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CHAPTER 3

THEORY OF TOOL WEAR AND SURFACE ROUGHNESS

3.1 TOOL WEAR AND TOOL LIFE

The change of shape of the tool from its original shape, during
cutting, resulting from the gradual loss of tool material is called as tool wear.
Tool wear causes the tool to lose its original shape so that in time the tool
ceases to cut efficiently or even fails completely. After a certain degree of
wear, the tool has to be resharpened or replaced for further machining. The
following basic causes which can operate singly or in various combinations to
produce tool wear.

(a) Hard particle wear (abrasive wear)

(b) Adhesive wear mechanism

(c) Diffusion wear

(d) Chemical wear

(e) Fracture wear

(a) Hard particle wear (abrasive wear)

Abrasive wear is mainly caused by the impurities within the

workpiece material, such as carbon, nitride and oxide compounds, as well as
the built-up fragments. This is a mechanical wear, and it is the main cause of
the tool wear at low cutting speeds.
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(b) Adhesive wear mechanism

The simple mechanism of friction and wear proposed by Bowden

and Tabor (1995) is based on the concept of the formation of welded
junctions and subsequent destruction of these. Due to the high pressure and
temperature, welding occurs between the fresh surface of the chip and rake
face. Severe wear is characterized by considerable welding and tearing of the
softer rubbing surface at high wear rate, and the formation of relatively large
wear particles. Mild wear conditions will improve the surface finish of the
work piece.

(c) Diffusion wear

Holm (1996) thought of wear as a process of atomic transfer at

contacting asperities. A number of researchers have considered that the
mechanism of tool wear must involve chemical action and diffusion. They
have demonstrated welding and preferred chemical attack of tungsten carbide
in tungsten-titanium carbides. They have shown the photo-micrograph
evidence of the diffusion of tool constituents into the workpiece and chip.
This diffusion results in changes of the tool and workpiece chemical
composition. There are several ways in which the wear may be dependent on
the diffusion mechanism.

 Gross softening of the tool

Diffusion of carbon in a relatively deep surface layer of the

tool may cause softening and subsequent plastic flow of the
tool. This flow may produce major changes in the tool
geometry, which result in high forces and a sudden complete
failure of the tool.
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 Diffusion of major tool constituents into the work.

(Chemical element loss)

The tool matrix or a major strengthening constituent may be

dissolved into the work and chip surfaces as they pass the
tool. In cast alloy, carbide or ceramic tools, this may be the
prime wear phenomenon. With HSS tools, iron diffusion is
possible, but it seems unlikely to be the predominant wear
process. Diamond tool - cutting for the iron and steel is the
typical example of carbon diffusion.

 Diffusion of a work material component into the tool

A constituent of the work material diffusing into the tool

may alter the physical properties of a surface layer of the
tool. For example, the diffusion of lead into the tool may
produce a thin brittle surface layer, this thin layer can be
removed by fracture or chipping.

(d) Chemical wear

This type of wear is due to the interaction between the tool and
work material. While machining some types of plastics with carbide, rapid
wear on the face occurs owing to chemical action. This may be accelerated in
certain cutting fluid environments, where the fluid is active with respect to the
tool.

(e) Fracture wear

Fracture can be the catastrophic end of the cutting edge. The bulk
breakage is the most harmful type of wear and should be avoided as far as
possible.
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(f) Thermal cracking

Owing to thermal cyclical stresses at the cutting edges, short edge

cracks called comb cracks are often observed in the tool, running right angles
to the cutting edge. These occur mainly while machining with carbide tools
and are caused by the alternating expansion and contraction of the surface
layers of the cutting tool because of interruption in cutting.

3.1.1 Effects of the tool wear on technological performance measures.

Consequences of tool wear are,

1. Increase the cutting force: Crater wear, flank wear and

chipping of the cutting edge affect the performance of the
cutting tool in various ways. The cutting forces are normally
increased by wear of the tool. Crater wear may, however,
under certain circumstances, reduce forces by effectively
increasing the rake angle of the tool. Clearance-face wear
(flank wear) and chipping almost invariably increase the
cutting forces due to increased rubbing forces.

