A novel numerical modeling approach to determine the temperature distribution in the cutting tool using conjugate heat transfer (CHT) analysis

This study deals with the conjugate heat transfer problem of a single point cutting tool under turning operation dissipating heat in the tool material and streams of the surrounding air. In order to estimate the cutting temperature during the turning operation, the DEFORM-3D finite element package was utilized. A machining simulation material model for Ti6Al4V was utilized using a modified Johnson–Cook equation. The maximum cutting temperature value was obtained from the finite element model. The temperature was then used as a constant heat source on the tool tip, and the conjugate heat transfer (CHT) approach was used to develop a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model. The CFD model utilized a 3D heat and fluid flow analysis using ANSYS® CFX. A cutting insert with a constant heat source was exposed to the stream velocities of the dry air. The numerical equations governing the flow and thermal fields in the fluid domain and energy equation in the solid domain were solved in parallel by maintaining the continuity of temperature and heat flux at the solid–fluid interface. The presented conjugate heat transfer (CHT) approach provided a very useful understanding of the temperature profile development at the cutting tool that is still a complex challenge for the existing experimental and numerical techniques.