Experimental and numerical study of grind-hardening-induced residual stresses on AISI 1045 Steel

A finite element model has been developed for the prediction of the thermo-mechanical response during grind-hardening of AISI 1045 steel. Grind-hardening process utilizes the heat generated in the grinding area for the surface heat treatment of the workpiece. The workpiece surface is heated above the austenitization temperature by using large values of depth of cut and low workpiece feed speeds. The workpiece undergoes martensitic phase transformation increasing its hardness in the surface layer. This paper establishes a finite element model for predicting the grind-hardening temperature, resulting crystal structure of the workpiece material and residual stresses distribution. In the present paper, modeling and prediction of the residual stresses profile as a function of the process parameters is presented. The model’s results are validated for two cases; a dry grind-hardening and a coolant-assisted grind-hardening of AISI 1045 steel.