Investigation of different cutting conditions in the machining of steel - Towards cleaner production

The main goal of this paper is to determine the machining conditions that simultaneously meet the conditions of clean production and producing a product with the best surface roughness and corrosion resistance. Based on experimental results, the influence of feed rate, cooling and lubrication techniques (cutting fluid, minimum quantity of lubrication and cooling with compressed cold air) on surface roughness and corrosion resistance during face milling, were analyzed. Observed workpiece materials comprise technically important steel, such as S275JR, 42CrMo4 and AISI 304. Electrochemical measurements (potentiodynamic and linear polarisation measurements) and measurements of surface roughness have shown that the feed rate of 0.04 mm/tooth and the application of a minimum quantity of lubrication in the machining of stainless-steel specimens are the parameters providing the required surface integrity (surface roughness Ra = 0.68 mu m, polarisation resistance R-p = 53.228 k Omega cm2 and corrosion currency 0.37 mu A/cm(2)) and ecological acceptability. Finally, the physical changes on the workpiece surface under different machining conditions are described in detail.