Experimental investigation to study the effect of synthesized and characterized monotype and hybrid nanofluids in minimum quantity lubrication assisted turning of bearing steel

Abstract

A minimum quantity lubrication system using biodegradable cutting fluids has facilitated the excellent machining performance and is observed as more sustainable. In the view of enhancement of machining performance, the utilization of nanofluids with a minimum quantity lubrication system as a cutting fluid delivered noteworthy outcomes. For the present experimental investigation, the monotype nanofluids (copper oxide and zinc oxide) and a hybrid nanofluid (copper oxide/zinc oxide) were synthesized by using a two-step method. Scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray analysis were performed to characterize the synthesized nanoparticles. A vegetable oil was utilized as a base fluid and three types of nanofluids were prepared by the addition of a surfactant (butenol). Also, ultrasonication has been performed to avoid the agglomeration of nanoparticles into the base fluid. The thermal conductivity evaluation of prepared nanofluids was carried out by using a hot wire method. The effects of three nanofluids were investigated by considering three machining input variables (cutting speed, feed rate and depth of cut) on response variables (surface roughness and cutting zone temperature) during bearing steel turning under nanofluid minimum quantity lubrication cooling conditions. The multi-objective optimization was performed by using grey relational analysis and found that the hybrid nanofluid (copper oxide/zinc oxide) was noted as the highly effective cooling condition as equated to copper oxide and zinc oxide monotype nanofluid. The hybrid nanofluid (copper oxide/zinc oxide) shows a 65% and 60% reduction in surface roughness on comparing with copper oxide and zinc oxide nanofluids, respectively. Also, the minimization of cutting zone temperature was observed under the hybrid nanofluid (copper oxide/zinc oxide) by 11% and 13% on equating with copper oxide and zinc oxide nanofluids, respectively.

A review on minimum quantity lubrication (MQL) assisted machining processes using mono and hybrid nanofluids

“…Yıldırım et al (2022) investigated the performance of H-NFs in MQL machining of steel – AISI 420 grade and noticed machined surface roughness decreased by 41.54%, 30.62% and 37.38% with Al 2 O 3 :MoS 2 (2:1), Al 2 O 3 :MoS 2 (1:1) and Al 2 O 3 :MoS 2 (1:2) based H-NFs when compared with pure MQL, respectively. Similarly, Junankar et al (2022) also observed enhancements in machined surface quality by 60% and 65% under H-NF (copper oxide: zinc oxide) compared with zinc oxide (ZnO) and copper oxide (CuO) M-NFs, respectively, during MQL-assisted turning of bearing steel. Although H-NFs show superior machining performance, the highlighted challenges (Figure 16) must be considered while establishing H-NFs as a cutting fluid in various industrial applications.…”

Conventional and Recent Advances of Vegetable Oils as Metalworking Fluids (MWFs): A Review

“…A study published in 2021 [163] investigated the use of a soybean oil-based cutting fluid with the addition of zinc oxide nanoparticles for turning of stainless steel. The study found that the soybean oil-based fluid with the nanoparticles provided improved cooling and lubrication, resulting in reduced cutting forces and improved surface finish.…”

A green machining study to investigate the effect of nano-cutting fluid environments on the machinability of Ti6Al4V titanium alloy

“…This is because the nanoparticles allow the oil to be distributed more homogeneously on the surface during the cutting process, creating a more uniform oil film in the cutting zone, reducing friction, and helping to process the surface more smoothly. 41 By helping to dissipate the heat generated during cutting, lower temperatures and thermal stresses are generated and deformation and crack formation on the surface are minimized. Therefore, the effect of depth of cut and cutting speed on machinability is reduced, while the effect of feed rate plays a significant role in surface roughness.…”

“…40 In the machining of a part, environmentally friendly machining arises as a technique that puts reduced resource usage, the environment, and human health first. 41 In an effort to reduce or perhaps completely remove the negative effects of mineral-based cutting fluids used in the machining of difficult-to-cut materials, research has recently been conducted. 42 Green manufacturing is now the best way for manufacturers to address this issue due to the growing expectations for safe and healthy working conditions in the manufacturing sector and the need to lower production costs based on environmentally responsible and low-risk methods.…”