Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology 29 (10) (2015) 4329~4340

www.springerlink.com/content/1738-494x(Print)/1976-3824(Online)
DOI 10.1007/s12206-015-0931-2

Study of surface roughness and flank wear in hard turning of AISI 4140 steel with
coated ceramic inserts†
Sudhansu Ranjan Das1,*, Debabrata Dhupal2 and Amaresh Kumar1
1
Department of Manufacturing Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Jamshedpur, 831014, Jharkhand, India
2
Department of Production Engineering, Veer Surendra Sai University of Technology, Burla, 768018, Odisha, India

(Manuscript Received November 22, 2014; Revised February 19, 2015; Accepted April 26, 2015)

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Abstract

This experimental investigation deals with dry hard turning of AISI 4140 steel using PVD-TiN coated Al2O3+TiCN mixed ceramic in-
serts. The combined effect of cutting parameters (cutting speed, feed and depth of cut) on performance characteristics such as surface
roughness and flank wear is explored by Full factorial design (FFD) and analysis of variance (ANOVA). The results show that feed is the
principal cutting parameter influencing surface roughness, followed by cutting speed. However, flank wear is affected by the cutting
speed and interaction of feed-depth of cut, although depth of cut has not been found statistically significant, but flank wear is an increas-
ing function of depth of cut. Observations are made on the machined surface, and worn tool by Scanning electron microscope (SEM) to
establish the process. Abrasion was the major wear mechanism found during hard turning within the studied range. The effect of tool
wear on surface roughness was also studied. The experimental data were analyzed to predict the optimal range of surface roughness and
flank wear. Based on Response surface methodology (RSM), mathematical models were developed for surface roughness (Ra) and flank
wear (VB) with 95% confidence level. Finally, under optimum cutting conditions (obtained by response optimization technique), tool life
was evaluated to perform cost analysis for justifying the economic viability of coated ceramic inserts in hard turning. The estimated ma-
chining cost per part for TiN coated ceramic was found to be lower (Rs. 12.31) because of higher tool life (51 min), which results in the
reduction of downtime and increase in savings.
Keywords: AISI 4140 steel; TiN-coated ceramic tool; Surface roughness; Flank wear; RSM; Cost analysis
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assured various advantages more than the cylindrical grinding

