Advanced Characterization Techniques of Multi-material Machining Tool Coatings

Characterization techniques are of the utmost importance to determine the properties of a material, especially before the performance of experimental tests, as it will make it possible to optimize it. Multi-material machining is a manufacturing process that sustains diverse challenges, namely the fast tool wear caused by the composite fibres’ abrasive nature, as well as the need to cut through interface zones between the metal and the composite, being subject to two or more different cutting patterns at the same time. A proper coating is one of the answers to this problem; however, it must be correctly characterized so that premature wear of the tool does not occur, and its lifetime can be extended as much as possible but without damaging the substrate. Several characterization techniques are used in machining tool coatings, for example, for diamond, the most important are the atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, the pin-on-disc test, the micro-abrasion, the scratch test, and nano/microindentation. This manuscript reviews of the use of these methods by the authors in the literature, some of which combined them for a complete characterization of the coating, obtaining good results in their analysis. Hence, the objective of the study is to allow the reunion of all the information needed to know to decide which coating to choose for a specific application.