A study on the machinability of a Ti49.6Ni50.4 shape memory alloy

Abstract The machinability of a Ti 49.6 Ni 50.4 shape memory alloy (SMA) has been studied by using a mechanical cutting test. There is a wide hardened layer in front of the cutting edge of the Ti 49.6 Ni 50.4 SMA which comes from the effects of strain hardening and cyclic hardening. Meanwhile, Ti 49.6 Ni 50.4 fragments can adhere on the diamond blade. The longer the cutting time, the more adhesion the Ti 49.6 Ni 50.4 fragments have. These features cause the Ti 49.6 Ni 50.4 SMA to exhibit more difficult cutting characteristics than 18-8 stainless steel and Ti 50 Al 50 alloy. From the viewpoint of cutting energy, the effect of applied load is more important than that of cutting speed and there is an optimal cutting load for the cutting of Ti 49.6 Ni 50.4 SMA.