International Journal of Machine Tools & Manufacture 40 (2000) 13511366

Non-conventional machining of particle reinforced metal matrix composite

F. Mu ller, J. Monaghan
*

Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Parsons Building, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland Received 7 July 1999; accepted 26 November 1999

Abstract Particle Reinforced Metal Matrix Composites (PRMMCs) have proved to be extremely difcult to machine using conventional manufacturing processes due to heavy tool wear caused by the presence of the hard reinforcement. This paper presents details and results of an investigation into the machinability of SiC particle reinforced aluminium matrix composites using non-conventional machining processes such as Electro Discharge Machining (EDM), laser cutting and Abrasive Water Jet (AWJ). The surface integrity of the composite material for these different machining processes are examined and compared. The inuence of the ceramic particle reinforcement on the machining process was analysed by tests performed on samples of the non-reinforced matrix material. 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Metal matrix composites; Laser machining; Electro-discharge machining; Abrasive water jet machining; Material removal rate; Surface quality/topography; Heat affected zone/re-cast layer

1. Introduction Particle Reinforced Metal Matrix Composites (PRMMCs) are a class of materials with a wide potential for application in the automotive and aerospace industries. However, the full potential of these materials is hindered by the high manufacturing costs associated with the difculties experienced in machining these composites. Machining PRMMCs using conventional machining processes such as turning, drilling etc., generally results in excessive tool wear due to the presence of the hard particles which results in a very abrasive nature of this material [2,17]. Consequently non-conventional machining processes such as Electro Discharge Machining (EDM) [9,12,14], laser cutting [11,13] and Abrasive Water Jet (AWJ) [6] techniques are increasingly being used

* Corresponding author. Tel.: +353-1-6081936; fax: +353-1-6795554. E-mail address: jmonghan@tcd.ie (J. Monaghan).

0890-6955/00/$ - see front matter 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. PII: S 0 8 9 0 - 6 9 5 5 ( 9 9 ) 0 0 1 2 1 - 2

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Nomenclature hd ie PL Ra tc tw ui v wk a Average dross height (mm) Discharge current (A) Average laser power (W) Average roughness value (m) Pulse on-time; discharge duration (s) Thickness of workpiece (mm) Open circuit voltage (V) Feed rate (mm/min) Average kerf width (mm) Deviation from the right angle ()

for the machining of PRMMCs. However, most of these non-conventional machining processes still need to be investigated in detail in order to assess the optimal machining conditions and achieve cost efcient machining in combination with high process reliability and reproducibility. This paper reports on an experimental test program involving EDM, laser and AWJ machining of SiC ceramic particle reinforced aluminium alloy matrix composites. The different machining processes are based on different removal mechanisms and lead therefore to different results, e.g. surface integrities. The differences in surface quality, including surface roughness, surface topography and sub- surface damage were investigated. Furthermore the inuence of the reinforcement on the machining process was studied by performing comparative tests on samples of nonreinforced aluminium alloy. 2. Experimental procedure Two types of composite material, AA2618/SiC/20p and A356/SiC/35p, were selected for investigation. The AA2618/SiC/20p composite consists of an aluminium alloy AA2618 (2.3% Cu, 1.5 Mg, 1.2% Fe, 1.1% Ni, bal. Al) reinforced with 20% SiC particles of approximately 1013 m size. This composite was produced by spray deposition followed by an extrusion process. The A356/SiC/35p composite consists of A356 aluminium alloy (7% Si, 0.2% Cu, 0.6% Fe, 0.35% Mn, 0.35% Mg, 0.35% Zn, bal. Al) reinforced by 35% 13 m SiC particles. This material was produced by a powder metallurgy route involving hot-isostatic pressing. Tests were also performed on the non-reinforced aluminium alloys (AA2618 and A356). The EDM process was performed using an ARD M50E die-sinking machine. Parafn oil, specication 72K supply by Fuchs Lubrication (electrical conductivity =5104 S/cm) was used as the dielectric uid, in a reverse ow (suction ow). The machining settings are displayed in the various graphs below. The tool electrodes used were machined from copper, each of which was 10 mm square and 5 mm in thickness. The PRMMC workpieces were 10 mm thick plates with pre-drilled 9 mm diameter holes. Each of these circular holes was changed into a square hole using the EDM process through the use of square shaped electrodes.

