June 10, 2024 NFC-IEFR FYP Project No.

2023-ME-12 1
 Experimental investigation to evaluate the
performance of CVD - coated carbide tools when dry
drilling aerospace alloys
Supervisor:
Engr. Zubair Afzal
Presented by:
M. Ali Salman (Coordinator) 2021-uet-nfc-fd-mech-14
M. Sami Ullah 2021-uet-nfc-fd-mech-03
M. Waleed Shahbaz 2021-uet-nfc-fd-mech-06
 Contents

 Introduction
 Problem Statement
 Project Objectives
 Allignment of project with SDGs
 Research Methodology
 Expected Budget
 Work Plan
 References

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 Introduction

Drilling:
 Drilling is considered as one of the most complex cutting
operations performed in metal cutting industry. [1]
 Drilling represents the final operation in manufacturing, where any
errors can be magnified and are less tolerable, especially in
industries like aerospace where high surface integrity is critical [9].
 The number of mechanical fasteners in a standard fighter aircraft is
around 200000 to 300000, whereas a commercial transport
airplane can have around 1500000 to 3000000 fasteners,
depending on the size. [2]
 Drilling method accounts for 40% to 60% of the total material
removal processes, which has substantial monetary consequence
as it is performed at the final stage of the fabrication process. [3]
Fig 1: Drilling

21 May 2024 NFC-IEFR ME FYP Project No. 2023-ME-12 4

 Introduction
Titanium Alloys:
• Titanium is a element known for its strength and
resistance to corrosion.
 Most commonly used grade 5 or Ti-6Al-4V have
Extreme melting temperature and poor heat
conductivity contribute to high strength-to-weight ratio
of titanium alloys that are very much impossible to be
attained by any other existing alloys, which explains
popularity of titanium alloy in aeronautical industries.
[4]
 For example, on Boeing 787, the utility of titanium
alloys has been expanded to roughly 15% of the total
airframe .[2]
 Among all the industries, aeronautical and biomedical
industries are two primary industries where superior
properties of titanium alloys really shine.[6] Fig 2: Airbus Boeing 787 material composition

21 May 2024 NFC-IEFR ME FYP Project No. 2023-ME-12 5

 Problem Statement

Ti-6Al-4V is widely preferred for critical applications due to its remarkable strength-to-weight ratio, resistance to
corrosion, and capacity to function at high temperatures. Nevertheless, the material's hardness poses challenges
for machining, particularly in drilling, which is a crucial and important step in manufacturing industries. Therefore,
finding an efficient way to drill Ti-6Al-4V is an ongoing goal for many industries such as aerospace sector.

21 May 2024 NFC-IEFR ME FYP Project No. 2023-ME-12 6

 Project Objectives
The main objectives of our study are as follows:
• Phase-I:
1. To investigate the effect of coated carbide inserts with different types of geometries on tool wear / life when
drilling Ti-6AI-4V.
2. To measure the surface roughness, diametric error of drilled holes.
3. To investigate the existence of a burr in the machined holes.
4. To evaluate the tool wear mechanism and surface damage using the scanning electron microscope.
5. To find the optimized parameters using main effect plots & ANOVA analysis.
• Phase-II:
6. To assess the work piece surface integrity (both micro hardness and microstructure) based on the optimized
values from the phase I experiment.
7. Submit the research paper according to the collected data.

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 Facilities/Lab

 Precision Machining Lab (Industrial & Manufacturing Department UET Lahore )

 Instrumentation & Measurement Lab (Industrial & Manufacturing Department UET Lahore)
 Metallurgical department UET Lahore

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 External Collaborators

 UET Foundry Service Center Lab.

 Mr. Sajid (Lab Supervisor, Precision Lab UET Lahore)
 Mr. Shahbaz (Lab Supervisor, Measurement and Calibration Lab UET Lahore)
 Industrial Engineering Department, College of Engineering, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
 Mr. Faheem (Manager in Quality Assurance, Metrology and Material Testing Lab Millat Tractor Lahore)
 EDM (Electrical Discharge Machining) from Mr. Asghar (Wire Cut at Lahore).

