A review identifying the effectiveness of minimum quantity lubrication (MQL) during conventional machining

Government legislation and public opinion are the main drivers behind the movement of manufacturing companies towards sustainable production. Fundamentally, companies want to avoid future financial penalties and the industry is therefore under pressure to adapt new techniques and practices in order to become environmentally friendly. The cost efficiency of metal cutting operations is highly dependent on accuracy, excellent surface finish and minimized tool wear and, to this end, has traditionally made abundant use of cutting fluid in machining operations. However, these cutting fluids have been a major contributor to environmental and health issues. In recent years, an enormous effort to eradicate these adverse effects has been made with one important focus being the implementation of minimum quantity lubrication (MQL). In the present work, the authors have reviewed the current state of the art in MQL with a particular focus on drilling, turning, milling and grinding machining operations. Overall, it is concluded that MQL has huge potential as a substitute for conventional flood cooling

Application of minimum quantity lubrication techniques in machining process of titanium alloy for sustainability: a review

Recently, the manufacturing sector is increasingly keen to apply sustainability at all levels of sustainability from system to products and processes. At the processes level, cutting fluids (CFs) are among the most unsustainable materials and need to be addressed properly in accordance with three main and decisive aspects, also known as the triple bottom line: ecology, society, and economics. Minimum quantity lubrication (MQL) is a promising technique that minimizes the use of CFs, thus improving sustainability. This paper presents a review of the literature available on the use of the MQL technique during different machining processes involving titanium alloys (Ti-6Al-4V). To carry out the study, four search engines were used to focus on the most cited articles published over a span of 17years from 2000 to 2016. The performance and drawbacks are compiled for each eco-friendly technique: dry, MQL, and cryogenics with combinations of MQL and cryogenics, critically considering machining parameters such as cutting speed, feed rate, and output measures, namely surface roughness, tool life, and cutting temperature. After drawing conclusions from critical evaluation of research body, future research avenues in the field are proposed for the academics and industry