2. Increase the surface roughness: The surface finish produced

in a machining operation usually deteriorates as the tool
wear increases. This is particularly true for a tool worn by
chipping and generally the case for a tool with flank wear,
although there are circumstances in which a wear land may
burnish (polish) the workpiece and produces a good finish.

3. Decrease the dimensional accuracy: Flank wear influences

the plan geometry of a tool; this may affect the dimensions
of the component produced in a machine with set cutting
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tool position or it may influence the shape of the

components produced in an operation utilizing a form
tool.(If tool wear is rapid, cylindrical turning could result in
a tapered workpiece)

4. Increase the temperature: The increase in the heat generation

in between tool and workpiece interface will promote the
flank wear land and when the worn surface is long enough,
this region becomes a serious heat source leading to the
sudden failure of the tool.

5. Vibration: Vibration or chatter is another aspect of the

cutting process which may be influenced by tool wear. A
wear land increases the tendency of a tool to dynamic
instability. A cutting operation which is quite free of
vibration when the tool is sharp may be subjected to an
unacceptable chatter mode when the tool undergoes wear.

6. Lowers the production efficiency, component quality and

increases the machining cost.

3.1.2 Geometry of tool wear

The progressive wear of the cutting tools can take two forms:

(i) Tool wear on the rake face characterized by the formation of

a crater or a depression, as a result of chip flowing over the
tool rake face (Figure 3.1).

(ii) Wear on the tool flank characterized by the formation of the

wear land as a result of the newly cut surface rubbing against
the tool flank.
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(i) Crater wear

The chip flows across the rake face, resulting in severe friction
between the chip and rake face, and leaves a scar on the rake face which
usually parallels to the major cutting edge. The crater wear can increase the
working rake angle and reduce the cutting force, but it will also weaken the
strength of the cutting edge. The parameters used to measure the crater wear
is shown in Figure3.2. The crater depth KT is the most commonly used
parameter in evaluating the rake face wear.

Figure 3.1 Tool wear

Figure 3.2 Measurement of crater wear

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(ii) Flank wear

Wear on the flank (relief) face is called flank wear and results in the
formation of a wear land. Wear land formation is not always uniform along
the major and minor cutting edges of the tool. This type of wear most
commonly results from abrasive wear of the cutting edge against the
machined surface (Figure 3.1). Flank wear can be monitored in production by
examining the tool or by tracking the change in size of the tool or machined
part. It is measured by using the average and maximum wear land size VB and
VB max as in Figure 3.3. The detailed discussion on the conventional
measurement of crater and flank are given in chapter 6.

Figure 3.3 Measurement of flank wear

3.1.3 Typical stages of tool wear in normal cutting situation

1. Initial (or Preliminary) wear region:

Initial wear is caused by micro-cracking, surface oxidation and

carbon loss layer, as well as micro-roughness at the cutting tool tip. For the
new cutting edge, the small contact area and high contact pressure will result
in high wear rate. In the initial stage the wear size is VB=0.05-0.1mm
normally.
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2. Steady wear region

After the initial (or preliminary) wear (cutting edge rounding), the
micro-roughness is improved, in this region the wear size is proportional to
the cutting time. The wear rate is relatively constant (Figure 3.4).

Figure 3.4 Typical stages of tool wear in normal cutting situation

3. Severe (or Ultimate or catastrophic) wear

When the wear size increases to a critical value, the surface

roughness of the machined surface decreases, cutting force and temperature
increase rapidly, and the wear rate increases. Then the tool loses its cutting
ability. In practice, this region of wear should be avoided. Flank wear will
increase the friction, so that the total cutting force will increase. The
component surface roughness will be increased, especially when chipping
occurs. Flank wear will also affect the component's dimensional accuracy.
When form tools are used, flank wear will also change the shape of the
component produced. The recommended wear size for different operations are
given in Table 3.1
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Table 3.1 Recommended wear land size for different tool material and
operations. (Armarego 1969)

Flank Wear (mm) Tool Material Remarks

0.76 Carbide Roughing passes
0.25-0.38 Carbide Finishing passes

1.25 H.S.S. Roughing passes

0.25-0.38 H.S.S. Finishing passes

Roughing and
0.25-0.38 Cemented oxides
finishing passes

The conventional measurement of crater and flank is discussed in

chapter 5.

