3D finite element analysis of slot milling of unidirectional glass fiber reinforced polymer composites

The applications of glass fiber reinforced polymer composite materials are increasing in many industries, such as automobile, aerospace, construction, marine, and defense. The slot milling is an important machining operation to reduce the excess material and to bring the component to the required final shape and size. However, machining the glass fiber reinforced polymer composite laminate is still challenging due to its non-homogeneity and anisotropic properties. In this research, 3D finite element model is developed using ABAQUS/explicit to investigate the cutting forces, chip formation process, and the laminate failure modes. The material model is created using Autodesk HELIUS PFA and the 3D Hashin’s criteria are incorporated to characterize the failure modes. The finite element model effectively analyzes the interaction between tool and laminate, to evaluate the possible failure modes of the GFRP laminate, effects of cutting forces for different cutting speeds, and feed rates during the slot milling process. Moreover, the finite element simulation results are validated by comparing with the experimental results and the literature. From the investigation, it is found that the effect of cutting speed and feed rate involves more in the chip characteristics, which is confirmed with the scanning electron microscope images of the milled chips. The chips obtained are mostly discontinuous fractured chips in powder form with fiber pullout and delaminated fibers.