It's all about the coating — Trends in tool coating technology

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Cost efficiency and reliability

In every industry cost efficiency is a driving factor that needs constant attention. The tool industry is no exception. The cost of tool coatings is only a small part of the total cost of a tool, but because the coating is positioned at the end of the production line, it is very important that the coating is of high quality.

Therefore, reliability is as improtant as cost efficiency. When Hauzer developed its new circular arc technology CARC+ for depositing nitride coatings in the Hauzer Flexicoat 850, the company succeeded in making many cost of ownership factors more efficient than ever before. CARC+ is characterised by short batch times, high target efficiency and smooth coatings that need minimal post-treatment. CARC+ technology is nowadays proven technology for nitride coatings, including a highly functional AlCrN coating for hobs used in gear cutting.

Sustainability in focus

The awareness of sustainable production methods becomes more and more mainstream, whether in the tooling industry or related fields up and down the supply chain. Important factors here are the future scarcity of raw materials, energy consumption, renewable energy, toxicity of materials and recycling in biological or industrial circles. In the tool industry some answers to these challenges are found in larger speed and feed. Some coated tools can achieve not only longer cutting lengths, also a larger depth of cut per contact will be possible, saving time and energy along the way. The metres per minute are deciding and speed meets performance in the Hauzer Flexicoat 850 with CARC+ technology, so that can be a contributing factor. Another trend that is driven by sustainability as well as cost efficiency is less use of cooling liquids. Dry cutting or minimum quantity lubrication (MQL) are trending, which leads to increased temperatures of the tool cutting edges and hence a need for improved oxidation resistance.

Temperature resistance

The trends for cost efficiency and environmental awareness lead to a reduced need for cooling lubricants, which in turn leads to higher temperatures during cutting. The industry answers with a different choice of component materials and coatings that can withstand the high temperatures. Component materials such as titanium (Ti) and nickel (Ni) alloys are difficult to cut because of their sticking tendency and toughness, but ta-C coating will not bring any solutions here because of its operating temperature maximum of around 500°C. CARC+ coatings are therefore a better solution. These nitride coatings can function at operating temperature levels of up to 1100°C or even 1500°C. Application directed development has been done to adapt the coatings made with CARC+ technology to specific applications, such as high speed milling and roughing finishing. For cutting titanium the TiAlN coating can give excellent results, as shown in figure 1. Hauzer has developed silicon containing nanocomposite coatings and is fine-tuning AlTiN for specific applications.

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