Basic investigations for simulative design and knowledge-based production of PVD-coated cutting tools for turning

• Applicants: Dr.-Ing. Benjamin Bergmann, since 11/2024; Professorin Dr.-Ing. Kirsten Bobzin
• Subject Area: Metal-Cutting and Abrasive Manufacturing Engineering
• Term: since 2021
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 451388596

Driving forces for the development of tool and technology concepts are the use of new, high-strength materials as well as the pursuit of higher economic efficiency. The increase in productivity is often accompanied by an increase of the thermomechanical tool load. Over the last decades, the application of coatings has been established to improve the performance of cutting tools. It is safe to say coatings now belong to the state of the art. Due to the variety of processes, tooling concepts require application-specific properties regarding tool load. However, the variety of processes with regard to the tool load requires tool concepts with application-specific property profiles. The state of research as well as the applicant's own preliminary work prove that the performance of coated cutting tools can be significantly increased by means of the targeted process and material tailored adjustment of the cutting edge microgeometry and the layer properties. Both coating and cutting edge micro-geometry influence the resulting thermomechanical tool load. Therefore, the overall system and the identification of the occurring interaction have to be taken into consideration for an optimized design of the coating/substrate compound. Currently, there are no findings which allow the design of coating properties in consideration of the cutting edge micro-geometry. In the production of PVD-coatings, especially the knowledge-based adjustment of specific properties presents an important challenge for research and industry. Suitable options for the targeted modifications of the coating properties are corresponding pre- and post-treatments. Their influence on the interrelation between the residual stress depth profile and other coating properties such as coating thickness has not been sufficiently explored yet. The overall aim of the proposed research project consists of the availability of basic findings about the cause-effect relationships between coating properties, like coating morphology and thickness, cutting edge micro-geometry and the resulting wear as well as failure phenomena during continuous and interrupted cutting. These findings are used for the development and validation of a simulation-based design method for PVD-coated cemented carbide tools with an adapted cutting edge micro-geometry. In addition, basic investigations are carried out on the influence of the process chain of the production of coated cutting tools on the resulting properties of the compound coating/substrate. Thus, the originality of this proposal consists of the development of a simulation model for the design of coated cutting tools with adapted cutting edge micro-geometry as well as the derivation of knowledge about their deposition.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• Major Instrumentation: High Temp. Sample Heating Stage
• Instrumentation Group: 8490 Sonstige Oefen und Wärmegeräte (außer 840-848)
• Co-Investigator: Dr.-Ing. Tobias Brögelmann
• Ehemaliger Antragsteller: Professor Dr. Bernd Breidenstein, until 11/2024