Sustainable Machining Processes through Optimization of Process Parameters

Abstract

Machining processes are a vital part of manufacturing activities in major industries that contributes to the growth of the economy. They mostly require high amount of electrical energy to power the various support modules installed on machine tools. Carrying out machining activities with a view to reducing energy consumption will therefore result in a lowered cost of production for manufactured products. Previous studies on some energy-saving methods adopted by researchers and the limitations faced in the reduction of energy consumption have been discussed. In this work, the effect of process parameters in the conservation of energy during machining processes was experimented. Minitab 16 was used to design the experiment and a 9-run orthogonal array was generated. The machining parameters were cutting speed (80 – 120 m/min), feed (0.05 – 0.07 mm/rev) and depth of cut (0.1 – 0.3 mm). A high carbon steel bar was machined using high speed steel tool and the energy consumed during the machining process was measured. Energy (28.67 kw/hr) was consumed during machining at 0.005 mm/rev and 0.3 m. Energy (12.83 kw/hr) was consumed while machining at 0.07 mm/rev and 0.1 m. The energy consumed changed with machining parameters. These results showed that much energy could be saved by optimizing parameters before machining.