Coating the future: The use of coated cutting tools is a growing trend for companies that machine aerospace materials

摘要

HISTORICALLY, many manufacturers think only in terms of coated or uncoated cutting tools, assuming that all tool coatings perform similarly. Now, as manufacturers machine more aggressively, they are becoming more attentive to the relative merits of different coating choices, many of which offer particular benefits when machining aerospace alloys. Most manufacturers are already aware that coatings slow the rate of tool wear, but other benefits such as faster machining and reduced or eliminated coolant are less widely appreciated - yet impact equally on the payback equation. Typically, the machining of complex jet engine parts progresses through first, intermediate and final stages. First stage machining usually starts with large forgings of irregular shape covered with an abrasive scale. Intermediate-stage machining accounts for 80% of the material removed from the engine parts, while final-stage machining must achieve high tolerances yet impart low stresses into thin structures.