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 Project Impact

• Machinability Improvement: Ti-6Al-4V is notoriously challenging to machine due to its high strength, low
thermal conductivity, and chemical reactivity. Research aims to develop advanced cutting strategies, tool
materials, and cooling techniques to improve machinability, reducing tool wear and prolonging tool life.
• Cost Reduction: Titanium alloys are expensive materials, and machining costs can be a significant part of the
overall component cost. Research seeks to lower production costs by increasing cutting speeds, reducing tool
changeovers, and extending tool life, ultimately resulting in cost savings for manufacturers.
• Surface Integrity Enhancement: Achieving the desired surface finish and minimizing work piece deformation
during drilling are crucial objectives. Research endeavors to optimize cutting parameters and develop novel tool
coatings to enhance surface integrity, reducing the need for secondary finishing operations.
• Environmental Impact Mitigation: Improved machining techniques can lead to reduced material waste and
energy consumption, contributing to environmental sustainability in manufacturing processes.
 Alignment of project with SDGs
• SDG 8 - Decent Work and Economic Growth: Improved drilling processes can lead to increased productivity,
potentially creating job opportunities and contributing to economic growth within the manufacturing sector.
• SDG 9 - Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure: Our project aims to improve the machining process for a
high-demand material. By developing a more efficient and sustainable drilling process for Titanium 6Al-4V, you
contribute to the advancement of industry and infrastructure, which is a key component of economic growth and
development.
• SDG 12 - Responsible Consumption and Production: Titanium 6Al-4V is a valuable material used in
demanding sectors. Enhancing its machinability can lead to reduced material waste and energy consumption,
promoting responsible production and resource efficiency.

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 Research Methodology
a) Brief description of how research will be conducted?

The experiment would be performed on vertical CNC milling machine available in IME department. CVD
(TiCN +Al2O3+TiN) coated drill tools with two different geometries (LM and GT) would be used for through
hole drilling of Ti-6Al-4V in dry cutting conditions. Tool wear analysis will be performed utilizing a camera
and the corresponding software integrated with a coordinate measuring machine (CMM). Following the
experimental phase, we will assess hole quality based on the following output measures.

Fig:3 Central & Wiper inserts Fig:4 Coro Drill 880

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 Research methodology Cont..

Factors Details Level Geometries Speed Feed Exp.No Geometry Speed Feed
Central Insert LM (m/min) (mm/re (mm/rev)
Geometry v) 1 LM 50 0.10
Central Insert PVD - TiAlN 1 LM 50 0.10 2 LM 50 0.15
Coating 2 GT 60 0.15 3 LM 50 0.20
DC 14mm 3 - - 0.20
4 LM 60 0.10
DOC 12mm
5 LM 60 0.15
Wiper Inserts (CVD -
(TiCN 6 LM 60 0.20
Table 2: Variable factors
+Al2O3+TiN)) 7 GT 50 0.10
Cooling DRY 8 GT 50 0.15
Method 9 GT 50 0.20
Table:1 Constant factors 10 GT 60 0.10
11 GT 60 0.15
12 GT 60 0.20

Table 3: Test array with corresponding factor levels

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 Research methodology Cont..
• Tool Wear / Life:
According to ISO Standard 3685:1993,[2] which addresses tool-life testing using single-point drilling tools, Flank wear
is the most common tool life criterion in drilling more specifically, for drilling in titanium using Coro drill 880, the use of
tool life criteria being flank wear as shown in fig:4 width of 200 μm or catastrophic failure has been reported [8]. Tool
wear and hole quality aspects were measured via co-ordinate measuring machine (CMM) as shown in fig:5 in
assistance with Quadra Check (QC) 5000 software.

Fig:4 Tool Wear (Wiper & Central)

Fig:5 CMM

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 SEM
• Wear mechanism of cutting inserts
• The wear mechanism of cutting inserts is Shown in Fig:7
• Surface damage of work piece

Fig:6 SEM
Fig:7 Wear Mechanism of Cutting Inserts

June 10, 2024 NFC-IEFR ME FYP Project No. 2019-ME-000 15

 Research methodology Cont..

• Surface roughness:
• Portable surface roughness tester with cut-off length of
0.80 mm and evaluation length of 4 mm was used to
measure surface roughness at four positions (quarters)
with an average value reported[12].

Fig:9 Surface Roughness Machine

Fig:8 Surface Roughness

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 Research methodology Cont..

• Diametric Error:
• The evaluation of diametric error, which is generally
considered as the difference in measured diameter and
nominal diameter
• Was done by first finding out the diameter of drilled hole
at entry and exit by locating eight points on the surface
of drilled holes. The difference was then taken with
nominal diameter to determine the error [7].

Fig:11 CMM

Fig:10 Diametric Error

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 Research methodology Cont..
• Bur
Bur being one of the most undesired Projections
of Materials in most machining Process, affects
work piece quality negatively in many aspects
[11].

