Investigation of surface roughness and chip morphology of aluminum alloy in dry and minimum quantity lubrication machining

Aluminum alloys are used in different sectors due to their lightness, high strength ratio, corrosion resistance, and heat conduction, and electrical conduction, non-magnetic and non-toxic properties. Despite these properties, determination of surface quality is a critical factor for improving the functional properties of aluminum alloys such as high fatigue strength, corrosion behavior, and wear resistance. In this study, the effect of high-speed machining of Al7075-T6 aluminum alloy on the surface quality of Al7075-T6 alloy was investigated. Besides, the effect of different conditions on-chip formation was studied. The experiments were carried out in three different cutting parameters in dry and minimum quantity lubrication (MQL) conditions. It was found the surface quality of the Al7075-T6 alloy workpiece was improved when the test results performed in the MQL condition were compared to the dry condition. When the chip structure is examined, longer chip formation occurs in the MQL environment than a dry environment. It was observed that there was no significant difference in surface quality and chip morphology of the Al7075-T6 workpiece at different cutting speeds.