Carbon fiber-reinforced composite material (CFRP) has been widely applied in the aerospace industry, which places demanding requirements on the accuracy and quality of its processing. However, there remains a lack of clarity on the microscopic material removal process of CFRP, despite substantial relevant research. This paper aims to reveal the mechanism of material removal in the CFRP cutting process at different fiber cutting angles and to establish an analytical model for CFRP cutting force by considering the radius of the edge circle. Furthermore, the CFRP cutting force analytical model was established by considering the radius of the edge circle on the basis of the CFRP representative volume unit (RVE). According to the model, the cutting process was divided into three regions, the cutting slip zone, fiber fracture zone, and spring back zone, with consideration given to the effect of residual fibers on the cutter teeth. The CFRP cutting finite element model was defined using the software Abaqus, while the chip removal and single-fiber deformation processes were analyzed using the finite element model. As indicated by the experimental results, the analytical model is reliable and capable of providing cutting force values within a 15% deviation.
Keywords: CFRP; analytical model; cutting force; fiber cutting angle; finite element.