Temperature Field of Tool Engaged Cutting Zone for Milling of Titanium Alloy with Ball-End Milling

When milling titanium alloy, the cutting temperature has a strong impact on the degree of tool wear and, in turn, tool life and the surface quality of the workpiece. The distribution of the temperature field on a tool’s rake face can be improved through the use of micro-textures, which help to reduce friction and, ultimately, wear on the tool. In this paper we present a new way to measure cutting temperature and examine heat distribution when milling titanium alloy with micro-textured ball-end milling tools. We first establish the heat flux density function for the contact area between the workpiece and the tool and then for the rest of the tool. Thermal stress simulation shows that adhesive wear tends to happen in the contact area and on the flank face, rather than at the tip of the tool, with the temperature distribution gradient for the rest of the tool being more uniform. The maximum value for thermal stress on the cutting edge was 2.0782 × 106 Pa. This decrease as you move away from the cutting edge along the contact area between the tool and the workpiece. Maximum deformation of the tool is also mainly concentrated at the principal contact point, with a value of 1.9445 × 10(−9) m. This, too, decreases as you move away from the cutting edge and into the rest of the contact area. This research provides the basis for the optimization of tool structure and further investigation of the thermo-mechanical coupling behavior of micro-textured ball-end milling cutters when milling titanium alloy.