Cutting tool characterization plays a crucial role in understanding the behavior of machining operations. The selection of a suitable cutting material, the operating conditions for the work piece, is necessary to yield good cutting-tool life. Several pieces of research have been carried out in cutting-tool characteristics for turning operation. Only a few pieces of research have focused on correlating the vibrations and stress with wear characteristics. This research article deals with stress induced in silicon carbide tool inserts and coated tool inserts while machining SS304 steel. Since this material is much less resistant to corrosion and oxidation it is widely used in engineering applications such as cryogenics, the food industry and liquid contact surfaces. Moreover, these materials have much lower magnetic permeability so they are used as nonmagnetic engineering components which are very hard. This article focuses on the machining of SS304 by carbide tool inserts and then, the cutting forces were observed with a tool dynamometer. Using observed cutting forces, the induced stress in the lathe tool insert was determined by FEA investigation. This research also formulates an idea to predict the tool wear due to vibration. Apparently, the worn-out tool vibrates more than new tools. Using the results, the relation between stress, strain and feed rate, depth of cut and speed was found and mathematically modeled using MINI TAB. It was observed that carbide tool inserts with coating withstand better than uncoated tools while machining SS304. The results were anticipated and correlation between the machining parameters furnished the prediction of tool life and obtaining the best machining outcomes by using coated tool inserts.
Keywords: cutting forces; stress analysis; tool inserts; tool life; vibration.