Tool wear for finishing milling of green thermoplastic-ceramic composites fabricated with pellet AM

The wear of milling tools used for finishing green ceramics shaped by pellet additive manufacturing can be challenging. This article aims to evaluate the tool life of a tool, initially dedicated to thermoplastics, when used for milling green zirconia and seeks to confirm the influence of the build direction on the cutting forces. The tool can withstand 30 minutes of milling without reaching the tool life criteria of ISO 8688. The generated surfaces exhibited a shiny finish, no material pull out and a Ra < 1.6 µm. The cutting forces were low with maximal values of 15 N.