1. Introduction
practice with respect to reduced setup time, greater process
Due to the increasing demand for higher precision compo- flexibility, increased productivity, reduced power consump-
nent, the main challenge of machining industries is to manu- tion, lower production costs, improved surface integrity and
facture high quality product and to achieve minimal tool wear insignificant environmental disputes exclusion of cutting fluid
on the cutting tools with a reduction of cost and time con- [1-4].
straints. To uphold the demanded trend, machining perform- Despite these potential benefits of hard turning compared to
ance, machining conditions, machine have outlined in a suit- cylindrical grinding, there is a clear need for further research
able and systematic way/technique which ensures good sur- to clarify the issues in the areas of machined workpiece sur-
face finish, productivity improvement, machining process face quality, tool wear and process parameter optimization.
efficiency, economically in combination with the demand to Surface roughness and tool wear are classified among the
minimize the production expenses. In the recent past, hard most important aspects in hard turning. Surface roughness
turning has been presented as a substitute for cylindrical grind- affects the corrosion resistance, fatigue strength, wear rate and
ing, which helped in establishing the economic and quality tribological properties of machined parts, whereas tool wear
viability with the presence of a large variety of tools, work- affects dimensional accuracy of the finished product, surface
piece materials and process parameters used in practice. Hard finish, residual stress, surface integrity (white layer) and tool
turning is an emerging metal cutting process of steel with life. Similarly, process parameter optimization deals in model-
hardness above 45 HRC, which has been explored as a valu- ling of input-output and in-process parameter relationships
able and profitable alternative to cylindrical grinding. This has and determination of optimal cutting conditions [5]. The tech-
*
Corresponding author. Tel.: +82 9937347205 niques used for optimizing process parameters by means of
E-mail address: das.sudhansu83@gmail.com
† experimental procedures and mathematical (statistical) models
Recommended by Associate Editor Jihong Hwang
© KSME & Springer 2015 have increased considerably with time to accomplish the gen-
4330 S. R. Das et al. / Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology 29 (10) (2015) 4329~4340
eral objective of enhancing productivity and advancing cutting
process efficiency at minimum processing cost for successful
implementation of hard turning.
2. Literature review
The following section relates to assessment, modelling and
optimization of responses by varying process parameters
which have been reported. Aslan et al. [6] applied Taguchi
technique and analysis of variance to explain the effects of
cutting parameters for optimizing flank wear and surface
roughness when machining an AISI 4140 grade hardened (63
HRC) steel using mixed ceramic inserts. Their results ex-
plained flank wear (VB) value reduced because of the cutting
speed increased. On the other hand, the surface finish was
improved as cutting speed was elevated and impaired with
feed. Later, Aouici et al. [7] adopted statistical ANOVA and
response surface methodology to explore the effects of ma-
chining parameters (cutting speed, feed and cutting time) for
modelling and optimizing flank wear and surface roughness in
hard turning of X38CrMoV5-1 steel with CBN tool. Results
revealed that flank wear is largely influenced by cutting time
followed by cutting speed, whereas feed in case of surface
roughness. In turning hot work tool steel AISI H11 with ce-
ramic tools, Saini et al. [8] utilized RSM for modelling to pre-
dict tool wear and surface roughness at different cutting pa-
rameters, namely cutting speed, feed, depth of cut and nose
radius. The results showed that feed and nose radius have
crucial and statistically significant effect on surface roughness,
whereas cutting speed is mostly affecting tool wear followed
by nose radius. Gaitonde et al. [9] utilized a similar approach
by considering the influence of process parameters (speed,
feed and machining time) on surface roughness and tool wear
in turning high chromium AISI D2 cold work steel with wiper
ceramic inserts. Results reveal that surface roughness can be
reduced at low feed rate and machining time with high cutting
speed, whereas tool wear can be reduced by employing low
values of all three process parameters. Asilturk and Akkus
[10] observed that feed rate was the highest influential cutting
parameter for surface roughness (Ra and Rz) in turning AISI
4140 steel hardened at 51 HRC with Al2O3 and TiC coated
carbide inserts. In spite of this, other machinability aspects
like cutting force, cutting temperature, tool wear and chip
morphology have not been taken up for analysis and research,
which are necessary for hard turning. In another study, Dureja
et al. [11] revealed that feed rate, workpiece hardness and cut-
ting speed were significant terms in improving surface finish,
while significant effect by cutting speed and feed was ob-
served on flank wear during dry hard turning of AISI H11 hot
work die steel by CBN tools. An investigation on the effect of
cutting parameters (v,f,d), Sahoo and Sahoo [12] evaluated the
performance of multilayer coated carbide inserts in terms of
flank wear and surface roughness in finish turning A1S1 4340
hardened steel. The mathematical modeling and parametric
optimization on performance measure was presented by ap-
proaching RSM and grey-based-Taguchi method. Horng et al.
[13] experimentally investigated flank wear and surface
roughness to evaluate the machinability of Hardfield steel in
turning with mixed Al2O3/TiC ceramic tool using RSM and
ANOVA techniques. Results revealed that cutting speed and
interaction of feed with tool corner radius are affecting the
flank wear significantly, while cutting speed and nose radius
have significant effect on surface roughness. Suresh et al. [14]
used a similar approach by considering the influence of cut-
ting parameters (v,f,d) and machining time on machinability
aspects like surface roughness, tool wear and machining force
in turning AISI 4340 steel hardened at 48 HRC with coated
carbide inserts. Davim and Figueira [15] applied statistical
techniques to evaluate the machinability such as surface
roughness, specific cutting pressure and flank wear in turning
AISID2 steel hardened at 60 HRC with ceramic tool. They
found that surface roughness is influenced by cutting time
(32%) followed by feed rate (29.6%) and cutting velocity
exhibited the most effect on tool flank wear. The proper selec-
tion of machining parameters is attainable to achieve surface
finish (Ra < 0.8 µm) closer to cylindrical grinding. Cakir et al.
[16] developed mathematical models (linear, quadratic and
exponential) for modeling and assessing the influence of coat-
ing materials (CVD-TiN, PVD-TiAlN) and cutting parameters
on surface roughness while turning of cold work steel. They
concluded that among all the models the quadratic model was
suitable to predict the surface roughness. For better and accu-
rate predictions of tool flank wear, Quiza et al. [17] developed
and performed a comparison between multilayer perception
neural network model and statistical regression model depend-
ing on determination coefficient (R2) value and distribution of
residuals. Ozel et al. [18] predicted surface finish and tool
flank wear in turning AISI D2 steel by generating model
based on regression analysis and artificial neural network.
Most authors focus on surface roughness and tool wear but
very few studies have been reported on machined surface
morphology, tool wear mechanism and cost analysis along
with above machining variables, which are the burning issues
that need to be explored for better understanding of the proc-
ess to improve the overall productivity in manufacturing by
hard turning. In this work dry hard turning of AISI 4140 steel
with TiN coated mixed ceramic inserts is conducted to explore
the influence of cutting parameters on the responses (surface
roughness and flank wear) by employing analysis of variance
and by generating mathematical models to correlate cutting
parameters with the output responses through RSM. In addi-
tion, to justify the economic viability of using TiN coated
ceramic insert in hard turning, a cost analysis based on total
machining cost per part was performed.
3. Experimental setup and procedure
AISI 4140 high strength alloy steel of 45 mm in diameter
and a length of 120 mm was chosen as workpiece material for
the present experimentation. This material was selected, found
 S. R. Das et al. / Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology 29 (10) (2015) 4329~4340
Table 1. Chemical composition of AISI 4140 steel (%).
C Si Mn P S Cr Mo Ni
0.386 0.377 0.670 0.032 0.029 1.040 0.091 0.143 Balance
Fig. 1. View of cutting zone.
Fig. 2. Coating layer of AB2010 insert.
on its applications in automotive, crank shafts, spindles, con-
necting rods, pump, gear shafts, tie rods and bolts requiring
high resistance. The chemical composition of AISI 4140 steel
was measured by Spectro metal analyzer (SpectroMax) and
the obtained results are shown in Table 1.
Initially, the workpiece materials were applied to heat
treatment at 9200C (austenization temperature) for 30 minutes
and oil quenched. Thereafter, tempering was done at 4000C
for 2 hours followed by cooling to eliminate the residual
stresses and obtain a homogeneous structure. A standard
workpiece hardness of 52 HRC was obtained after heat treat-
ment. A center drill was made on the face of the each work-
piece to facilitate mounting at the tailstock, shown in Fig. 1.
Burr and oxide layers were removed from the outer surface of
each workpiece, prior to the actual turning.
The coated Al2O3+TiCN mixed ceramic insert chosen for
experimentation is commercially designated as AB2010 from
TaeguTec limited. The AB2010 grade insert possesses a coat-
ing of thin TiN layer (1µm) on the mixed ceramic substrate,
deposited by PVD, shown in Fig. 2. The combination of this
ceramic grade with PVD-TiN coating provides improved wear
resistance, fracture resistance during dry machining and pro-
vides significant cost advantage compared CBN tool. The
4331
Table 2. Physical properties of AB2010 insert.
Fe Density Hardness Bending strength
Composition
(g/cm3) (HRA) (MPa)
Al2O3-Ti(C,N) 4.30 94.5 650
Fig. 3. Insert with tool geometry.
Fig. 4. Tool wear measurement setup.
physical properties of the AB2010 insert are presented in Ta-
ble 2. The insert ISO designation is CNGA120408; it was
mounted on a tool holder with an ISO designation of
PCLNL2525M12 (CERATIZIT make). Combination of the
cutting insert with the tool holder resulted in back rake angle -
60, approach angle 950, inclination angle 60, including angle
800, clearance angle 60 and nose radius 0.8 mm. The geometry
of the cutting insert is illustrated in Fig. 3.
Hard turning experiments were performed in dry cutting
environment on a CNC lathe (SPRINT 16TC, BATLIBOI
Limited) equipped with variable spindle speed from 30 to
5000 rpm at 7.5 kW maximum spindle power Fanuc OiT
make model, Fanuc motors and drives. The average surface
roughness (Ra) of machined workpiece for each machining
condition on individual test was measured by using Surftest
SJ-201 Mitutoyo roughness tester. The flank wear (VB) of
cutting tool was measured by optical microscope (Nikon
make) equipped with digital camera and computer as interface
installed with image Material QS’6 series software, which can
capture the tool wear zone, is shown in Fig. 4. Wear mecha-
nisms of the worn tool and the quality of the machined surface
were examined using scanning electronic microscope (EVO
MA15, Carl Zeiss SMT, Germany). The schematic representa-
tion of the experimental setup is in Fig. 5. Surfaces with
roughness average (Ra) value in the range of 0.1-1.6 µm are
usually obtained by surface-finishing operation like grinding.
4332 S. R. Das et al. / Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology 29 (10) (2015) 4329~4340

