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Simon N. Lekakh and Von L. Richards, Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla, Missouri
(Click here to see the story as it appears in January's Modern Casting.)
There are various ways to improve casting machinability. Natural agings effect on cast iron machinability differs
based on its alloying elements, which are nitride-forming (titanium), carbide-forming (chromium) and nitrogen
mobility modifiers (manganese). Relationships between cast iron aging and casting machinability have been
verified in multiple laboratory and industrial tests, with respect to parameters such as cutting force, tool wear,
surface quality and dimensional accuracy. A recent confirmation test verified the optimal aging time for a specific
composition to improve gray iron machinability.
While elevated temperature aging is less dependent on alloy composition, cast iron chemistry strongly affects
room-temperature aging kinetics. From a practical perspective, the effect of variations in manganese and sulfur on
cast irons aging rate is important. In a study of cast iron with 0.8%-0.83% manganese, aging was completed at 25
days, while this process needed only 15 days for cast iron with 0.51% manganese at similar 0.04%-0.06% sulfur
levels.
To study the effect of alloying elements, aging kinetics of cast irons from six heats with variations in manganese,
nitrogen and sulphur were evaluated. Strength change curves typically had a prestrengthening peak and a
relaxation valley before achieving a full age strengthening.
Alloying with manganese affected both the time to prestrengthening and the full strengthening peak. Cast iron
from a heat with 0.53% manganese had the highest reaction rate. Iron with lower manganese and especially higher
manganese contents each had a longer aging reaction time.
from room temperature to 572F (300C), and beyond this range the possibility of aging is limited according to
thermodynamics.
Confirmation Test
Five AFS 5J, 10-in. diameter test articles were poured into nobake molds from one 200-lb. induction furnace heat.
The cast iron chemistry is shown in Table 2. Microstructure was mostly pearlitic with approximately 5%-10% ferrite.
Measured hardness in the middle section of the test article was 200-210HB in the as-cast condition (unaged). The
as-cast surface layer (1/8 in.) was removed in preliminary machining to avoid the effects of cast surface structure,
mold-metal interaction and geometry variance on test results. Test articles were face CNC machined at day 0, day
5, day 9, day 15 and day 22 with measurement of cutting forces.
Eight cuts (30 min. total machining time) were performed from each disc, using a new tool insert each time. The
thickness of the test article produced eight duplicate cuts and each test was repeated twice. The test results are
shown in Fig. 7.
These test results were compared to the predictions according to suggested methodology.
Step 1Evaluation of the possible age strengthening: Nfree = N-0.20Ti = 0.01-0. 2*0.008 = 0.0084 wt.% or 84 ppm;
total %N and %Ti leads one to expect approximately 0.14 wt. % Fe4N. Age strengthening will occur.
Step 2Control microstructure: In a matrix without free carbide/steadite having a small amount of free ferrite
around flake graphite, age strengthening can improve casting machinability according to the second scenario
(Table 1).
Step 3Aging time: Full aging time is 15-17 days and prestrengthening time is 7-9 days. The tool force dropped
significantly during the first five days and was also low at 15 days, roughly corresponding to the expected times for
room-temperature age strengthening.
The predictions based on the previous studies were confirmed. A significant decrease in cutting force and standard
variation were observed after 9-15 days of natural aging, which is between predicted prestrengthening and full
aging time. Regarding other machinability parameters, tool wear not only depends on the average value of cutting
force but also the stability of cutting process, and tool wear continued to decrease up to the full aging time.
These rules can assist in determining the optimal machinability window for aged cast iron:
Estimate free nitrogen based on total nitrogen and concentration of titanium as %N >0.2 %Ti, but not high
enough to form gas porosity in order to have age strengthening.
Estimate room-temperature aging time based on free manganese left after sulfide formation. Aging
acceleration is possible with a low temperature bake.
