Development and performance of additively manufactured Tungsten carbide tool insert: An application of additive manufacturing towards flexible and customized machining

Carbide tool manufacturing is proposed by Additive Manufacturing to introduce flexibility and customization in machining industries. Development and performance of the additively manufactured (AM) tool is reported. Crack-free deposition of 88 wt%WC was obtained at 800 degrees C substrate-preheat temperature. An insert was dimensioned and progressive turning of Aluminium 6061-T6 alloy was performed upto 65 min at various cutting speeds. Cutting force, chip-reduction-coefficient, shear angle, built-up-edge, flank wear, crater wear and tool life of AM tool were analysed. The flank wear of AM tool was observed as 0.219 and 0.314 mu m respectively at cutting speeds of 120 and 140 m/min after 65 min of machining. The cutting performance of the AM tool was then compared with that of K20 conventional cutting tool insert.