Table 3. Cutting parameters and their levels. Table 4. Experimental results for surface roughness and flank wear.

Levels Surface roughness Flank wear

Parameters Symbol Unit Test no. v f d
1 2 3 (Ra) (VB)

Cutting speed v m/min 100 170 240 1 100 0.05 0.1 1.078 0.126

Feed f mm/rev 0.05 0.10 0.15 2 100 0.05 0.2 0.825 0.147

Depth of cut d mm 0.1 0.2 0.3 3 100 0.05 0.3 0.898 0.191
4 100 0.1 0.1 1.589 0.101
5 100 0.1 0.2 1.410 0.108
6 100 0.1 0.3 1.383 0.119
7 100 0.15 0.1 1.825 0.136
8 100 0.15 0.2 1.752 0.114
9 100 0.15 0.3 1.706 0.110
10 170 0.05 0.1 0.732 0.131
11 170 0.05 0.2 0.714 0.150
12 170 0.05 0.3 0.772 0.160
13 170 0.1 0.1 1.207 0.141
14 170 0.1 0.2 1.237 0.152
15 170 0.1 0.3 1.246 0.170
16 170 0.15 0.1 1.775 0.186
17 170 0.15 0.2 1.698 0.142
18 170 0.15 0.3 1.712 0.137
19 240 0.05 0.1 0.865 0.149
20 240 0.05 0.2 0.941 0.173
21 240 0.05 0.3 0.913 0.202
22 240 0.1 0.1 1.409 0.151
23 240 0.1 0.2 1.512 0.136
24 240 0.1 0.3 1.395 0.161
25 240 0.15 0.1 1.818 0.138
26 240 0.15 0.2 1.933 0.169
27 240 0.15 0.3 1.926 0.131
Fig. 5. The experimental setup.

