Development of a high-pressure delivery lubrication system for sustainable machining operations

The control of cutting lubricant and its application in machining operation is significant, giving rise to the high productivity of mechanical components during manufacturing processes. In machining of metal to metal operation, the heat generation rate is very high, which can cause severe damage to the microstructure of the workpiece and the cutting tool in operation. The application techniques of cutting fluid in machining have long been the conventional pattern. This technique is limited in flushing the chips from the contact zone and has lower thermal characteristics in friction. There is a need to develop a machine that can deliver lubricant with high pressure during the cutting operations. Therefore, this project aims to develop a high-pressure delivery lubrication system (HPDLS) for machining operations. The HPDLS has been designed and tested. The major mechanical components are the pump, reservoir, nozzle, pressure gauge, and control valve. The test results show that the HPDLS has a flow rate of 0.16L/s, with an efficiency of 70%, which is a good recommendation for the lubricating delivery system. The machine was also implemented in the turning operation of AA 6063 using mineral oil. The result shows that HPDLS rightly applied the lubricant during the turning operation.