F. Mu ller, J. Monaghan / International Journal of Machine Tools & Manufacture 40 (2000) 13511366 1353 Table 1 Results of laser cuts using a CO2 Laser Material (tw=3 mm) Output power PL [W] Feed rate v Surface [mm/min] roughness Ra [m] Average thickness of deposition layer [m] 30 35 35 not identiably 25 23 25 17 19 Average dross height hd [mm] Average Deviation kerf width from right wk [mm] angle a []

PRC Laser AA2618/SiC/20p AA2618/SiC/20p AA2618/SiC/20p AA2618a TRUMPF Laser TFL 1200 AA2618/SiC/20p AA2618/SiC/20p AA2618/SiC/20p AA2618/SiC/20p AA2618/SiC/20p

1600 1600 2000 2000

400 600 600 600

5.28 6.59 5.11 7.15

0.98 1.1 1.14 0.56

0.37 0.32 0.36 0.25

242 146 156 243 161 199 116 129 107

1100 1100 1100 1100 1100

600 1000 2000 2500 3000

4.2 4.76 4.42 4.65 4.81

0.62 0.46 0.24 0.17 0.19

0.25

a Other settings for the non-reinforced aluminium were also investigated, but the laser did not cut at these settings. The surface was barely scratched, which is explained by the very high optical reectivity of the aluminium. Reinforcing with the SiC particles reduces the reectivity.

Laser cutting was performed using a CO2 laser (wavelength 10.6 m). Two different lasers were used, rstly a PRC Laser (max. power 2.2 kW/hyper pulse mode) and secondly a Trumpf Laser (max. power 1.2 kW/TEM01). The tests were performed under a coaxial jet of Nitrogen gas at a pressure of 1.3 MPa (PRC Laser) and 0.8 MPa (Trumpf Laser). Process parameters such as laser power and feed rate were varied, as displayed in Table 1. Each PRMMC workpiece was 3 mm thick. The results of the Abrasive Water Jet cutting relate to a test program performed on an AWJ machine developed by the EREDIS society, France. The following cutting parameters were applied: 300 MPa water pressure, 1.1 mm nozzle diameter, 1 mm stand-off distance, and 80-mesh garnet owing at 450 g/min as abrasive particles. Feed rate was varied, as displayed in Table 2. The workpiece thickness was 3 mm thick. Following machining the workpieces were sectioned and geometrical features were measured
Table 2 Results when cutting PRMMC using AWJ Material (tw=3 mm) AA2618/SiC/20p AA2618/SiC/20p AA2618/SiC/20p Feed rate v [mm/min] 250 350 450 Max/min kerf width Deviation from right Surface roughness angle a [] Ra [m] wk [mm] 1.98/1.12 1.92/1.1 1.94/1 804 833 803 4.51 4.81 5.98

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using a Mitutoyo toolmakers microscope. The surface nish of the machined holes was measured using a Hommel T1000 stylus type instrument set to a cut-off length of 0.8 mm and a tracing length of 4.8 mm. The microstructure of the material was investigated using a BX60 Olympus optical microscope and a 440 Stereo Scan Electron Microscope with which the EDSXR (energy disperse spectroscopy-X-ray) analysis was also performed. The topography of the samples were investigated using a ZYGO Newview 100 white light interferometer. 3. Results and discussion 3.1. Electro Discharge Machining (EDM) The results obtained indicate that Al/SiC PRMMCs can be machined using EDM, despite the low electrical conductivity and the high thermal resistance of the SiC particles. The EDM process is however slow and the material removal rate does not exceed the value of Vw=35 cm3/min under the conditions used [14]. The material removal rate increases with increasing discharge current and increased pulse duration up to an optimal value and thereafter decreases for any pulse ontime greater than this value [14]. It has also been shown that the material removal rate decreases with increased SiC ceramic contents. This can be explained by a number of factors. Firstly, the electrical conductivity of the aluminium matrix decreases due to the presence of the ceramic reinforcement. Furthermore, because of the low thermal conductivity, and the much higher thermal resistance of the SiC, the aluminium alloy between the ceramic particles is preferentially removed. It was observed that the SiC-particles were not melted during the machining process since their full size and sharp corners were still visible in the machining debris, Fig. 1, as well as in the recast layer (see later paragraph in this section). This appears to suggest that the removal of the composite material occurs through the process of melting and vaporising the matrix material around the ceramic particle and at some point the entire SiC-particle becomes detached. This shielding effect of the SiC ceramic is followed by a decreased removal rate with increased SiC

