, TiSiN, and AlTiSiN
3.2 Processing Parameters for Gray Cast Iron Alloy (Fig. 8(c)) AlTiSiN. The residues of material on the cutter surfaces
3.2.1 Milling Cutter With Three Different Coatings ALTIN, can be analyzed by EDS and are listed in Table 1. It can be seen
TISIN, and ALTISIN. The reason why gray cast iron alloy is diffi- from the table that there are different levels of carbon, iron, or
cult to machine during high-speed cutting is that it contains chro- silicon remaining on the tool, which can be known as adhesive
mium and molybdenum. Both will increase the hardness of the wear of the tool during the cutting process. In addition, different
material, which is the main factor affecting the machinability of levels of oxygen remain on the three tools. It may be oxidative
milling cutting. The normal wear of the tool during processing wear due to high temperature.
occurs on the side, and side wear is one of the factors that affect Differences in average surface roughness of gray cast iron alloy
the dimensional accuracy of the workpiece [5]. specimens machined using cutters with the three different coatings
Figure 7(a) shows optical microscopic images before the coated (AlTiN, AlTiSiN, and TiSiN) was determined by interferometry.
milling cutter cuts the gray cast iron alloy. Figure 7(b) optical Table 2 presents that the average surface roughness of the workpiece
microscopic images after the coated milling cutter cuts the gray processed by the milling cutter coated with TiSiN was higher than
cast iron alloy. These figures show the general wear of the tool at that of the other two specimens whose difference between both
a cutting speed of 150 m/min. It is estimated that the tempered mar- was much less. Because tool wear affects the quality of the surface
tensite, the main influencing factor of tool wear, has good mechan- roughness, the milling cutters with TiSiN coating in high-speed
ical properties and wear resistance after proper tempering heat machining cause instability in the machining process.
treatment of the gray cast iron alloys. The milling cutters coated with AlTiN or AlTiSiN form a layer of
Figure 8 shows SEM images of wear patterns on three different aluminum oxide (Al2O3), which increases stability about milling in
coated milling cutters (Fig. 8(a)) AlTiN, (Fig. 8(b)) TiSiN, and hardness and chemistry. This increases cutting stability even at the
temperatures generated by high-speed machining. The shapes of plastic. At the same time, the workpiece will be pushed to the both
the surfaces seen by white light interferometry are caused mainly sides of the abrasive rod due to the appearance of the abrasive rod,
by the tracks left by the milling cutters, and these differences causing the workpiece to protrude and no swarf appear. It is the phe-
cannot be seen visually, as shown in Figs. 9–11. nomenon of plowing. When the thickness and temperature of swarf
The study conclude that the best average surface roughness of increase, and the abrasive grains reach a certain depth, the material in
workpiece, Ra 0.59 µm, can be obtained by machining with AlTiN- front of the blade will break due to plastic deformation. Then cutting
coated milling cutters, as presented in Table 2. phenomenon will happen.
Table 3 compares the surface roughness of gray cast iron alloy spe-
3.2.2 Grinding and Polishing the Gray Cast Iron Alloy. cimens after polishing with polyurethane (PU) polishing rods with
During a grinding process, there are three types of grinding operation diamond particle sizes of 9, 6, and 1 µm. The results show that the
between surface of the abrasive rod and that of the workpiece: 6 µm diamond gives the best average surface roughness, followed
rubbing, plowing, and cutting. If the abrasive grain is on a blunt by the 9 µm diamond. The 1 µm diamond polishing rod gives the
radius or at a large negative rake angle, it will be difficult for the abra- worst polished surface roughness. White light interferometry
sive rod to cut into the workpiece. The abrasive grain can only cause images of the microstructure of the polished surfaces of polished
friction and elastic deformation on the surface of the workpiece, and gray cast iron alloy specimens were made to investigate the reaction
the phenomenon of rubbing is easy to happen. When the abrasive rod between the polishing rod and the contact surface of workpiece.