The control limit for hard turning has been set as 1.6 µm. The
standard tool life for the same is determined considering
maximum flank wear width of VB = 0.2-0.3 mm occurring at
the tip of the tool or when the maximum value of Ra reaches
1.6 µm which is similar to the surface finish attained by con-
ventional grinding. Each test represents 200 mm machining
length in axial direction.
We considered three important parameters such as cutting
speed, feed and depth of cut as process (cutting) parameters,
which affect the responses of interest (surface roughness and
flank wear). The responses of interest are: surface roughness
(Ra) in workpiece and flank wear (VB) on cutting tool. A full
factorial design was chosen as the experimental design in the
present research. The parameter levels were preferred within
the intervals prescribed by cutting tool’s manufacture [19].
The cutting parameters and parameter levels are summarized
in Table 3. Based on a (33) full factorial design, a total of 27
number of experimental tests were carried out at three input
levels. The experimental design and the experimental results
are illustrated in Table 4.
4. Results and discussions
4.1 Surface roughness analysis
The experimental results of surface roughness (Ra) were
analyzed using the analysis of variance (ANOVA) for deter-
mining the parameters significantly influencing the surface
roughness, and the analysis was by a software package
MINITAB15. This analysis was accomplished for a signifi-
cance level alpha (α) of 0.05 (95% confidence level). Table 5
shows the P-values, i.e., the recognized significance levels,
allied with the F-tests for each source of variation. Statistical
significance to the response is considered when the P-value of
its input sources is observed to be lower than 0.05. The last
column of the table explains the percent contribution of sig-
nificant source to the total variation and revealing the degree
of impact on the surface roughness.
In Table 5, the parameters v, f and interactions v*d are sig-
 S. R. Das et al. / Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology 29 (10) (2015) 4329~4340
Table 5. Analysis of variance for surface roughness (Ra).
Source DF Seq SS Adj SS Adj MS F P value C (%)
v 2 0.16914 0.16914 0.08457 49.84 <0.000
f 2 3.94130 3.94130 1.97065 1161.29 <0.000 92.92
d 2 0.00747 0.00747 0.00373 2.20 0.173
v*f 4 0.03971 0.03971 0.00993 5.85 0.017
v*d 4 0.06484 0.06484 0.01621 9.55 0.004
f*d 4 0.00569 0.00569 0.00142 0.84 0.538
Error 8 0.01358 0.01358 0.00170
Total 26 4.24173
nificant sources on average surface roughness (Ra), as their P-
value is less than 0.05. Feed (the most significant parameter)
extremely contributed 92.92% on Ra as compared to cutting
speed (3.99%). Amid the parameters, the significance of feed
is predominant (F = 1161.29) followed by cutting speed (F =
49.84) and last by interaction effect of cutting speed with
depth of cut (F = 9.55) as its F-value is more than F-table
value. However, the impact of depth of cut (d) and its interac-
tion of feed (f*d) are not found statistically significant on av-
erage surface roughness (Ra) and their contributions are
0.17% and 0.13%. As the percent contribution due to error
associated to the ANOVA table is very small (0.32%), it
means neither any major parameter has been neglected nor
any significant errors in measurement [20].
Fig. 6 illustrates the main and the interaction effect plots of
average surface roughness parameter (Ra). The main effect
plots indicate that the surface roughness leads to increase sig-
nificantly with an increase in feed. This is predicted as well as
known that the theoretical surface roughness is principally
dependent upon the feed rate, for a certain nose radius of tool
insert [21]. Suresh et al. [14] found that with increased feed
thrust force advances resulting in vibration and producing
extra heat to enhance the plastic deformation of workpiece and
thereby resulting in higher surface roughness. The normal
tendency of curve in Fig. 6 is that when cutting speed is in-
creased, the surface roughness values diminishes until the
lowest value is attained beyond which the roughness value
increases. Similar result was reported on surface roughness
during turning nodular cast iron by alumina based ceramic
tools [22]. The surface finish improves with increase in cutting
speed up to 170 m/min, which can simply be illustrated by
restricting BUE formation trend with increasing cutting speed.
Nevertheless, more increase in cutting speed gives rise to in-
crease in surface roughness, which can be explained by either
the possibility of chatters due to vibrations [23] or material
side flow [24] related to high speeds. No considerable effect is
noticed on surface roughness caused by change in depth of cut.
However, to reduce the tendency to chatter, low depth of cut is
to be maintained [25].
Figs. 7(a) and 7(b) show Scanning electron microscope
(SEM) pictures of the best and poor surface quality obtained
when hard turning of AISI 4140 steel using TiN coated ce-
4333
3.99
0.17
0.94
1.53
0.13
0.32
100
Fig. 6. Main effects and interaction plots for surface roughness (Ra).
ramic tool under different cutting conditions. These phenom-
ena were observed at experimental test number 11 (v = 170
m/min, f = 0.05 mm/rev and d = 0.2 mm) and test number 26
(v = 240 m/min, f = 0.15 mm/rev and d = 0.2 mm). It ex-
presses the states of the machined work surface considering
feed marks, grooves and ridges, adhere chip particles, smooth
and rough surface. The improved surface finish is distinctly
displayed in Fig. 7 for decreased feed. This result is attributed
to decrease in cutting force, which reduces the contact stress
and frictional force at tool-work interface and, consequently,
plastic deformation of machined surface becomes less signifi-
cant which causes an improved surface finish, as reported by
Zou et al. [26]. The machined surface in Fig. 7(a) shows that
the feed marks are not observable at lower feed; on the other
hand, feed marks are very clearly noticeable at higher feed
(0.15 mm/rev). Fine grooves and ridges were seen, that were
created due to plastic deformation of the machined surface as
indicated in Fig. 7(b). During cutting the hard carbides are
broken in shear plane under the cutting forces and these bro-
ken carbide particles are shearing off the machined work sur-
face under the cutting edge, resulting in long straight grooves
on machined surface. Development of strong ridge was ob-
served between the feed marks and the feed mark region. As
per Zhou et al. [27], the ridges at the feed marks are due to
damaged cutting edge in the sense of tool wear.
4334 S. R. Das et al. / Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology 29 (10) (2015) 4329~4340

Table 6. Analysis of variance for flank wear (VB).

