On the machinability and surface Finish of superalloy GH909 under dry cutting conditions

GH 909 alloy is a kind of low thermal expansion superalloy with high strength and low expansion coefficient. It is mainly used for manufacturing of aero-engine turbine casings, sealing ring, vanes and other gap control parts, to improve the working efficiency and thrust of the engine as well as to reduce gas loss and fuel consumption. However, the machinability is still a problem that restricts the application of GH909. This paper investigated the machinability referring to cutting forces, surface quality and tool wear in the milling process with carbide tool. The main conclusions are: (1) GH909 has similar machinability with other Nickel-based alloys, cutting velocity does not have great influence on cutting forces for small radial cutting depth. (2) Good machined surface quality can be get for cutting velocity around 70m/min. (3) To get good tool performance and reduce tool wear rate, cutting velocity can be set to no larger than 80m/min.