is squeezed and its friction force increases, the surface temperature of
the workpiece increases to produce the deformation of elastic or
Table 2 Average surface roughness of gray cast iron alloy
specimens milled by cutters with AlTiN, TiSiN, and AlTiSiN
Table 1 Analysis of surface residue on coated milling cutters coating
AlTiN 14.2 37.0 30.7 10.5 5.8 1.8 0.0 0.0 100.0 AlTiN 0.59 ± 0.10
TiSiN 73.9 0.0 18.9 0.0 2.6 0.0 4.6 0.0 100.0 AlTiSiN 0.64 ± 0.08
AlTiSiN 31.8 1.3 24.5 1.3 4.8 0.0 3.9 32.4 100.0 TiSiN 0.74 ± 0.04
Journal of Manufacturing Science and Engineering JULY 2022, Vol. 144 / 074501-5
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Fig. 9 Interferometer image of a workpiece surface milled with an AlTiN-coated cutter
It is observed from the white light interferometry that when the Because the polishing rod rotates at very high speed, the diamond
diamond particle size is 1 µm, there is no obvious cutting ability on abrasive particles will rub, plow, or cut the gray cast iron alloy at
the surface of the gray cast iron alloy, and the only rubbing and the contact surface between the workpiece and the polishing rod,
plowing phenomena occur between the polishing rod and the depending on the different particle types. The surface of the speci-
contact surface of workpiece. At this time, the milling tool marks men shows obvious tool marks, and the average surface roughness
on the surface of the workpiece are eliminated by the push of dia- was measured as Ra 0.026 µm.
monds, but the residual material on the surface of the gray cast Figure 13 shows the results obtained with a polishing rod with
iron alloy cannot be removed, so the surface roughness of the work- diamond particle size of 6 µm. However, the 6 µm diamond par-
piece cannot be improved. ticle is a small size, so the cutting depth is shallow and a better
Figure 12 shows an image of the surface of a specimen polished polishing result of average surface roughness Ra 0.012 µm is
with a PU polishing rod with a diamond particle size of 9 µm. obtained.
Table 3 The surface roughness of gray cast iron alloy Figure 14 shows a specimen surface polished with a polishing
specimens after polishing with PU polishing rods with diamond rod with diamond particle size of 1 µm. It can be seen that there has
particle sizes of 9, 6, and 1 µm been no actual cutting of the specimen surface. The contact between
the polishing rod and the workpiece only produces rubbing and
Diamond particle size Surface roughness Ra (µm) plowing phenomena. Although the cut marks left by the milling
cutter had been eliminated by the pushing of the polishing rod, the
9 µm 0.026 ± 0.002
6 µm 0.012 ± 0.004
residue on the surface of the gray cast iron alloy specimen was not
1 µm 0.028 ± 0.006 removed and the surface roughness of the workpiece was not
improved.
Fig. 12 Interferometer image of a gray cast iron alloy specimen surface after polishing with a 9 µm PU polishing rod
Journal of Manufacturing Science and Engineering JULY 2022, Vol. 144 / 074501-7
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Fig. 13 Interferometer image of a gray cast iron alloy specimen surface after polishing with a 6 µm PU polishing rod
3.3 Development of a Manufacturing Process for Engine Table 5 presents the measurements of the six completed side seal
Rotor Side Seals. The main purpose of rough machining is to components. The values of IR and length (L) meet the requirements.
remove the residual material and add the clearance value of the The thickness (T ) is in the range from 1.470 to 1.478 mm. There is a
stress deformation caused by the heat treatment. Therefore, the gap between the screws of the CNC milling machine table, which
CNC lathe for the rough machining can save time and cost. The will move and cause errors when the hard and brittle materials of
parameters are 1.0 mm infeed per edge, 0.08 mm/rev infeed, and the seals are milled.
