Effect of Si and Al additions to carbon steel on material transfer and coating damage mechanism in turning with CVD coated tools

Material transfer from the work materials to the tools strongly influences machining performance and tool life. The influence of Si and Al additions to carbon steel on the material transfer and coating wear in turning with CVD coated carbide tools is investigated. Three model steels are specifically designed to separately study the effects of the individual alloying elements: one reference steel with C as the only alloying element (Base steel), and two steels alloyed also with 1 mass% Si or Al. In the region around the depth of cut on the rake face, where the outside edge of the chip passes over the tool surface, the coating is worn mainly by abrasion when cutting the Base steel. When cutting the Si alloyed steel, an almost pure Si–O transfer layer covers the coating surface, which protects it from wear. When cutting the Al alloyed steel, an almost pure Al–O transfer layer forms on the coating. This layer promotes steel transfer and associated adhesive wear of the coating, which rapidly results in coating detachment and eventually causes notch wear. In the crater region, only the Al alloyed steel results in a transfer layer, an AlN layer that reduces the crater wear. •Material transfer and wear of coated tools are studied in turning of model steels.•At the depth of cut, the coating is worn mainly by abrasion when cutting the Fe–C base steel.•With a Si added steel, a Si–O protective layer forms on the coating.•With an Al added steel, Al–O forms and rapidly leads to adhesive wear of the coating.•When cutting the Al added steel, AlN forms in the crater region and reduces crater wear.