Fig. 1. Debris of EDM process: PRMMC containing SiC ceramic particles (back-scattered electron image).

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particle content [14]. The exposure of entire SiC particles during EDM when machining the PRMMC results in a tendency for arcing to occur. This arises under inadequate ushing conditions during which the removed ceramic particles trap sufcient molten aluminium droplets to form a conductive path between the electrodes, and this leads to abnormal arcing. The machined surface of a material generated using EDM is composed of many microscopic craters associated with the random spark discharge between the electrodes. Such an EDM topography is presented in Fig. 2, the crater structure with its high peaks adjacent to valleys of removed material is clearly evident. The size of the craters produced on the workpiece surface depends mainly upon the energy of the discharge.1 The change in surface nish, as a function of machining current and pulse on-time, is illustrated in Fig. 3. It can be seen that the surface roughness values vary between Ra=1.5 m and Ra=7.5 m. It is evident that with increasing current, the surface roughness value increases. Higher current results in a higher thermal loading on both the cathode and anode, followed by a higher amount of material being ejected. This results in a larger crater size and thus the surface nish becomes rougher. Furthermore, it is evident that machining with longer pulse duration also brings about an increase in surface roughness. Longer pulse duration results in a larger removal per discharge. The crater size therefore increases and consequently the surface roughness value increases. These results do not follow the ndings of Hung et al. [9], who maintained that the current alone dominates the surface nish. It can be seen from Fig. 3 that surfaces obtained for the non-reinforced matrix material (A356 aluminium alloy) are rougher than those observed for the composite materials machined under the same conditions. As mentioned previously, the present investigations indicate that the SiCparticles seem to shield and protect the aluminium matrix from being removed. It is suggested that this results in less material becoming superheated or molten during the discharge phase. Furthermore, the SiC particles were not melted during the machining process. The molten material is therefore more viscous, which results in a decrease in removal efciency.2 Consequently, whilst machining the composite, less material is removed and a smaller crater is produced. In contrast, due to the absence of the SiC particles in the non-reinforced material, the EDM process is able

Fig. 2. Crater topography of EDMed PRMMC (workpiece mat: A356/SiC/35p; ie=6A; tc=300 s; Ra=5.3 m).
Discharge energy is determined by the gap voltage during discharge, the discharge current and the pulse on-time [10]. Removal efciency may be dened as the ratio of material removed per pulse to the volume of molten material during the discharge.
2 1

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Fig. 3. Surface roughness when EDM PRMMCs and non-reinforced aluminium.

