ARCHIVES OF METALLURGY AND MATERIALS, cilt.59, sa.2, ss.467-471, 2014 (SCI-Expanded)
Titanium and its alloys are attractive materials due to their unique high strength-weight ratio that is maintained at elevated temperatures and their exceptional corrosion resistance. The major application of titanium has been in the aerospace industry. However, the focus shift of market trends from military to commercial and aerospace to industry also been reported. On the other hand, titanium and its alloys are notorious for their poor thermal properties and are classified as difficult-to-machine materials. These properties limit the use of these materials especially in the markets where cost is much more of a factor than in aerospace. Machining is an important manufacturing process because it is almost always involved if precision is required and is the most effective process for small volume production. Due to the low machinability of the alloys under study, selecting the machining conditions and parameters is crucial. The range of feeds and cutting speeds, which provide a satisfactory tool life, is very limited. On the other hand, adequate tool, coating, geometry and cutting flow materials should be used: otherwise, the high wear of the tool, and the possible tolerance errors, would introduce unacceptable flaws in parts that require a high degree of precision.