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    Cutting Fluid Selection: Ensuring Optimal Performance and Efficiency

    Cutting fluid has many issues worth discussing. It plays an important role in machining processing, including cooling, lubrication, cleaning, and rust prevention. The effects of cutting fluids with different properties are also different. Let’s learn more relevant knowledge about cutting fluid before cutting to make a suitable choice.

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    Classification of cutting fluid

    • Water-soluble cutting fluid: The main component of this cutting fluid is water. A rust inhibitor is added, and sometimes an appropriate amount of surfactant or oily additive is added to make it have a specific lubrication function.


    • Non-water-soluble cutting fluid: This cutting fluid includes various mineral oils, such as light diesel, mechanical oil, etc., animal and vegetable oils, such as soybean oil, lard, etc., and mixed oils with oily and extreme pressure additives are added to achieve lubrication function.


    • Emulsion: The main function of emulsion is cooling and cleaning. It is made of emulsified oil prepared with mineral oil, emulsifier, and other additives, and then diluted with 95%~98% water.

    The function of cutting fluid

    • Anti-rust: As mentioned above, some cutting fluids will be added with anti-rust agents, which can form a protective coating on the metal surface and prevent machine tools, workpieces, and tools from being eroded.


    • Cooling: The cutting fluid can take away a lot of heat from the tool, chips, and workpieces as they are closest to the heat source, which can reduce the temperature and improve the durability of the cutting tool, and also reduce the thermal expansion of the workpiece and the cutting tool, thereby improving the machining accuracy. Therefore, cutting fluids need to be a specific flow and flow rate. While water has the best cooling performance, oil is the worst, and emulsions fall in between.


    • Lubrication: When cutting the metal, the friction between the workpiece, tool and chip can be divided into dry friction, hydrodynamic lubrication friction, and boundary lubrication friction. When the cutting fluid flows into their contact surfaces, it can adhere to the metal surface to form a lubricating coating. In turn, the problems of friction coefficient and sticking are reduced, and the problem of surface roughness is improved.


    • Cleaning: During the cutting process, some chips or particles falling off the grinding wheel will be generated. The flushing of the cutting fluid is beneficial to chip removal during machining, and the surface tension can be reduced through the cutting fluid to achieve the purpose of cleaning.

     

    Applicable standards for oily and waterborne

    Both water-based and oil-based cutting fluids have their own advantages and disadvantages. Oil-based lubricating has good rust-proof properties, but they are prone to generating oil and gas, causing air pollution or unpleasant smells. The workpiece is also prone to sticking to oil so the environment may be easily messy. The water-based cutting fluid has good cleaning and cooling performance and needs to be diluted with water, making it more cost-effective. Light water-based cutting fluid is easily affected by concentration and the environment in use. If it is not properly monitored, it is easy to deteriorate, stink, or even corrupt. Therefore, when choosing a cutting fluid, you can choose according to the machining conditions and requirements and choose a more suitable cutting fluid.

    Main image photo by Vero

    References TF / Bewise

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