Synergistic Control of Tool-chip Tribology in Turning Inconel 718 via WS2-enhanced Nano-MQL and Rake-face Micro-textures

doi:10.11901/1005.3093.2026.179

Chinese Journal of Materials Research

2026, Vol. 40

Issue (10): 769-780 DOI: 10.11901/1005.3093.2026.179

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Synergistic Control of Tool-chip Tribology in Turning Inconel 718 via WS₂-enhanced Nano-MQL and Rake-face Micro-textures

LIU Hanlu¹, ZHANG Gaofeng², JIANG Shengqiang¹(

), DENG Yang²

^1.School of Mechanical Engineering and Mechanics, Xiangtan University, Xiangtan 411105, China
^2.School of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Changsha University, Changsha 410022, China

Cite this article:

LIU Hanlu, ZHANG Gaofeng, JIANG Shengqiang, DENG Yang. Synergistic Control of Tool-chip Tribology in Turning Inconel 718 via WS₂-enhanced Nano-MQL and Rake-face Micro-textures. Chinese Journal of Materials Research, 2026, 40(10): 769-780.

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Abstract

To address the severe interfacial adhesion, high cutting temperatures, and rapid tool wear encountered during the machining of the nickel-based superalloy Inconel 718, four rake-face micro-textured tools were designed in this study: grooves perpendicular to the cutting edge (VT), grooves parallel to the cutting edge (PT), grooves oriented at 45° (45T), and a square-dimple array (DT). An untextured tool (NT) was employed as the reference. Turning experiments were conducted under minimum quantity lubrication (MQL) and nano-minimum quantity lubrication (NMQL) conditions at three cutting speeds. The results indicate that the main cutting force initially decreased and then increased with increasing cutting speed, and the overall cutting load reached a minimum at V_c = 80 m/min. At this cutting speed, the main cutting forces of VT, PT, DT, and 45T were 9.12%, 7.63%, 5.21%, and 3.51% lower than those of NT, respectively, thereby confirming the effectiveness of rake-face textures in reducing cutting loads. Furthermore, the cutting temperature increased with cutting speed; however, both surface textures and lubricants significantly reduced the cutting temperature. Under MQL and NMQL conditions, the temperature reduction of textured tools relative to NT ranged from 8.8% to 14.5% and from 11.4% to 18.0%, respectively, with VT showing the most pronounced cooling effect. Based on the wear characterization of the rake and flank faces, rake-face adhesion and spalling were effectively mitigated under NMQL, and the maximum flank wear width (VB_max) of NVT was the smallest, with a value of only 60.99% of that of NNT. Overall, open-groove textures combined with WS₂-enhanced NMQL demonstrated a pronounced synergistic anti-friction and anti-wear effect. This synergy reduced the apparent level of interfacial friction and improved the cutting deformation conditions, thereby alleviating heat accumulation and suppressing tool wear propagation. Ultimately, this enhanced the interfacial tribological environment and the tool service conditions during turning of Inconel 718.

Key words: synthesizing and processing technics Inconel 718 micro-textured tool nano-minimum quantity lubrication (NMQL) tungsten disulfide (WS₂)

Received: 15 April 2026

ZTFLH:

TG506.7

Fund: National Natural Science Foundation of China(52275406);Hunan Provincial Innovation Foundation for Postgraduates(LXBZZ2024118)

Corresponding Authors: JIANG Shengqiang, Tel: 15074817558, E-mail: jsqcx@xtu.edu.cn

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	LIU Hanlu
	ZHANG Gaofeng
	JIANG Shengqiang
	DENG Yang

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https://www.cjmr.org/EN/10.11901/1005.3093.2026.179 OR https://www.cjmr.org/EN/Y2026/V40/I10/769

Fig.1 Schematic illustrations of texture patterns on the rake face of the textured tools (a) grooves perpendicular to the cutting edge (VT), (b) grooves parallel to the cutting edge (PT), (c) grooves oriented at 45° to the cutting edge (45T), (d) a square-dimple array on the rake face (DT)

Fig.2 Three-dimensional surface topographies of the textured region and corresponding texture depth h (a) VT, (b) PT, (c) 45T, (d) DT

Fig.3 Photographs of the textured tools showing the texture location and orientation on the rake face (a) VT, (b) PT, (c) 45T, (d) DT

Table 1 Chemical compositions of Inconel 718

Table 2 Cutting parameters, tool geometry and MQL/NMQL spray settings

Fig.4 Cutting schematics under different lubrication conditions (a) untextured tool under MQL, (b) untextured tool under NMQL, (c) textured tool under MQL, (d) textured tool under NMQL

Table 3 Test matrix for texture type and lubrication conditions

Fig.5 Schematic of thermocouple installation and VB_max measurement (a) location of the type K thermocouple on the tool, (b) measurement of the maximum flank wear width VB_max

Fig.6 Comparison of the main cutting force and feed force for different tools at cutting speeds of 50, 80 and 110 m/min under MQL and NMQL conditions (a) main cutting force (MQL), (b) main cutting force (NMQL), (c) feeding force (MQL), (d) feeding force (NMQL)

Fig.7 Cutting temperature-time curves under MQL and NMQL conditions at different cutting speeds (a) V_c = 50 m/min (MQL), (b) V_c = 50 m/min (NMQL), (c) V_c = 80 m/min (MQL), (d) V_c = 80 m/min (NMQL), (e) V_c = 110 m/min (MQL), (f) V_c = 110 m/min (NMQL)

Fig.8 Time histories of the apparent friction coefficient μ_app for the VT insert under MQL and NMQL conditions at V_c = 80 m/min

Fig.9 SEM observations of rake-face wear for different textured tools under MQL and NMQL at V_c = 80 m/min

Fig.10 SEM observations of flank wear and the corresponding maximum flank wear width VB_max for different tools under NMQL at V_c = 80 m/min

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