CUTTING-EDGE TECHNOLOGIES Ceramic Cutting Tools
Tools for
Productivity and
Efficiency There is a positive vibe about ceramics in this early 21st century. With their growing reputation in manufacturing hardened materials, like Hastelloy and Inconel, aerospace components, and medical devices made of materials like titanium, ceramic tools are the next upgrade in productivity and efficiency.
T
he global market for ceramic cutting tools stood at over US$1 billion in 2011, this after being hit by the economic decline in 2009 where the market shrunk by 30%. Today, of the entire market for metal cutting tools, ceramic accounts for over 8.5%. The demand for these special tools is driven primarily by manufacturing in the automotive, aerospace and medical sectors where the need for highly specific tooling, with enhanced performance at high speeds and temperatures, is more prevalent.
degree. Ceramics that contain reinforcing whiskers of silicon carbide have high resistance and toughness, particularly where thermal shock is involved, as well as increased tensile strength. They can also be run without coolants, which is why they have found heavy use in dry machining where machining rates have increased by as much as 800%. Of all the various applications of ceramic inserts, milling is the most common and accounts for about 61% of the market, while turning and drilling account for about 37% and 2.2%, respectively.
Advantages Of Ceramics Ceramic Applications For most manufacturers in developing countries, ceramic tools are too expensive to be implemented on a wide scale; yet, its use has slowly been growing. Ceramic tooling is used for high-speed, single-point turning, boring and facing operations with continuous cutting as well as for finishing operations for ferrous or non-ferrous materials. It is also used for precision machine castings and to make light finishing cuts for steel and cast iron. Ceramics are highly suitable for any operation in which size and part finish need to be controlled to a greater 36
MMT - January 2013
Ceramic materials have been used in metal cutting for over a century, with the first cutting tool inserts hitting the market in 1956. Tools made of such material have grown in popularity and demand as the need for specialised tooling has increased. Properties like hardness, toughness and thermal conductivity result in the material’s greater ability to function under very high temperatures (4,000°F) as compared to carbide tools (1,600°F). Abhinav Sood, Sales Leader, Hypertherm India, says, “Ceramic cutting tools are constructed mainly from alumina (Al2O3) and silicon nitride (SiN), and have been
used to cut materials for over 100 years. These tools are generally tough and can withstand high temperatures of up to 2,204°C. This results in deeper and cleaner cuts because the high heat softens the workpiece material.”
Future Factors The need for specialised machining processes and niche products has been rising across global markets. Ceramic tools have a huge advantage when the requirements are for specific tools with highly specific properties. The use of carbide whiskers will be further optimised in CMCs, while fine-tuned powder processing will result in finer cutting edges, thus leading to near-net finishing. The demand for ceramic tools is broadly driven by the environment that end users function in, the competition from other super-hard tool types like PcBN and PCD and the preferences of manufacturers of niche products. The overall market for ceramic tools is poised to hit US$1.5 billion by 2016. However, given the current growth in aerospace and automotive sectors, this number might well be exceeded. nishant.kashyap@network18publishing.com