Correlation Between Cutting Data Selection and Chip Form in Stainless Steel Turning

This article presents investigations related to the turning of stainless steel as a representative of difficult-to-cut materials and the effectiveness of selected chip breakers working in the local machining environment. Martensitic steel AISI 416 was used to test two commercially available types of chip breaker. The efficiency of a chip breaker working in the range of cutting conditions recommended (by the tool manufacturers) was the aim of the turning tests. As a result of the investigations an algorithm of cutting condition selection, combining both the cutting tests and the simulation procedure for the efficiency of the chip breaker was created. The vision system, equipped with a high-speed camera was used for chip form estimation. Simultaneously, the cutting force components were measured to check if the simulation calculation was correct. The FEM simulation was applied to estimate the manner in which the chip groove was filled. The article presents certain recommendations for cutting condition correction in the local machining environment for the purpose of achieving an acceptable chip form.