3.2 THEORY OF SURFACE ROUGHNESS

Surface finish is the texture that results from a manufacturing

process. Turning, milling, grinding and all other machining processes impose
characteristic irregularities on a part's surface. Additional factors such as the
cutting tool selected, the condition of the machine tool, speed, feed, vibration,
and other environmental factors further influence these irregularities. Texture
consists of the peaks and valleys that make up a surface and their direction
(lay) on the surface (Figure 3.5). This texture can be broken down into three
components: roughness, waviness, and form. Roughness (sometimes simply
referred to as surface finish) can be thought of as the marks left by every pass
of a cutting tool; each pass leaving a groove of some width and depth.
Waviness is the result of small fluctuations in the distance between the cutting
tool and the workpiece during machining. These changes are caused by
cutting tool instability and by vibrations. Some of these sources are external
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and sporadic, including a passing forklift or the operation of other machines

on the shop floor. Other vibration sources are internal, such as worn bearings,
motor vibrations, and so on. Assuming that the part was intended to be
straight and/or flat, errors of form are due to a lack of straightness or flatness
in the machine tool's ways. All three surface finish components exist
simultaneously, superimposed over one another.

Figure 3.5 Surface characteristics (Courtesy ANSI B46.1-1962)

The irregularities of a machined surface consist of high and low

spots created by the tool bit or by a grinding wheel. These peaks and valleys
can be measured and used to define the conditions and sometimes the
performance of a surface.

Since the three basic forms of surface geometry are caused by

different factors and tend to have different relationships to the performance of
the part, it is common to separate them during analysis. This separation is
achieved by the selection of filter or cutoff settings that allow the operator to
select how much filtering will be applied to a measured profile. There are
more than 100 available parameters (ways to measure a surface and analyze
the results), but in most cases, only a few are specified. Each of the
parameters has its own advantages and limitations. Often one parameter is
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not enough to define a complex surface adequately. Therefore, a complete

definition of a surface often involves two or more parameters, and in some
cases, the relationship of one parameter to another. The most common
parameter used in industries is Ra, or Arithmetic Average Roughness. Ra
reflects the average height of roughness component irregularities from a mean
line. Ra provides a simple value for accept/reject decisions.

In the manufacturing industry, surface must be within certain limits

of roughness. Therefore, measuring surface roughness is vital for quality
control of machining work piece, especially if it is non - contact method
compared to the direct conventional method; which uses stylus type devices
which measures surface roughness in 2-D. Any measurements and analysis of
2-D profile will give an incomplete surface description. The presented
ultrasonic methodology gives areal surface measurement that gives 3-D
information in terms of Ra.

3.2.1 Various standards of roughness measurement

(1) Ra - Center Line Average or Arithmetic Average

This is the most widely used parameter for specifying surface

roughness. It is the arithmetic mean of the departures Y of the points on the
profile from the mean line. The mean line is first determined and the ordinates
of the points from the mean line are added without considering their sign.

1 1
Ra 
L  Ydx 
n
 Yi (3.1)

(2) Rq - Roughness Average or Root Mean Square Average Height (RMS)

It is defined as the average root mean square deviation Y of the

profile from its mean line within the sampling length L
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1  1 
Rq    Y 2dx     Yi2  (3.2)
L  n 

Where, n is the number of ordinates in the sample length L.

(3) Rz – Ten Point Peak to Valley Average Height

Rz is the average difference between the five highest peaks and five
deepest valleys within the sampling length, the heights being measured from a
line parallel to the mean line and not crossing the profile.

Rz 
 R1  R3  R5  R7  R9  –  R2  R4  R6  R8  R10 
(3.3)
5

(4) Rp – Leveling depth

It is the maximum profile height from the mean line or the centre
line, within the sampling length

1
Rp   YdL (3.4)
L

This parameter describes the functional quality of a surface more

closely than any other parameter. It gives information regarding the minimum
initial volume of lubricant that could be contained between two sliding
surfaces (Jain R K 2002).