Identification of optimal machining parameters in trochoidal milling of Inconel 718 for minimal force and tool wear and investigation of corresponding effects on machining affected zone depth

Increasing the productivity and efficiency of milling practices is of high importance with the rapidly changing global economy. To this end researchers have turned to alternative milling toolpaths, such as trochoidal milling, which has been shown to increase tool life with a corresponding reduction in machining time for some applications. To better understand the trochoidal milling process and optimize it for manufacturing scenarios, the modeling of cutting forces must be investigated; semi-mechanistic methods are the focus of this work. The basis for this type of force modeling lies in uncut chip thickness modeling combined with cutting force coefficients and edge force coefficients. With a novel uncut chip thickness model proposed by the authors in a previous work, this investigation looks to understand the dependence of the model coefficients as they relate to trochoidal path parameters along with machining outputs such as maximum cutting force and tool wear. Furthermore, the machining parameters are investigated as to how they relate to the improvement of tool life and cutting force utilizing the Taguchi method, where optimal parameters are found for minimum tool wear and cutting forces. The effects of the trochoidal path on the subsurface of the machined samples as they relate to the machining affected zone, are also investigated in both the radial and axial directions. It is found that tool wear increases the depth of the machining affected zone as does increasing chip thickness.