An innovative study on high-performance milling of carbon fiber reinforced plastic by combining ultrasonic vibration assistance and optimized tool structures

At present, the aviation industry puts forward higher requirements for high-performance milling technology of carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP). This paper proposed a sharpening milling CFRP strategy by combining of ultrasonic vibration and optimized tool structure of fluted burr tools. The sharpening cutting mechanisms of the ultrasonic vibration and tool structure were analyzed theoretically first. Next, the milling performance of optimized fluted burr tool was verified compared with conventional helical end mill and the results showed the optimized tool structure had positive effects on damage suppression and surface roughness. On this basis, Ultrasonic vibration-assisted milling (UVM) with the optimized fluted burr tool was applied to further improve the machined surface quality of T800 CFRP. The verification experimental results showed that, compared to conventional milling, both the cutting force and cutting temperature were significantly reduced in UVM, with a maximum decrement of 39.7% and 15.7% respectively. Besides, the surface defects were significantly suppressed and the surface roughness was reduced by 11.4%–37.6% in UVM. The results of this paper suggested that the combination of UVM and optimized fluted burr tool was an efficient and low damages milling strategy for CFRP.