OPTIMISATION OF MILLING OPERATION ON GRAPHENE OXIDE- EPOXY NANOCOMPOSITE BY TAGUCHI METHOD

Abstract

This project introduces the application of Taguchi optimization methodology in optimizing the cutting parameters of end-milling process for machining the Graphene Oxide reinforced epoxy hybrid composite material under dry condition. The machining parameters which are chosen to be evaluated in this study are the depth of cut (d), cutting speed (S) and feed rate (f). While, the response factors to be measured are the surface roughness of the machined composite surface and the cutting force. An orthogonal array of the Taguchi method was set-up and used to analyze the effect of the milling parameters on the surface roughness, material removal rate and cutting force. The result from this study shows that the application of the Taguchi method can determine the best combination of machining parameters that can provide the optimal machining response conditions which are the lowest surface roughness and lowest cutting force value. For the best surface finish, A1–B3–C3 (d = 0.4 mm, S = 1500 rpm, f = 60 mm/min) is found to be the optimized combination of levels for all the three control factors from the analysis. Meanwhile, the optimized combination of levels for all the three control factors from the analysis which provides the lowest cutting force was found to be A2–B2–C2 (d = 0.6 mm, S = 1000 rpm, f = 40 mm/min).