Effect of machinability, microstructure and hardness of deep cryogenic treatment in hard turning of AISI D2 steel with ceramic cutting

This study examined the hard turning of AISI D2 cold work tool steel subjected to deep cryogenic processing and tempering and investigated the effects on surface roughness and tool wear. In addition, the effects of the deep cryogenic processes on mechanical properties (macro and micro hardness) and microstructure were investigated. Three groups of test samples were evaluated: conventional heat treatment (CHT), deep cryogenic treatment (DCT-36) and deep cryogenic treatment with tempering (DCTT-36). The samples in the first group were subjected to only CHT to 62 HRc hardness. The second group (DCT-36) underwent processing for 36 h at −145 °C after conventional heat treatment. The latter group (DCTT-36) had been subjected to both conventional heat treatment and deep cryogenic treatment followed by 2 h of tempering at 200 °C. In the experiments, Al2O3 + TiC matrix-based untreated mixed alumina ceramic (AB30) and Al2O3 + TiC matrix-based TiN-coated ceramic (AB2010) cutting tools were used. The artificial intelligence method known as artificial neural networks (ANNs) was used to estimate the surface roughness based on cutting speed, cutting tool, workpiece, depth of cut and feed rate. For the artificial neural network modeling, the standard back-propagation algorithm was found to be the optimum choice for training the model. Three different cutting speeds (50, 100 and 150 m/min), three different feed rates (0.08, 0.16 and 0.24 mm/rev) and three different cutting depths (0.25, 0.50 and 0.75 mm) were selected. Tool wear experiments were carried out at a cutting speed of 150 m/min, a feed rate of 0.08 mm/rev and a cutting depth of 0.6 mm. As a result of the experiments, the best results for both surface roughness and tool wear were obtained with the DCTT-36 sample. When cutting tools were compared, the best results for surface roughness and tool wear were obtained with the coated ceramic tool (AB2010). The macroscopic and micro hardness values were highest for the DCT-36. From the microstructural point of view, the DCTT-36 sample showed the best results with homogeneous and thinner secondary carbide formations.