Tools made from binderless carbide for milling aluminium alloys

Tool and mould making Tools made from binderless carbide for milling aluminium alloys

2024-03-06 From E. Uhlmann, M. Polte, T. Hocke und N. Maschke 8 min Reading Time

A team at TU Berlin is currently developing and utilizing milling tools made of binderless carbide (WC) for high-precision machining.

Image 1: These two milling tools are made of binderless carbide (hBM). The IWF at TU Berlin is working with this innovative material to optimise the milling of aluminium-magnesium-silicon alloys in tool and mould making, for example.(Source: IWF) — Image 1: These two milling tools are made of binderless carbide (hBM). The IWF at TU Berlin is working with this innovative material to optimise the milling of aluminium-magnesium-silicon alloys in tool and mould making, for example.
(Source: IWF)

In Germany, tool and mould making is one of the most important branches of the manufacturing industry, as this sector produces the means of production for many other industries. However, industrial tool and mould making is increasingly facing the challenge of ever-increasing demands on the dimensional accuracy G_F and the surface roughness parameters of tool and mould components. The aluminium-magnesium-silicon alloy (AlMgSi1) is the most commonly used material for injection moulds produced in industrial practice from the pilot series through the so-called ramp-up to series production up to the first phase of series production [POL16].

Aluminium-magnesium-silicon alloys strain tools

For the machining of AlMgSi1 alloys, high-precision machining using uncoated carbide tools (HM tools) is recommended as a viable manufacturing process. Milling processes in particular are widely used in industrial practice. However, milling of the AlMgSi1 alloy is characterised by high wear processes on the milling tool due to increased temperature development during the machining process. If conventional, uncoated carbide tools are used for this purpose, the process temperature ϑ_P is increased when the cutting speed v_c is increased, which favours early detachment of the bonding phase - usually consisting of cobalt (CO). Alternatively, diamond coatings can also be used, but these have increased cutting edge rounding r_β. This makes it more difficult to achieve low surface roughness values due to increased elastic and plastic material displacement. The reason for this is the changing ratio of the chip thickness h to the cutting edge rounding r_β [POL16].

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