Abstract
Titanium alloys are widely used in aerospace applications due to their excellent material properties. Nevertheless the low machining speed and short tool life represent the high cost of machining titanium alloys. Laser assisted machining (LAM) has been developed to be an advanced technique to machine this kind of hard-to-machine material and to improve machinability. Most researches in this field are conducted to assess the effect of various cutting parameters to optimize cutting condition and maximum benefits of LAM. Therefore, the primary objective of this study is to evaluate the influence of laser power on the surface quality and tool life during LAM of Ti-6Al-4V alloys. The surface roughness was decreased with the application of LAM, while tool life was increased 1.4 times comparing to conventional machining (CM). A laser power between 20 and 40 W was best suited for LAM of titanium alloys at cutting speed of 100 m/min. Furthermore, a cutting temperature between 240 and 310 °C was proved to be optimal.