250 rpm cutting speed. It takes 20 infeeds to completely remove The average width (W ) is 2.334 mm, and only No. 4 has a lower
the remaining. The cost of the turning blade with same coating is value. The reason is that the cutting process is heavy cutting.
only a quarter of the price of the milling cutter. Other processing However, during the cutting process, the side seal component is
procedures and parameters are presented in Table 4. less restrained by the ring-shaped casting, resulting in torsional
Fig. 14 Interferometer image of a gray cast iron alloy specimen surface after polishing with a 1 µm PU polishing rod
Rough turning Tungsten steel Al2O3 + TiCN 250 0.08 mm/rev 1.00
Rough milling Tungsten steel AlTiN 4000 500 mm/min 0.30
Finishing Tungsten steel AlTiN 6000 1200 mm/ 0.10
milling min
Slot milling Tungsten steel AlTiN 6000 1200 mm/ 0.30
min
Cut processing Tungsten steel None 1500 200 mm/min 0.00
Inner radius IR (mm) 119.40 ± 0.30 119.22 119.22 119.25 119.18 119.28 119.24
Length L (mm) 102.40 ± 0.10 102.31 102.32 102.32 102.31 102.34 102.31
Thickness T (mm) 1.475 ± 0.005 1.471 1.478 1.474 1.476 1.470 1.475
Width W (mm) 2.340 ± 0.010 2.334 2.334 2.333 2.330 2.336 2.335
deformation of the side seal component due to excessive cutting seal component to obtain the average surface roughness. As a
resistance. This process exceeds allowance for grinding, but it is result, neither the milling process nor the WEDM can meet the
still within the required standard. The average surface roughness requirements, and it needs to go through the grinding process
is photographed using an interferometer to take 5 points on a side before it can reach the 0.4a standard, as shown in Fig. 16.
seal component. The results are shown in Fig. 15. In addition, in the inner radius machining of the side seal compo-
The study also tried another machining method: the combined nent, a seal end face roughness of Ra 0.377 µm can be obtained using
turning and milling process. This kind of processing method has six-bladed tungsten steel end mill coated with AlTiN running at
the advantages of simple process, low cost, and fast process- 6000 rpm and with a feed rate of 1200 mm/min, as presented in
ing time. However, due to the cylindrical shape of the casting, the Table 6. This result can be within the standard range of Ra 0.4a.
processing is limited. It is difficult to obtain a balance between The average surface roughness reached, using an alumina grind-
the pressure of the hydraulic chuck and the cutting force when ing wheel at a speed of 2500 rpm and a cutting parameter of
the casting is clamped. If the pressure of the chuck is too heavy 0.5 mm/time, was 0.082 µm. The best average surface roughness
or too light, the casting will be deformed or fall off during the on a side seal component achieved using 6 µm diamond impreg-
cutting process. Therefore, this kind of process is not suitable for nated polyurethane polishing rod self-made in our laboratory was
processing side seal components. Ra 0.019 µm.
The standard side seal component requires 0.4a for the surface The study proposes to develop a new machining process for
roughness (Ra) of the end face. In the study, an interferometer the gray cast iron alloy side seal components of the rotor engine,
was used to photograph five points on the end face of the side which is different from the traditional WEDM process. The
Fig. 15 Average surface roughness of the milling process: (a) at the end of Ra 0.191 µm and (b) inner and outer diameter
Ra 0.273 µm
Journal of Manufacturing Science and Engineering JULY 2022, Vol. 144 / 074501-9
but it only takes 30 min per piece, which is only 1/6 of the time con-
sumed by the traditional processing method. The cost of making
each piece is about NT$216, which is only 1/5 of the cost of the tra-
ditional processing method, and the average surface roughness
obtained is Ra 0.377 µm. From the above comparison, it can be
seen that the new manufacturing process has more advantages.
4 Conclusion
In this study, a new machining process is developed for side seal
components of gray cast iron alloy in the rotor engine, and the fol-
lowing conclusions can be drawn from the aforementioned results:
Conflict of Interest
Table 7 Comparison of traditional and innovative processing
There are no conflicts of interest.
methods