Influence of milling parameters on Al-Li alloy surface characteristics

Lightweight alloys attract the aerospace industries due to their high specific strength. Al-Li alloy has been investigated in the present study to identify their functional performance in terms of surface characteristics namely surface roughness and hardness. Dry face milling was performed using uncoated carbide inserts for the experimental conditions obtained from Taguchi L27 design of experiments. The effect of milling parameters, such as feed rate, cutting speed and depth of cut on surface roughness and hardness have been investigated and presented. Further, the optimal milling conditions are identified using statistical techniques – Grey Relational Analysis (GRA) and Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS). The study showed that feed rate is the most influential parameter on both surface characteristics. Both GRA and TOPSIS showed similarity in identifying the same condition as optimal for milling Al-Li alloy under dry condition.