Source DF Seq SS Adj SS Adj MS F P C (%)

v 2 0.0042716 0.0042716 0.0021358 9.64 0.007 25.35
f 2 0.0023790 0.0023790 0.0011895 5.37 0.033 14.12
d 2 0.0008892 0.0008892 0.0004446 2.01 0.197 5.28
v*f 4 0.0025846 0.0025846 0.0006461 2.92 0.092 15.33
v*d 4 0.0004090 0.0004090 0.0001023 0.46 0.763 2.43
f*d 4 0.0045470 0.0045470 0.0011368 5.13 0.024 26.98
Error 8 0.0017721 0.0017721 0.0002215 10.51
Total 26 0.0168525 100

(a)

(b)

Fig. 7. SEM pictures of the surface quality observed during turning of

AISI 4140 steel: (a) v = 170 m/min, f = 0.05 mm/rev and d = 0.2 mm
(test no. 11); (b) v = 240 m/min, f = 0.15 mm/rev and d = 0.2 mm (test
no. 26).

4.2 Flank wear analysis

The result of ANOVA of flank wear in machining of hard-

ened steel is shown in Table 6. Out of the cutting parameters
taken into account, the significance of cutting speed is pre-
dominant (F = 9.64) on the response of tool flank wear (VB),
followed by feed (F = 5.37) and the interaction effect of cut-
ting speed with depth of cut (F = 5.13) as the F-value is ex-
ceeding F table value (4.46), and P-value is less than 0.05 at
95% confidence level [28]. A better knowledge of the expla-
nation of the outcomes, which show that the percent contribu-
tion due to the cutting speed is 25.35%, while interaction ef-
fect of feed with depth of cut (f*d) contributes 27% and feed
14.12%. However, flank wear (VB) was not found statistically
significant on depth of cut, but the flank wear increased mar-
ginally with increase in depth of cut.
The main and interaction effect plots for flank wear are
shown in Fig. 8. Clearly, increasing cutting speed and depth of
cut leads to increase in tool flank wear. This agrees with Sa-
Fig. 8. Main effects and interaction plots for flank wear.
hoo and Sahoo [29] and Suresh et al. [30] that increased cut-
ting speed notably increases temperature at the contact tool
due to the rapid rubbing action between tool’s flank side and
machined surface, which even exceeds the limits of the al-
lowed thermal stability of the tool material. Another way to
explain this is that this effect is due to increase in friction at
the tool-chip interface causing localized high pressure and
temperature at the nose region of the tool inserts, and for this
reason it results in thermal impact [13, 31]. Owing to high
cutting temperature, the yield strength of the workpiece mate-
rial decreases, which leads to lesser cutting forces and conse-
quently lesser flank wear (< 0.3 mm). The reduced tool wear
is achieved at a combination of both the lowest cutting speed
 S. R. Das et al. / Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology 29 (10) (2015) 4329~4340
(a)
(b)
Fig. 9. SEM images of the worn out inserts at f = 0.05 mm/rev and d =
0.2 mm: (a) v = 170 m/min; (b) v = 240 m/min.
and depth of cut, and medium feed rate.
Flank wear of the tool insert in hard turning is primarily
caused by abrasion for the range of considered input variables
for the study, where abrasive wear possesses scars on flank
face, which is observed in Fig. 9. This was caused by the abra-
sive nature of the some hard particles present in the steel work
material, and it agrees with the observations of Pavel et al.
[32]. The SEM images of the worn out inserts (Figs. 9(a) and
9(b)) reveal no chipping and catastrophic failure of cutting
edge is noticed for TiN coated ceramic insert at low feed (0.05
mm/rev) and 0.2 mm depth of cut, when turning is performed
at two different cutting speeds of 170 and 240 m/min. These
effects explain that TiN coating appreciably enhances the
fracture resistance as well as wear resistance of Al2O3+TiCN
mixed ceramic inserts while turning AISI 4140 steel.
Fig. 10 illustrates the influence of flank wear on machined
surface roughness. From the machining, it has been recorded
that for a flank wear of 0.112 mm corresponds to the surface
roughness (Ra) value of 0.902 µm. When the flank wear
4335
VB=0.202
4 VB=0.173
VB=0.141
VB=0.110
Surface roughness (µm)
3
0.10 0.12 0.14 0.16 0.18 0.20
Flank wear (mm)
Fig. 10. Surface roughness vs. flank wear at v = 170 m/min; f = 0.05
mm/rev; d = 0.3 mm.
reaches 0.202 mm, the increase of surface roughness (Ra) is
68%. The analysis concludes that surface roughness is closely
related and proportional to the flank wear. That means that
any progress in flank wear indicates some degradation of the
machined surface quality. Similar results can be found in the
Refs. [33-35]. Although it is taken that as long as wear is usual
and does not go beyond 0.3 mm, surface roughness increases
gradually since Ra does not exceed 1.6 µm.
4.3 Optimal design
The plots of the significant cutting parameters are shown in
Fig. 6, which are employed for evaluating the mean surface
roughness having optimal design conditions. Feed and cutting
speed are two significant parameters in the investigation; plots
were employed to set up their very effective levels to produce
the smallest roughness value. Feed (f) when set at 0.05
mm/rev (level 1) and cutting speed (v) when set at 170 m/min
(level 2) gave the smallest roughness values. Evaluation of
average value depends upon the factorial effects of additivity.
A good additivity occurs when one factorial effect is added to
another for prediction of the outcome.
From Table 7, the estimated average of the surface rough-
ness (Ra) can be calculated as [20],
µRa = f1 + v2 - TR a (from Table 4, TR a = 1.343)
= (0.8598 + 1.2326) - 1.343 = 0.7494 .
The 95% confidence interval for the surface roughness (Ra) is
F95%;(1, DOFerror ) ´ Verror
CI = ,
ŋeff
N 27
where ŋeff = = = 5.4
1 + DOF associated to that level 1 + 2 + 2
F95%;(1, 8) = 5.32 and Verror = 0.00170 (from Table 5)
4336 S. R. Das et al. / Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology 29 (10) (2015) 4329~4340

