Tools wear mechanisms and tool life in precision machining Tools get worn out due to long term

usage and two major types of wear found in tools are crater wear and flank wear. Crater wears occur on the rake face and is more less or less circular. The crater does not always extend to the tool tip, but may end at a distance from the tool tip. It increases the cutting forces, modifies the tool geometry and softens the tool tip. Flank wear is on the clearance surface of the tool. The wear land can be characterized by the length of wear land, w. it modifies the tool geometry and changes the cutting parameters. Cutting tools are subjected to extremely severe cutting conditions such as: i) Metal to metal contact with work and chip ii) Very high stress iii) Very high temperature iv) Virgin metal v) Very high temperature gradients vi) Very high stress gradients As tool wear progresses, cutting forces increase and vibrations increase.Tool life represents the useful life of the tool, expressed generally in time units from the start of a cut to some end point defined by a failure criterion. Tool which in no longer performs the desired function is said to have failed and it reached the end of its useful life .At such an endpoint the tool is not necessarily unable to cut the workpiece but in merely unsatisfactory for the purpose required. The tool may be resharpened and used again. The tool life values suggested by ISO are: i. VB = 0.3mm if the flank is regularly worn in zone B, or ii. VB = 0.6mm if the flank is irregularly worn, scratched, chipped or badly grooved in zone B. The tool life can be specified by the following measurable quantities: i) Actual cutting time to failure ii) Length of work cut to failure iii) Volume of metal removed to failure iv) Number of components produced v) Cutting speed for a given time to failure The problem normally faced is in the definition of the failure criterion and some of the possible tool failure criteria that can be used to limit tool life based on tool wear are: i) Chipping or fine cracks developing at the cutting edge ii) Wear land size iii) Crater depth, width or other parameters iv) A combination of the above two v) Volume or weight of material worn off the tool vi) Total destruction of the tool Based on consequences of a worn tool: i) Limiting value of surface finish ii) Limiting value of change in component size

iii)

Fixed increase in cutting force or power required to perform a cut

The actual tool life values obtained would depend on the failure criterion adopted and the typical wear land sizes us as tool life limits are as shown below. Wear land, mm Tool material Remarks 0.75 Carbides Roughing 0.25 to .38 Carbides Finishing 1.50 HSS Roughing 0.25 to 0.38 HSS Finishing 0.25 to 0.38 Oxide Roughing and finishing