to concentrate the energy of a spark on the aluminium alone and therefore produce a larger crater, resulting in a higher surface roughness value. During EDM an extremely high temperature is produced at those areas where the plasma channel strikes the electrodes. However, as a result of the high-pressure eld around the discharge channel, the main removal process takes place after the interruption of the discharge. Subsequently, not all the material melted during the discharge phase is removed. The remaining molten material will resolidify by quenching at an extremely high rate due to the ushing by the dielectric, and hence a layer of re-cast material is formed [3]. Fig. 4 shows the re-cast layer of the AA2618/SiC/20p composite material. One of the features of this re-cast layer are the voids formed due to imperfect joining of the molten aluminium droplets. As can be seen from Fig. 4 the effects of gas bubbles are also obvious in the re-cast layer, where they produce a kind of porosity. This porosity is a consequence of the gas/vapour, resulting from the extremely high temperature, which is trapped during the rapid re-solidication. Furthermore it was observed that the SiC-particles were not melted during the machining process, as mentioned previously. This was also observed by Le Roux et al. [12] and Hung et al. [9]. From Fig. 4 it can also be seen that the rapid cooling rate results in a change in the microstructure of the matrix material. It is evident, that the white spots found in the non-affected bulk material disappear within the re-cast layer. Fig. 5 shows the silicon, aluminium, copper, magnesium, iron and nickel content maps of Fig. 4 (EDSXR analysis). The content maps indicate that the white spots shown in the electron microscope image contain higher percentages of copper, iron and nickel, compared to the other areas within the matrix. Since these white spots disappear in the matrix material within the re-cast layer it can be assumed that the iron, nickel and copper diffuse into the aluminium, resulting in a homogenised alloy structure due to melting and fast resolidication of the material. Furthermore, silicon was also found in the matrix material within

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Fig. 4. Microstructure of re-cast layer of a SiC particle reinforced aluminium matrix composite (AA2618/SiC/20p).

Fig. 5. Silicon, aluminium, copper, magnesium, iron and nickel content maps of section shown in Fig. 4/darker areas indicate a high content of the particular element.

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the re-cast layer (arrow in the Si contents map). This indicates that some silicon diffused from the SiC-particles into the matrix alloy (shown in more detail by Mu ller [15]). The thickness of the re-cast layer increases with increased discharge current and longer pulse on-times [14]. By contrast EDM of a non-reinforced aluminium alloy produces no signicant re-cast layer. This conrms the fact that reinforcing with ceramic particles brings about a decrease in removal efciency. As explained earlier, the SiC-particles were not melted during the machining process. The melt of the composite material is therefore much more viscous. As a result, only a small amount of the material which was melted or superheated during the discharge is expelled with the interruption of the discharge. This results in a comparatively thick re-cast layer on the composite, compared to that obtained whilst machining the non-reinforced aluminium alloy. 3.2. Laser cutting To date MMC has been used in the production of relatively thick components but more recently attempts have been made to use this material in thin sheet form [7]. Conventional cutting using diamond tools is costly and/or technically difcult. Since Wire-EDM is slow, laser cutting is considered as a possible alternative. However, the surface quality of a laser made cut is usually relatively poor. The availability of information on the surface quality after laser machining is important since this knowledge makes it possible to decide if secondary machining is necessary when laser machined samples are to be used for particular application. The surface roughness is one of the most important quality indices of a laser cut surface and is related to the appearance of the typical surface striations. These striations occur as a result of the intermittent ow of the molten material during cutting. A number of different factors are responsible for the existence of these striations. However, side way burning seems to be the main reason for the formation of the striation, however with changing cutting conditions different mechanism are predominant [4]. Figs. 6 and 7 show the topography of the cut surfaces obtained using a white light interferometer as well as an electron microscope. The following remarks can be made in connection with the observed surface roughness value Ra in Table 1. By decreasing the cutting feed rate a smoother surface is obtained. With a higher feed rate laser cutting tends

Fig. 6. Striation pattern on Laser cut surface (workpiece mat: AA2618/SiC/20p; PRC CO2 Laser; PL=1.6 kW; v=600 mm/min; Ra=6.6 m).

