A simple mechanistic model used for tool wear in turning AISI 4340 steel

Abstract

Determining correct tool life is a key to efficient machining, which makes tool wear extremely important. Development of new and exotic tool materials like ceramics, carbides, nitrides, cermet, diamonds, etc. has intensified research activities in the area of modeling and optimization of turning process. Building an ideal theoretical model is considerably complex because of involvement of multiple physics and absence of readily available data on material property. This paper describes an attempt of building a simple mechanistic model for turning AISI 4340 steel by an uncoated carbide insert using a commercial package ABAQUS/CAE. The tool wear rate is computed using USUI’s wear model on the results found after running simulation. The predicted tool wear data were found in close agreement with the experimental findings.