Table 7. Mean Values for each parameter at each level for surface Table 8. Results of ANOVA for Ra model.
roughness and for flank wear.
Source DF Seq SS Adj SS Adj MS F P Remarks
Roughness Ra (µm) Flank wear (VB) Regression 9 4.17170 4.171705 0.463523 112.53 0.000 Significant
Level
v f d v f d Linear 3 3.93659 0.335738 0.111913 27.17 0.000
1 1.3851 0.8598 1.3664 0.1280 0.1588 0.1399 Square 3 0.18132 0.181325 0.060442 14.67 0.000
2 1.2326 1.3764 1.3358 0.1521 0.1377 0.1434 Interaction 3 0.05379 0.053792 0.017931 4.35 0.019
3 1.4124 1.7939 1.3279 0.1567 0.1403 0.1534 Residual error 17 0.07002 0.070022 0.004119
Delta 0.1799 0.9341 0.0386 0.0287 0.0211 0.0136 Total 26 4.24173
Rank 2 1 3 1 2 3
Bold values indicate the levels of significant parameters for which the best S = 0.06418 R-Sq = 98.3% R-Sq(adj) = 97.5%
result obtained and the optimal design is calculated.
Table 9. Results of ANOVA for flank wear model.
5.32 ´ 0.00170 Source DF Seq SS Adj SS Adj MS F P Remarks
Hence, CIRa = = 0.041.
5.4 Regression 9 0.011937 0.011937 0.001326 4.59 0.003 Significant
Finally, the 95% confidence interval of the predicted opti- Linear 3 0.006056 0.001210 0.000403 1.39 0.279
mal range for surface roughness (Ra) is [ µRa - CIRa ] ≤ µRa ≤
Square 3 0.001484 0.001484 0.000403 1.71 0.203
[ µRa + CIRa ] i.e. (0.7494-0.041) ≤ µRa ≤ (0.7494+0.041)
Interaction 3 0.004397 0.004397 0.000495 5.07 0.011
0.7084 ≤ µRa ≤ 0.7904 µm.
Residual error 17 0.004916 0.004916 0.001466
Total 26 0.016853 0.000289
In an interaction to achieve the best estimate of an average
value, the specific treatment condition (here, f2d1) should be
S = 0.01700 R-Sq = 70.8% R-Sq(adj) = 55.4%
averaged in the experimental test. Good additivity occurs
when the interaction is taken as one of the sources along with
non-interacting sources (here, v1); an average value of good Ra = 1.6173 - 1.9877 d + 11.3233 f - 0.0140v + 1.1389d 2
significance is estimated [20]. From Table 4, the f2d1 combina-
-19.8444 f 2 + 0.000v 2 + 0.3000 f * d + 0.0077v * d
tion is considered in the test number 4, 13 and 22. These ex-
- 0.0113v * f
perimental tests are thus averaged to get f 2 d1 = 0.131 mm
(Table 4). R 2 = 98.3% R 2 ( adj ) = 97.5% (1)
The estimated average of the flank wear (VB) can be calcu- VB = 0.04544 + 0.32258d - 0.44508 f + 0.00084v
lated as [20] + 0.32222d 2 + 4.75556 f 2 - 0.0000v 2 - 3.81667 f * d
- 0.00001v * d + 0.00043v * f

