Investigations to Examine the Potential of Eco-Safe Nanofluids in CNC Machining

This paper discusses the experimental investigations to comprehend the role of nano titanium dioxide (nTiO2) and nano molybdenum disulfide (nMoS2) dispersions in two types of biodegradable oils. Before machining, the nanofluids are formulated at 4% from 0.25 to 1% to test basic properties, namely thermal conductivity and absorbance. These tests are followed by machining at fixed cutting conditions through minimal quantity lubrication technique at 20 ml/min using 0.25% nanoparticle dispersions in base fluids. Cutting forces and temperatures are quantified online, while surface roughness and tool wear are noted offline. The machining performance of nanofluids is compared with dry, conventional oil (SAE oil), pure coconut, and canola oils. It is observed that nanofluid formulations refined machining results compared to other lubricant environments. 0.25% nTiO2 in coconut oil resulted in bringing down temperatures, forces, surface coarseness, and tool run out by 60% compared to dry machining, 35% better than SAE oil, 25% better than pure oils, and 15% better than nMoS2-based cutting fluids, respectively, on an average.