Investigation of machinability of Ti–B-SiC_p reinforced Cu hybrid composites in dry turning

MMCs (metal matrix composites) are widely used in many industrial applications thanks to their high specific strength. Nevertheless, this also poses a great challenge to their machinability due to rapid tool wear and poor surface finish caused by the added reinforcement particles. Improving the machinability of MMCs is of great importance as it will increase their performance and areas of applications. In this study, the machinability of Cu composites reinforced with Ti–B–SiC powder particles (0-2-4-6-8 wt.%) produced at different rates using powder metallurgy method was investigated. Cutting speed (V_c: 100–150 m/min) and feed rate (f_n: 0.2–0.4 mm/rev) were used as cutting parameters. The effects of these parameters on surface roughness, flank wear, and cutting temperature were investigated. As a result of the turning experiments, it was observed that the surface roughness decreased with increasing reinforcement ratio, and thus the best surface roughness (R_a = 0.22 μm) was observed in the 8 wt.% reinforced sample. The cutting temperature and flank wear values increased as the reinforcement ratio increased. It was observed that cutting temperature at the chip–tool interface was the lowest (76 °C) in MMCs sample with 2 wt.% reinforcement. The lowest flank wear (0.93 mm) was also observed in the 2 wt.% reinforced sample. In addition, the chip morphologies of all samples produced at different ratios were investigated after the turning process.