The WCCo/PCD (Diamond Dispersed Cemented Carbide-DDCC) manufactured with the use of PPS (pulse plasma sintering) are modern materials intended for cutting tools with the benefits of tungsten carbides and polycrystalline diamonds. Nevertheless, the cutting performance of DDCC materials are currently not recognized. Thus this study proposes the evaluation of technological effects of a precise groove turning process of hard-to-cut AlSi13MgCuNi alloy with DDCC tools. The conducted studies involved the measurements of machined surface topographies after grooving with different cutting parameters. In addition, the tool life and wear tests of DDCC inserts were conducted during grooving process and the obtained results were compiled with values reached during machining with cemented carbide tools. It was also proved that grooving of AlSi13MgCuNi alloy with DDCC inserts enables 5 times longer tool life and almost 3-fold increase of cutting path compared to values obtained during grooving with H3 and H10 cemented carbide inserts. Ultimately, the feed value of f = 0.15 mm/rev and cutting speed in a range of 800 m/min ≤ vc ≤ 1000 m/min during grooving with DDCC inserts can be defined as an optimal machining parameters, enabling the maximization of tool life and improvement in surface quality.
Keywords: Al-Si alloy; WCCo/PCD (DDDCC), machining; surface topography; tool wear.