Fig:12 Bur

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 Research methodology Cont..
• Surface Integrity evaluation:

Micro hardness:
There are following steps used to perform micro-
hardness.
1. Mounting
2. Grinding
3. Polishing
4. Washing
5. Drying

Fig:13 Micro Vickers Hardness

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 Research methodology Cont..
• Surface Integrity evaluation:
Microstructure:
There are following steps used to perform micro-
structure [10].
1. With Hydrofluoric Acid (1:1:20)
2. Washing
3. Washing
4. Drying

Fig:14 Micro Structure

June 10, 2024 NFC-IEFR ME FYP Project No. 2023-ME-12 Page 20

 Expected Budget
Following is given the estimated budget for this project,

Descriptions QTY Cost

Material (Ti-6Al-4V) 10 76,000/-
Central inserts 4 24000/-
Peripheral Inserts 4 24000/-
Tool Holder 1 10000/-
Mounting 8 4000/-
Grinding Polishing 8 3000/-
Micro hardness 8 16000/-
Microstructure 8 8000/-
SEM 10 30,000/-
Total 195,000/-

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 Work Plan
List of tasks and deliverables
Task-1 (T1): Study literature related to the project.
Deliverable 1 (D1) : Summary report of literature survey.
Task-2 (T2): Conduct a market survey and finalize the supplier to import the material and additionally purchase
the tools for experimentations.
Deliverable 2 (D2): Arrangement of Material & tools for experimentation.
Task-3 (T3): Perform drilling operation in a specific pattern on material (Ti-6Al4V).
Deliverable 3 (D3): Collection of data of holes in drilling.
Task-4 (T4): Do experimentations and analysis to study the result and check out the outcomes.
Deliverable 4 (D4): Report that contains experimentation data and analysis data.
Task-5 (T5): Write the thesis according to the data collected through experimentations and analysis.
Deliverable 5 (D5): Final report of thesis

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 Work Plan
List of milestones
Milestone- 1
Materials and tools were imported and literature review was done regarding the experimentation of
Ti-6Al-4V.
Milestone- 2
All the experimentation were performed and results were obtained.
Milestone- 3
A thesis was composed, thesis was based on results obtained from experimentation and research

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 Work Plan

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 Reference:
[1] Aamer paper.pdf
[2] yuan2021.pdf (Campbell and Flake, 2011)
[3] Prabukarthi, A.; Krishnaraj, V.; Santhosh, M.; Senthilkumar, M.; Zitoune, R. (2013) Optimisation and Tool Life Study in Drilling of Titanium (Ti-
6Al-4V) Alloy. International Journal of Machining and Machinability of Materials, 13(2/3):138–157. doi (yuan2021.pdf) (Prabukarthi et al., 2013)
[4] Pramanik, A.; Littlefair, G. (2014) Developments in Machining of Stacked Materials Made of CFRP and Titanium/Aluminum Alloys. Machining
Science and Technology, 18(4): 485–508. doi:10.1080/10910344.2014.955718 (yuan2021.pdf)
[5] (Zhu, Guo, Sun, Li, Liu, Chen, et al., 2018). Zhu, Z.; Guo, K.; Sun, J.; Li, J.; Liu, Y.; Zheng, Y.; Chen, L. (2018) Evaluation of Novel Tool Geometries in Dry
Drilling Aluminium 2024-T351/Titanium Ti6Al4V Stack. Journal of Materials Processing Technology, 259: 270–281. doi:10.1016/j.jmatprotec.2018. 04.044 [
yuan2021.pdf]
[6] yuan2021.pdf (Yeo et al. 1994; Ramulu et al., 2001; Biswas et al., 2010; Zhu et al., 2017; Chatterjee et al., 2018)
[7] Surtronic S25 by Taylor Hobson, UK
[8] Uhlmann E, Richarz S (2016) Twisted deep hole drilling tools for hard machining. J Manuf Proc 24(1):225–230
[9]https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmatprotec.2007.08.080
[10] Zubair_1[1].pdf Hydrofluoric acid (1:1:20–HF:H2O2: Water) was used for etching of samples.
[11] SciELO
- Brazil - Burr produced on the drilling process as a function of tool wear and lubricant-coolant conditions Burr produced on the drilling process as a function
of tool wear and lubricant-coolant conditions
[12] . Wosniak FA, Polli ML, Beltrao PAC (2016) Study on tool wear and chip shapes in deep drilling of AISI 4150 steel. J Braz Soc Mech Sci Eng 38:473–480
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June 10, 2024 NFC-IEFR ME FYP Project No. 2019-ME-000 26