Finish boring process of hard alloy cutter based on electrostatic cooling-aided machining

A boring process based on electrostatic cooling is proposed, and the effectiveness of the cooling process is verified by simulation and experiment. First, the action mode of active gas in the cutting area is analyzed on the basis of the electrostatic cooling mechanism and metal cutting law. Second, a corona discharge device with an external gas path is designed, and the attenuation law of the length and bending degree of the external gas path on the concentration of active gas in the transmission process is analyzed as well. Third, the precision boring cutter is modified into an internal cooling precision boring cutter with an external gas path. The gas concentration attenuation value at the outlet of the boring head is also obtained. Finally, finite element simulation and experimental analyses are conducted. Results show that the error of main cutting force between simulated and theoretical calculation is less than 2.65%, which verifies the correctness of the simulation. Electrostatic cooling can obviously reduce the feed force and cutting temperature, improve the wear life of tools, and achieve the effect of wet boring compared with dry cutting. The results of this study can be applied to the cooling process modification of cylindrical holes, V-shaped grooves, end faces, and threads during boring. In addition, it can also provide theoretical support for the cooling effect of gear hobbing experiments, welding, and other processes.