µVB = f 2 d1 + v1 − TVB (from Table 4, TVB = 0.146)
= (0.131 + 0.128) - 0.146 = 0.113
27
F95%;(1, 8) = 5.32, ŋeff = = 3.86 and
1+ 4 + 2
Verror = 0.0002215 (from Table 6)
5.32 ´ 0.0002215
Thus, CI VB = = 0.017.
3.86
Finally, the 95% confidence interval of the predicted opti-
mal flank wear (VB) is [ µVB - CI VB ] ≤ µVB ≤ [ µVB + CI VB ]
i.e. (0.113-0.017) ≤ µVB ≤ (0.113+0.017)
0.096 ≤ µVB ≤ 0.130 mm.
4.4 Surface roughness and flank wear quadratic models
Using the experimental results, second-order (quadratic)
models were established for surface roughness and flank wear
at 95% confidence level. The response variables are the sur-
face roughness (Ra) and flank wear (VB), whereas the predic-
tors are cutting parameters (v, f, d). Utilizing Response surface
methodology (RSM), surface roughness model and flank wear
model are presented in Eqs. (1) and (2), respectively.
R 2 = 70.8% R 2 ( adj ) = 55.4% . (2)
The adequacy and statistical significance of the model has
been confirmed using ANOVA contingent on P-value and F-
value. Generally, it is used to summarize the test of the regres-
sion equation (model), test of significance parameters and
their interactions. If P-value of model proposed is less than
0.05 (95% confidence level), the significance of related source
is determined and the model has significant effect on the per-
formance measures [36]. From ANOVA Table 8 surface
roughness model, it is observed that mathematical model is
significant as the P-value is less than 0.05. Further analysis for
the effectiveness of surface roughness model is performed by
the help of R2 value. When R2 approaches unity implies the
response models have closely resembled the actual (experi-
mental) data. In the present works, the R2 value for the surface
roughness (Ra) is 98.3%, which indicates high statistical sig-
nificance of the model and the goodness fit for the model. It
presents that good agreement exists between the predicted
values and experimental values. Similarly, from flank wear
model (Table 9), the model is significant as the P-value less
 S. R. Das et al. / Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology 29 (10) (2015) 4329~4340 4337

Table 10. Response optimization for surface roughness parameter (Ra).

Optimum
Parame- Predicted Desirabil-
Goal combination Lower Target Upper
ters response ity
v f d
Ra Minimum 163.6 0.05 0.3 0.714 0.714 1.933 0.7308 0.9862
Composite desirability = 0.9862

Table 11. Machining cost per part for TiN coated ceramic insert in
hard turning.

Cutting conditions: cutting speed (v) = 163.6 m/min, feed (f) = 0.05
mm/rev, depth of cut (d) = 0.3 mm, machining length (L) = 100 mm,
Fig. 11. Normal probability plot of surface roughness (Ra) and flank finished w/p diameter (D) = 41 mm, workpiece = AISI 4140 (52 HRC),
wear (VB). flank wear (VB) = 0.3 mm, surface roughness (Ra) = 1.6 µm, machining
πDL
time per part (Tc) = = 1.57 min, machine downtime (Td) = 5
than 0.05. The model is adequate as F calculated value is 1000vf
greater than F-table value at 95% confidence level. The model min, tool life for single edge (T) = 51 min.
was introduced to determine coefficient (R2 = 0.708) defining No. Costs TiN coated ceramic
70.8% of the variability in response of flank wear, which re- 1 Value of machine and operator, Rs.200/h (x) Rs.3.33/min
veals statistical significance of the model and the goodness fit 2 Machining cost per part (xTc) Rs. 5.24
for the model. 3 Tool changing cost per part [xTd ( Tc / T ) ] Rs. 0.513
The diagnostic checking of the models was performed to
4 Tool insert cost per piece Rs. 850
prove its statistical validity. The Anderson-Darling test and
5 Mean value of single cutting edge (y) Rs. 212.5
normal probability plots of the residuals versus the predicted
6 Total cost per part [y ( Tc / T ) ] Rs. 6.558
response for the average surface roughness (Ra) and flank
wear (VB) are plotted in Fig. 11. The residuals closely follow 7 Total machining cost per part (C), (2+3+6) Rs. 12.31
a straight line, which means good agreement between pre-
dicted and experimental (actual) values. From Anderson-
Darling test, the value of probability greater than alpha (α) of
0.05 confirms the normal distribution of data. It suggests the
developed models are adequate.