This article is based on a technical paper (12-026), Aging and Machinability Interactions in Cast Iron, presented
at the American Foundry Societys 116th Metalcasting Congress in 2012.
machining parameters, which include cutting tools (materials, coatings and geometry), speeds, feed
rates, depths of cut and cutting fluids (types and concentration, focusing on reducing the total cost per
part and an increase in production rate). Several factors, such as tool cost, tool life, and practical limits
of cutting speeds and feeds play an important role in the selection of tool material as well as reliability
and predictability of performance. In addition, the most satisfactory tool usually will be the one to
perform the machining at the minimum cost;
These components, and their interaction with the iron castings material, determine a components machinability.
tool life;
surface finish;
One of the most exciting challenges to metallurgists over the last century has been to increase the strength of
materials with a minimum increase in cost. This has been achieved by cold working, alloying, the use of phase
transformations, and the refinement of grain size and microstructure. The result is that machining has become
more dependent upon material microstructures.
Cast iron, which is an alloy with 1.8-4.5% carbon (C) content, is one of the most free-machining ferrous materials.
Consistent microstructure, however, is the key to optimum cast iron machinability because cast iron can show a
wide range of machining behavior depending upon composition and microstructure.
The key to differentiating between types of cast iron is the size and shape of the graphite particles. The
microstructure features of cast iron, such as particle composition and dispersion, particle population density, and
aspect ratios, significantly affect machinability. Cast irons mechanical properties are enhanced with additives
such as silicon (Si), magnesium (Mg), chromium, molybdenum (Mb) and copper (Cu).
Following is a closer look at cast irons and their machinability.
Gray IronGray cast iron is characterized by randomly oriented graphite flakes, which develop brittleness and
poor ductility in the material. It is used widely in the automotive industry for engine blocks, brake disks, brake
drums and housings. Gray iron has excellent machinability with superior wear resistance characteristics and
damping capability.
Ductile IronDuctile (or nodular) iron is popular for wheel parts, crankshafts and camshafts. In ductile iron, the
graphite particles, due to the injection of a small amount of Mg in the melt, exist in spherical shapes that provide
superior ductility and high strength and toughness. In general, ductile iron (such as grade GGG40) is easy to
machine but produces built-up edges on the cutting tool due to its higher ferrite content. Machining certain grades
of ductile iron (such as GGG60) will result in rapid insert wear due to pearlite content.
Compacted Graphite Iron (CGI)In CGI, graphite particles are randomly oriented and elongated similar to gray
iron, but they are thicker, shorter and have shorter edges. The interconnected compacted graphite provides
slightly higher thermal conductivity and more damping capacity. With the evolved process control technologies,
CGI use is growing in the automotive and heavy truck industries with components that are prone to have
simultaneous mechanical and thermal loading.
Austempered Ductile Iron (ADI)Developed by adding alloying elements such as Cu, Mb and nickel (Ni) to ductile
iron and then performing a special heat treatment (austempering), ADI has increased ductile irons ductility to 1222%. Thus, ADI is a stronger and tougher material than conventional ductile iron. The required mechanical
properties of ADI are achieved by controlling the heat treatment parameters. In machining, ADI, which contains
bainite, is more prone to work hardening and built-up edge than straight ductile iron.
High Alloy/White IronWhite iron is produced via rapid casting solidification and provides high compressive
strength and excellent wear resistance. White iron contains large quantities of hard carbides that are difficult to
machine and are responsible for high tool-wear rates. In addition, high-alloy irons (including high alloy white, gray
and ductile iron) have extreme abrasive wear, heat and corrosion resistance, low thermal expansion and nonmagnetic properties.
Since every type and grade of cast iron is unique, machining cast iron components depends upon the materials
graphite structure, microstructure of the metal matrix, temperature-to-time history of the castings and the
distribution of C that remains in the metal matrix.
With all of these different variables, machining guidelines are dependent upon the make-up of the material.
General rules of thumb to follow in regard to cast iron machinability include:
higher Si content in the iron results in a lower tendency to built-up-edge and better machinability;
increased pearlitic graphite content makes pearlite or white grades harder and stronger and more
demanding on the cutting tool;
a high content of fine-grained pearlites is troublesome for machining as the cutting tool needs to work
harder and under hotter conditions to cut through the hardest particles.