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Fig. 7. Surface topography on cut PRMMC (Trumpf CO2 Laser; PL=1.1 kW; v=3000 mm/min; workpiece mat: AA2618/SiC/20p).

to be intermittent, which results in a rougher surface, also found by Lau et al. [11]. A smoother surface can also be obtained by machining at a higher output power. Fig. 8 shows the topography of the cut surface of the non-reinforced Al alloy matrix. It was observed that the surface at the entrance of the laser is relatively smooth (average Ra=3.5 m), but at approximately 2/5 of the height of the cut the surface roughness is increased noticeably (average Ra=8.98 m). Due to the nature of the process it is suggested that the upper part of the kerf 3 is cut by vaporising the aluminium alloy producing a smooth surface. However, in the lower section of the plate thickness the material is melted by the laser and swept downwards by the nitrogen jet (fusion cutting). In contrast when machining the PRMMC the SiC particles hinder the vaporising process of the material, therefore the main removal occurs by fusion cutting (melt and blow). The smoother striation surface obtained on the PRMMC can be attributed to the more viscous melt, which hinders the striation formation (critical droplet size [16]). The poor surface quality is also due to the damage produced by the excessive heating of the sub-surface layer of the material. Fig. 9 shows an electron microscope image (back scattered) of the heat-affected sub-surface layers observed following machining of the PRMMC. It is evident
3

Kerf might be dened as the slot produced by the laser.

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Fig. 8. Surface topography on cut aluminium alloy (PRC CO2 Laser; PL=2 kW; v=600 mm/min; workpiece mat: AA2618).

from Fig. 9 that the microstructure of the matrix material is changed by the heat generated by the machining process. It can be seen that the matrix material shows white lines in its structure which are more prominent in Fig. 10. An extensive X-ray (energy dispersive spectroscopy Xray/EDS XR) analysis was undertaken and Fig. 11 shows the aluminium, silicon, copper and zinc content and their locations within the thermally affected sub-surface layer. The results shown in Figs. 10 and 11 indicate that the heat generated during laser machining results in the deposition of copper and zinc along the aluminium grain boundaries. It can be seen from Table 1 that the thickness of this deposition layer decreases with increased feed rate. Beside the rough surface the resulting cut also shows a burr and the so-called dross attachment at the bottom of the cut surface is also evident in Fig. 7. It can be seen from Table 1 that the average dross height decreases with increased feed rate. These results conrm that the dross height and the extent of the thermal damage are directly proportional to each other: minimising one results in minimising the other [1]. No dissolving of SiC particles was observed under these machining conditions, such dissolving was observed when blind hole drilling PRMMC [15]. This is a result of the less efcient removal of the molten material when blind hole drilling is compared to the cutting process where the melt can be more easily blown out of the cutting kerf. One of the advantages of laser cutting is the narrow width of the cut opening, called kerf width. As can be seen in Table 1 the kerf width varies between wk=0.25 mm and wk=0.37 mm. The cut

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Fig. 9. Sub-surface layer of PRMMC after Laser cutting (workpiece mat: AA2618/SiC/20p; PRC CO2 Laser; PL=2 kW; v=600 mm/min).

obtained was nearly parallel sided, Table 1, with high laser power and lower feed rate resulting in a wider underside of the cut, probably due to side burning [16]. 3.3. Abrasive Water Jet (AWJ) Machining with an Abrasive Water Jet (AWJ) has many advantages compared to other machining technologies. In comparison to thermal machining processes (laser, EDM) AWJ does not induce high temperatures and as a consequence there is no thermally affected zone. Furthermore since high feed rates are possible AWJ can be considered to be a very efcient machining process. The surface quality of the AWJ cut is characterised by a rough surface as presented in Table 2. This is one of the drawbacks of this machining process, a smoother surface can be obtained with lower feed rates [6]. Figs. 12 and 13 show the surface topography of the cut surface, obtained using a white light interferometer and an electron microscope. Since the thickness of the cut composite is relatively small (tw=3 mm), no striation pattern was apparent on the cut surface. The formation of striation is presumed to be as a result of a cutting lag and step removal [8] and is generally present when machining thicker material. The absence of striations also indicates that the removal process occurs mainly by cutting the material and deformation wear is negligible. The ductile shearing of the aluminium is evident from the abrasive scooping and ploughing path

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Fig. 10. Microstructure of deposition layer, Fig. 9 (workpiece mat: AA2618/SiC/20p; PRC CO2 Laser, PL=2 kW; v=600 mm/min).

Fig. 11.

