Characterization of Chip and Burr Formation at High Speed Machining of Nitronic 33 Steel Alloys

The energy consumption and machinability index of metallic alloys are very important in determining the economic and environmental value of manufacturing process. Various machinability problems with Nitronic 33 steel alloy have been reported in literature. These problems have been attributed to the work hardening of the material during machining operation and hence greatly influences and contributes to the green house gas emission. In this work, the chip and burr formation during the machining of Nitronic 33 steel alloy was investigated in other to optimize the cutting parameters and provide a knowledge base for machinists when machining austenitic stainless steels. The result shows that although continuous chips were formed throughout the machining tests, an evidence of continuous chip with built-up edges was also observed. This phenomenon tends to initiate the formation of discontinuous chips especially at high pressure coolant flow of 7 and 9.7 MPa. It is concluded that conventional cutting environment at 90 m/min cutting velocity is the optimum process parameter most suitable for machining Nitronic 33 steel alloy. The research outcome will address some of the problems encountered during high speed machining of Nitronic 33 steel alloy and the general understanding of the machinability of this alloy.