Machinability of Bulk Metallic Glass Materials on Milling and Drilling

In this study, machinability of Zr-based bulk metallic glass (Zr52.5Ti5Cu17.9Ni14.6Al10) (BMG) material was investigated by conducting a set of milling and drilling experiments. In milling, two different tool paths, spiral and slot milling, were used. To investigate the behavior of BMG in drilling by two different tools at different feed rates, two sets of drilling experiments are conducted. Crown shaped exit burr formation are observed in drilling of BMG. Best results on thrust force, exit burr formation and hole surface roughness is obtained while using micrograin WC tool on BMG drilling. No chip light emission was observed during all tests. This study concludes that BMG can be achieved machining with good surface roughness, (Ra=0.113 µm), using conventional cutting tools.