Aluminium, silicon, zinc and copper contents maps of Fig. 10 (EDSXR analysis).

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Fig. 12. Surface topography of AWJ cut surface (water Pressure=300 MPa; 80mesh garnet; v=450 mm/min; workpiece mat: AA2618/SiC/20p).

Fig. 13. Surface topography of an AA2618/SiC/20p PRMMC after cutting using AWJ (water pressure=300 MPa; 80mesh garnet; v=450 mm/min).

(micro-cutting) of the garnet, Fig. 12. The SiC particles are probably pulled out by the much bigger garnet particles (80-mesh refers to an approximate particle diameter of 190 m). One of the major advantages of the AWJ process is the absence of any thermal damage to the surface [15]. Furthermore no burr attachment was observed. The top edge of the cut surface is however characterised by a radius as well as slotted edge damage, as shown in Fig. 14. As can be seen in Table 2 the kerf is characterised by a larger width (average kerf width around

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Fig. 14. Slotted edge damage after machining a PRMMC using AWJ.

wk=1.5 mm) than that obtained when using the laser process. Furthermore, Table 2 shows that the kerf width of the bottom of the cut surface was less than that at the top, as indicated by the negative sign of the deviation of the right angle. A possible reason for this effect is the loss of penetration velocity with increasing penetration depth [5,6]. A relatively straight kerf can however be obtained with lower feed rates. Hamatani et al. [6] obtained a straight kerf for similar machining conditions but with a feed rate of v=75 mm/min. 4. Conclusion The results obtained indicate that Al/SiC PRMMC can be machined using non-conventional machining processes such as EDM, laser and AWJ. However the different removal mechanisms result in different surface qualities and the following conclusion can be drawn from the results: The EDM process is suitable for machining PRMMCs, however, the process is very slow. EDM results in a crater-like surface, the size of the crates increases with increased discharge energy. EDM produces a relatively small amount of sub-surface damage on the cut surfaces (depending on the chosen machining settings). Laser machining offers signicant productivity advantages for rough cut-off applications. It is apparent that a laser is very suitable for high feed rates (up to v=3000 mm/min) and can produce a cut with a narrow kerf width (wk0.4 mm). Reinforcing the aluminium matrix with SiC

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ceramic particles improves the machinability of the composite, due to the reduction in the optical reectively of the material. However quality of the laser cut surface is relatively poor. Striation patterns on the cut surface and burrs at the exit of the laser (dross attachment) were observed. Signicant thermal induced microstructural changes were also observed within the PRMMC. As in the case of the laser machining process, AWJ is very suitable for rough cut applications (feed rates up to v=450 mm/min), but with the difference that AWJ cutting did not result in any thermal damage within the composite. No burr attachment was observed, however, the surface was relatively rough and slotted-edge damage was observed on the top of the cut surface.

Acknowledgements The authors would like to thank Materials Ireland Materials Processing Research Centre at Trinity College Dublin for nancial and technical support. The authors also would like to thank Axel Demmer from IPT Aachen, Germany, and the EREDIS society, France, for their contribution to this research project.

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1366 F. Mu ller, J. Monaghan / International Journal of Machine Tools & Manufacture 40 (2000) 13511366 [13] F. Mu ller, J. Monaghan, Laser Cutting of Particle Reinforced Metal Matrix Composites, Proc. 6th SheMet Conf, Twente, Netherlands, 1998, pp. 93101. [14] F. Mu ller, J. Monaghan, Electro Discharge Machining of a Particle Reinforced Metal Matrix Composite, Proc. of the 12th Int. Sym. for Electro Machining (ISEM XII), VDI-Berichte 1405, Aachen, Germany, 1998, pp. 513522. [15] F. Mu ller, Electro discharge machining of particle reinforced metal matrix composite, Dissertation Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland 1999. [16] W. Steen, Laser Material Processing, Springer-Verlag, 1991. [17] K. Weinert, A consideration of tool wear mechanism when machining metal matrix composites (MIMC), Ann. CIRP 42 (1) (1993) 9598.