Tool Requirements
The ideal cutting tool material for machining cast iron should have high strength and hardness in addition to high
fracture toughness. Although this combination of properties is impossible to achieve in practice since high strength
and low fracture toughness are synonymous, the selection of the proper cutting tool is important for machining
various types of cast irons.
When machining cast irons, the most common problems are flank wear, crater wear, notch wear and built-up-edge
caused by abrasion, adhesion and diffusion. Thus, the basic requirements for the cutting tool material for
machining cast iron are:
The best performing carbide inserts used to machine cast irons are coated with alumina, usually with one or more
layers of titanium carbide (TiC) and titanium nitride (TiN). The alumina provides the high hardness needed for
abrasive resistance and excellent chemical stability.
Gray iron is prone to built-up-edge at low cutting speeds, and the tools also are susceptible to abrasive (flank)
wear. It is recommended to machine at higher cutting speeds and, at the same time, flush the workpiece with
abundant coolant. For high-production jobs, a chemical vapor deposition-coated tool for wear resistance at high
surface speed must be chosen. Silicon nitride (SiN) has been proved to be one of the preferred tool materials for
high-speed machining of gray iron. Its relatively high fracture toughness and high hardness at high cutting
temperatures, in addition to its insensitivity to thermal shocks, accounts for its excellent performance during gray
iron machining.
For machining ductile iron, SiN tools perform poorly, however the coated tools show superior performance. In the
past, tools used for machining ductile cast iron consisted of tungsten carbide (6% cobalt) substrate with multiple
layers of TiCN/Al2O3/TiN coatings. The newly developed tool combines a 6% cobalt substrate with a medium
temperature TiCN/Al2O3/TiN coating. At higher speeds, the TiCN coatings soften and the effect of the Al2O3
coating becomes predominant. The results have indicated that deposition of the new multi-layered coated carbide
results in a 40% reduction in flank wear at speeds of 200 m/min when compared to conventional coated carbide.
Also, the new grades achieve a 25% increase in tool life at 300 m/min.
Since ADI is more prone to work hardening and built-up-edge than ductile iron, the TiN-coated tools are the best
choice for machining because TiN reduces friction, work hardening and built-up-edge. When deep hole making is
part of the design of ADI parts, lower manganese and Mb additions must be specified for the cast component to
reduce the amount of retained austenite, which will work harden more than bainite. Higher amounts of Cu and Ni
then must be specified to obtain the required degree of hardenability.
Dry Machining
With the continued development of advanced tool coatings, high-speed dry machining of cast iron has become
possible. The key is to balance between advanced machining strategies, special tooling and machine tool
specifications. It has been observed that a combination of high feed rates and high spindle speeds (in place of
increasing the forces) reduces the thrust force against the workpiece.
One such application using HSK-63A tooling with high pressure, through spindle air running up to 14,000
revolutions/min and feed rates up to 1575 in./min showed that thrust forces substantially decreased (75% in some
instances). At higher cutting speeds and feeds, the intense heat generated in the vicinity of the cutting edge of the
tool elevates the metals temperature in the affected zone up to 1112-1292F (600-700C) and plasticizes the iron.
Most of the heat is removed later with the chips due to high feed rates, which makes the workpiece thermally
stable and dimensionally accurate.
Heat dissipation without coolant requires high-performance tool coatings, heat-resistant tool materials and high
pressure through spindle air. For high-speed dry machining of cast iron, the tools must have:
high structural strength to resist cutting forces at high chip loads and high operating temperatures;
high fracture toughness, resistance to thermal shocks and chemical stability with respect to the
workpiece.
As a result, dry machining requires either coated tools or ceramic/cubic boron nitride cutting tool materials to
withstand the intense heat generated by the process. The coatings with a low friction coefficient and low thermal
conductivity work best at isolating a tool from heat and TiAlN-based coatings are recommended for dry machining
of cast ferrous materials, including cast irons.
This article, written by Anil K. Srivastava and Michael E. Finn, originally ran in Engineered Casting Solutions.