Machining coolantsfor metal

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Milling processes can be categories as either face or peripheral. Face milling is characterized by a cutting action around the outside of the cutting tool, whereas peripheral milling is characterized by a cutting action across the circumference of the cutting tool.

Additionally, the cutting tool used in milling machines usually has several blades or points. In comparison, the cutting tool used in lathes usually has a single blade. With multiple blades or points, milling machines are able to grind away material from the workpiece.

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Lathes and milling machines are two essential machines used in the manufacturing industry. While both involve the use of a cutting tool to remove material from a workpiece in the form of swarf (chips), they aren’t necessarily the same. Both lathes and milling machines have their own unique functions and purpose. So, what’s the difference between these two machines exactly?

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A lathe is a large machine resembling a common workbench. Consisting of nearly a dozen different parts — bed, carriage, headstock, tailstock, faceplate, etc. — it’s designed to rotate a workpiece against a single-bladed cutting tool. After the workpiece has mounted on top of the lathe, the lathe turns it against a single-bladed cutting tool. The cutting tool itself remains stationary, but the workpiece rotates against it to remove material.

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The low friction and lower hardness of plastics (compared with metals) reduces the frictional heat build-up at the tool tip during machining operations. However plastics being thermal insulators cause the generated heat to be held at the cutting interface. The amount of heat being generated depends on the depth of cut, feed rate and tooling geometry (neutral to slightly positive geometries are always suggested.) Deep holes and cuts involving tool-to-part rubbing generate frictional heat that generally has to be minimized through the use of coolants. The reduction of frictional heat via the use of coolants improves the surface finish of machined parts as well as part tolerances and leads to longer tool life, thus saving money.

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The coolants acceptable for plastics include air, misting systems and flood coolants. Experimentation as to which is more appropriate for a give part is often recommended. Pressurized air can be used on most turning and boring operations. In addition to using the pressurized air to keep frictional heat down, the air can be used to direct the swarf away from the rotating part to avoid chip wrap.

Lathes can be characterized as either woodworking or metalworking, depending on the material for which they are intended to remove. Woodworking lathes are generally smaller and have fewer parts than their metalworking counterparts, but they both rely on the rotational power of the mounted workpiece to remove material as it’s exposed to a single-bladed cutting tool.

Aside from shape and size, though, the primary difference between lathes and milling machines is their method of operation. With lathes, the workpiece rotates against a stationary cutting tool. With milling machines, a stationary workpiece is exposed to a rotating cutting tool.

Coolants are not generally required for most machining operations involving engineering thermoplastics. The two most common exceptions are drilling and part-off operations. Both involve more tool-part friction than milling and turning operations. Some highly filled, high performance materials, which are very hard by their nature benefit from the use of coolants, but most general purpose materials such as UHMW, nylon, acetal and PTFE (Teflon) can be machined dry, making part clean-up and handling easier. Examples of high performance materials that almost always require the use of coolants are Torlon PAI and Celazole PBI.

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Misting and flood coolants should always be non-aromatic and water-soluble solutions as many amorphous materials such as acrylic, polycarbonate, Noryl PPO, polysulfone and Ultem PEI are prone to stress cracking, a form of chemical attack from incompatible coolants. Two flood coolants suitable for most plastics are Trim 9106CS (Master Chemical Corp.-Perrysburg, OH) and Polycut (Tullco-Savannna, GA.) A mist coolant generally suitable for plastics is Astro-Mist 2001A (Monroe Fluid Technology-Hilton, NY.)

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Both lathes and milling machines are used to remove material from a workpiece. Lathes, however, involve rotating a workpiece against a single-bladed cutting tool, whereas milling machines involve rotating a multi-bladed or -pointed cutting tool against a stationary workpiece.

A milling machine is machine used to remove material from a workpiece by feeding the workpiece against a multi-bladed or -pointed cutting tool. Milling machines are taller than lathes, but they also have a shorter length, allowing manufacturing companies to place them in small spaces.

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Petroleum based fluids can be used for many semi-crystalline plastics such as nylon, acetal, polyesters, PTFE and most thermosets. Avoidance of this type of coolant is generally a good practice if any amorphous materials are being machined as it can be difficult to determine compatibility until it is too late.

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