Cutting tools release cutting fluid at 360 bar

To keep the machining of advanced aerospace alloyed metals cool, Iscar has developed tools that release 360 bar of pressure and it guarantees the cutting fluid arrives in a liquid state.

Specific machining applications in aerospace require high pressure coolant for cutting 'exotic' alloys such as titanium and Inconel.

High pressure coolant significantly improves swarf removal and eliminates heat generation in internal operations.

The coolant pressure of machining centres has progressively risen in recent years from 15-20 bar, to around 100 bar.

This increase has delivered significant productivity and performance improvements to machining by improving tool life and metal removal rates.

* Significant advancement, higher pressures - since 2000 Iscar has worked with Snecma to develop a cutting tool coolant system that will provide an effective coolant supply under extreme machining conditions.

The objective has been to overcome the problems of extreme heat generation and swarf removal associated with both internal and external deep grooving and profiling operations.

These problems are inherent when working on aerospace components that include titanium casings, low pressure disks and drums for jet engines.

* High coolant pressures - cutting tool innovations for grooving were initially developed in 2000 with further innovations allowing Iscar to develop ISO inserts capable of using very high coolant pressure (up to 400 bar) in 2002.

The use of such high pressure puts severe demands on the machine tool as conventional turret and spindle seals cannot withstand the pressure.

To use the technology successfully, a high pressure pump has to be retrofitted to the machine.

The coolant also has to be altered to a concentration level of 10 to 12% to keep misting at a minimum.

The new Iscar tool holders have been designed so that the adapters for left or right cutting can be mounted on one base module.

The module consists of four coolant holes; two have high pressure (one left and one right) and two emergency supply holes, should the high pressure supply fail.

In addition, the system employs technology that resolves the issue of potential damage to the machine seals should a blockage occur on the outlet of the system.

This new innovation ensures the machine seals avoid damage that can be extremely expensive to correct.

The base guarantees maximum rigidity by providing support elements close to the working area.

The flexibility of the Iscar system allows numerous tool profile variations to be applied, making it possible to conduct very complex operations.

For Iscar, having 400 bar of pressure at the rear of the tool was an impressive achievement, however the cutting tool innovator believed it was not enough.

Iscar set itself a new goal, to provide a pressure close to the machine supply pressure.

To achieve this, Iscar has now developed tools that release 360 bar of pressure.

The new system has been adapted to high pressure machining and it guarantees the cutting fluid arrives in a liquid state and not as a form of fog.

The development of these tools has been carried out by Iscar engineers in France with tool production taking place at Iscar Metaldur in Switzerland.

For small radii machining below 3mm, Iscar replaces circular 'button' inserts with special forms to suit the grooves to be machined.

High pressure lubrication enables the cutting speed in TA6V titanium discs to be tripled, achieving 140m/min with a feed rate range from 0.1 to 0.2mm/rev.

The new Iscar machining process is more reliable with less tool breakages, improved tool life and productivity with manufacturing costs significantly reduced.

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