Abstract
Machining is one of the principal activities responsible for a significant portion of energy used in the manufacturing industries. Performing machining processes energy efficiently therefore leads to significant reduction in the total energy consumed by the sector. Titanium alloys, particularly Ti6Al4V (Grade 5 Ti-alloy), exhibit a unique combination of mechanical and physical properties. It possesses excellent corrosion resistance properties to a wide range of chemicals as well as heat resistance. Furthermore, titanium alloy displays outstanding properties such as high strength-to-weight ratio which can be maintained at elevated temperatures. Ti6Al4V is a high strength lightweight alloy which is used for critically demanding high-performance engineering applications such as aircraft engine and airframe components. Ti6Al4V is also desirable for the chemical, military weaponry and energy service industrial sectors. As a result titanium and its alloys is considered as material of strategic importance. However, titanium alloys are also classified as difficult-to-machine materials due to its rapidly transformative thermo-mechanical and metallurgical properties when exposed to the high machining temperatures. The good strength properties also render the material difficult to machine. This tends to increase the burden on energy demand of the machining process...
D.Ing. (Mechanical Engineering)