4.5 Cost analysis

Cost consciousness and cost estimation (machining cost,

tool cost and tool changing cost) in the machining process is
the important aspect and crucial factor which leads to increase
in efficiency of machining process. Evaluation of tool life at
suitable combination of cutting parameters (optimized cutting
conditions) leads to justifying the economic viability of using
TiN-coated ceramic inserts because longer tool life results in
high machining cost, but a shorter tool life leads to high pro- Fig. 12. Response optimization plot for surface roughness (Ra).
duction cost due to frequent tool replacement (tool cost and
tool changing cost). Response surface optimization is the most
efficient technique to determine the cutting parameters in hard other a surface roughness exceeded the value of 1.6 µm Ra.
turning. RSM optimization result for surface roughness (Ra) is Note that tool life in machining hardened AISI 4140 steel is
shown in Fig. 12 and Table 10. With the help of Fig. 12, the about 51 min for TiN-coated ceramic insert. For estimation of
optimal cutting parameters are found to be cutting speed (v) of cost in the hard turning process, a cost analysis (total cost of
163.6 m/min, feed (f) 0.05 mm/rev and depth of cut 0.3 mm. machining per hour) was investigated using tool life based on
The optimized surface roughness parameter, Ra, is 0.731 µm. Gilbert’s approach [12, 21]. The estimated total machining
Finally, an experiment was performed under dry condition to cost per part using TiN-coated ceramic inserts was found to be
determine the tool life insert at optimal setting of cutting pa- Rs. 12.31, shown in Table 11. Based on a single cutting edge
rameters (v = 163.6 m/min, f = 0.05 mm/rev and d = 0.3 mm); under optimal parametric conditions, the machining cost for
considering the criterion of flank wear, VB = 0.3 mm and the TiN-coated ceramic insert was found to be lower because of
4338 S. R. Das et al. / Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology 29 (10) (2015) 4329~4340
higher tool life, which results in the reduction of downtime
and increase in savings, and, hence it will be an economical
benefit for finish hard turning applications.
5. Conclusions
The hard turning has been performed successfully to obtain
ultra-finished surface on AISI 4140 steel using PVD-TiN
coated Al2O3+TiCN mixed ceramic inserts under dry envi-
ronment. The process parameters are optimally controlled to
compose the lower surface roughness with minimal flank
wear from the experimental investigation and modelling to
draw the following conclusions:
(1) The main effect plot shows that surface roughness is
principally affected by feed, and the depth of cut has a negli-
gible impact. Whereas, cutting speed has a negative effect for
surface roughness (Ra) is observed with increase in cutting
speed up to 170 m/min caused by restricting the BUE forma-
tion, then roughness value increases further increase of cutting
speed.
(2) It is evident from ANOVA results and effect (main and
interaction) plot that cutting speed is the major cutting pa-
rameter affecting flank wear (VB) with contribution of
25.35%. The interaction effects between feed and depth of cut
(f*d) are noticed to be more significant in comparison with
feed, with contribution of 27% and 14.12% respectively. Al-
though, the influence of depth of cut has not been observed
statistically significant, the flank wear is an increasing func-
tion of depth of cut.
(3) For AISI 4140 steel roughness, the machined surface is
a function of the wear profile of TiN coated ceramic insert.
When increasing cutting speed, flank wear (VB) of the tool
insert increases and causes immediate deterioration of the
machined surface quality. Despite the growth of flank wear up
to permissible limit VB = 0.3 mm, Ra does not exceed the 1.6
µ m.
(4) From SEM micrograph, abrasion was found to be the
major wear mechanism for the TiN coated ceramic tool. From
the watching of SEM micrograph, machined surface indicates
adhered chip particles, feed marks, grooves and ridges,
smooth and rough surface at the surface obtained best and
poor surface finish in hard turning of AISI 4140 steel with
TiN coated ceramic insert.
(5) The predicted optimal range of surface roughness (Ra) is
[ µRa - CI Ra ] ≤ µRa ≤ [ µRa + CIRa ] i.e.0.7084 ≤ µRa ≤
0.7904 µm. The 95% confidence interval of the predicted
optimal flank wear is [ µVB - CI VB ] ≤ µVB ≤ [ µVB + CI VB ]
i.e. 0.096 ≤ µVB ≤ 0.130 mm.
(6) The output of the mathematical model revealed that the
RSM models presented are adequate and statistically signifi-
cant by reason of P-value of models being less than 0.05 and
higher R2 value (0.98 for Ra and 0.71 for flank wear). More-
over, the residuals fall moderately near to a straight line which
confirms the normal distribution of data.
(7) Based on a single cutting edge under optimal parametric
conditions (v = 163.6 m/min, f = 0.05 mm/rev and d = 0.3
mm), the total machining cost per part for TiN coated ceramic
insert is found to be only Rs. 12.31 because of higher tool life
(51 min), which results in a good for finish hard turning appli-
cations.
(8) The extensive experimental research shows the effec-
tiveness and potential of PVD-TiN coated Al2O3+TiCN mixed
ceramic tool for hard turning process under dry condition as a
productive and cost-effective option to replace the cylindrical
grinding operations.
Acknowledgment
The authors thank the Central Institute of Plastic Engineer-
ing and Technology, Bhubaneswar, India and National Insti-
tute of Technology, Jamshedpur, India for providing their
facilities to carry out the research work.
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Sudhansu Ranjan Das is a Ph.D. stu-
dent at the Department of Manufactur-
ing Engineering, National Institute of
Technology, Jamshedpur, India doing
research on the machining of hardened
steel. He received his M.Tech. in Me-
chanical Engineering in 2010 from KIIT
University Bhubaneswar, India.
4340 S. R. Das et al. / Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology 29 (10) (2015) 4329~4340
Debabrata Dhupal is a Professor in the
Department of Production Engineering,
Veer Surendra Sai University of Tech-
nology (VSSUT), Burla, India. He re-
ceived his Ph.D. in Production Engi-
neering from Jadavpur University, Kol-
kata, India. His research areas of interest
include Micromachining, Advance Manu-
facturing Process, Rapid Prototyping & Non-traditional ma-
chining and Metal Cutting.
Amaresh Kumar is an Associate Pro-
fessor in the Department of Manufactur-
ing Engineering, National Institute of
Technology (NIT), Jamshedpur, India.
He received his Ph.D. in Production
Engineering from Jadavpur University,
Kolkata, India. His research interests
include supply chain management,
computer integrated manufacturing, machining process mod-
elling, optimization, analysis and prediction.