Abstract
Free machining steels are specially designed to offer good results in machining operations by reducing the coefficient of friction with the tool. In general, these steels must meet tight specifications for other characteristics, such as mechanical strength, fatigue strength and wear resistance, among others. Therefore, the main alloying elements of which they are composed are destined to improve their machinability. These materials are usually low carbon steels with strong additions of S, Mn, Pb, P, etc. Because they are usually manufactured with recyclable materials, their compositions always contain elements such as Cr, Ni, Cu and Mo, which are considered residual elements. The present paper reports on an investigation of the influence of slight variations in Cu, Ni and Cr content on the machinability of leaded low carbon free machining steels based on the methodology described by the Volvo STD 1018-712 standard. The method is based on tool life tests of high speed steel single cutting tools applied in special conditions to the face milling process. The statistical analysis of the data was performed by analysis of variance and hypothesis testing. The results of the experiments demonstrated that residual chemical elements influence the machinability of SAE 12L14 steel.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.