The Effects of a High-Pressure Coolant Jet on Machining

Abstract
A high-pressure coolant system was used to machine Ti6Al4V and Inconel 901. A 14.5 MPajet of cutting fluid was applied against the chip flow at the rake face of the tool and this works as an efficient chip-breaker. Conventional overhead flood cooling was also used to establish a base for comparison. Chip control, cutting force, cutting temperature, chip-tool contact length, surface integrity, tool lives and wear mechanisms were studied. The high-pressure coolant system used improved tool lives significantly when machining the titanium alloy but it proved to be detrimental to tool lives when machining the nickel alloy.