Friction Drilling of Stainless Steels Pipes

This work describes the experimental study of the friction drilling process in stainless steel by means of an optimization of the machining conditions. For such purpose austenitic stainless steel with different thicknesses were analyzed through controlled tests at different rotation speeds and feed rates. On one hand, the torque and the thrust force were computed and monitorized. On the other hand, the dimensional tolerances of the holes were evaluated, mainly the accuracy of the hole diameter and the burr thickness at different depths. Another topic of interest inherent to this special technique is the temperature level reached during the friction process which is crucial when it comes to development of microstructural transformations.