Influence of Heat Treatment Processes on the Machinability and Surface Integrity of Ti-6Al-4V Alloy During Precision Machining
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Abstract
Ti-6Al-4V titanium alloy (TC4) has been extensively applied in advanced manufacturing fields owing to its outstanding combination of mechanical properties and corrosion resistance. However, its poor machinability remains a critical challenge that limits further application. In this study, the effects of three categories of heat treatment processes, including annealing, solution treatment, and aging treatment, comprising eight specific heat treatment schemes, on the precision cutting performance of TC4 alloy were systematically investigated using DEFORM-3D numerical simulations. The results demonstrate that stress-relief annealing and full annealing effectively reduce cutting forces by up to 15.17% through grain refinement and residual stress relaxation, while also lowering cutting temperatures and improving residual stress distribution, with the stress gradient decreasing to 50–80 MPa/$\mu$m. In contrast, solution treatment increases hardness, resulting in intensified fluctuations in cutting forces. Aging treatment promotes the precipitation of strengthening phases, achieving the most significant reduction in cutting force with a maximum decrease of 43.09%, though it introduces localized thermal accumulation during cutting. This study reveals the regulation mechanism of heat treatment on machining performance through the sequential interaction of microstructure evolution–mechanical property modification–cutting response transformation. Among the investigated processes, annealing exhibits the most comprehensive improvement in overall machinability. The findings provide theoretical guidance for the synergistic optimization of heat treatment strategies and cutting parameters for TC4 titanium alloy machining.
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References
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Cite This Article
TY - JOUR AU - Zhao, Zhimin AU - Gao, Jie AU - Wang, Hua AU - Yang, Hui PY - 2026 DA - 2026/09/02 TI - Influence of Heat Treatment Processes on the Machinability and Surface Integrity of Ti-6Al-4V Alloy During Precision Machining JO - Journal of Materials Durability and Engineering T2 - Journal of Materials Durability and Engineering JF - Journal of Materials Durability and Engineering VL - 1 IS - 1 SP - 35 EP - 51 DO - 10.62762/JMDE.2026.741108 UR - https://www.icck.org/article/abs/JMDE.2026.741108 KW - heat treatment KW - Ti-6Al-4V titanium alloy KW - precision machining KW - mechanical properties KW - microstructural evolution AB - Ti-6Al-4V titanium alloy (TC4) has been extensively applied in advanced manufacturing fields owing to its outstanding combination of mechanical properties and corrosion resistance. However, its poor machinability remains a critical challenge that limits further application. In this study, the effects of three categories of heat treatment processes, including annealing, solution treatment, and aging treatment, comprising eight specific heat treatment schemes, on the precision cutting performance of TC4 alloy were systematically investigated using DEFORM-3D numerical simulations. The results demonstrate that stress-relief annealing and full annealing effectively reduce cutting forces by up to 15.17% through grain refinement and residual stress relaxation, while also lowering cutting temperatures and improving residual stress distribution, with the stress gradient decreasing to 50–80 MPa/$\mu$m. In contrast, solution treatment increases hardness, resulting in intensified fluctuations in cutting forces. Aging treatment promotes the precipitation of strengthening phases, achieving the most significant reduction in cutting force with a maximum decrease of 43.09%, though it introduces localized thermal accumulation during cutting. This study reveals the regulation mechanism of heat treatment on machining performance through the sequential interaction of microstructure evolution–mechanical property modification–cutting response transformation. Among the investigated processes, annealing exhibits the most comprehensive improvement in overall machinability. The findings provide theoretical guidance for the synergistic optimization of heat treatment strategies and cutting parameters for TC4 titanium alloy machining. SN - pending PB - Institute of Central Computation and Knowledge LA - English ER -
@article{Zhao2026Influence,
author = {Zhimin Zhao and Jie Gao and Hua Wang and Hui Yang},
title = {Influence of Heat Treatment Processes on the Machinability and Surface Integrity of Ti-6Al-4V Alloy During Precision Machining},
journal = {Journal of Materials Durability and Engineering},
year = {2026},
volume = {1},
number = {1},
pages = {35-51},
doi = {10.62762/JMDE.2026.741108},
url = {https://www.icck.org/article/abs/JMDE.2026.741108},
abstract = {Ti-6Al-4V titanium alloy (TC4) has been extensively applied in advanced manufacturing fields owing to its outstanding combination of mechanical properties and corrosion resistance. However, its poor machinability remains a critical challenge that limits further application. In this study, the effects of three categories of heat treatment processes, including annealing, solution treatment, and aging treatment, comprising eight specific heat treatment schemes, on the precision cutting performance of TC4 alloy were systematically investigated using DEFORM-3D numerical simulations. The results demonstrate that stress-relief annealing and full annealing effectively reduce cutting forces by up to 15.17\% through grain refinement and residual stress relaxation, while also lowering cutting temperatures and improving residual stress distribution, with the stress gradient decreasing to 50–80 MPa/\$\mu\$m. In contrast, solution treatment increases hardness, resulting in intensified fluctuations in cutting forces. Aging treatment promotes the precipitation of strengthening phases, achieving the most significant reduction in cutting force with a maximum decrease of 43.09\%, though it introduces localized thermal accumulation during cutting. This study reveals the regulation mechanism of heat treatment on machining performance through the sequential interaction of microstructure evolution–mechanical property modification–cutting response transformation. Among the investigated processes, annealing exhibits the most comprehensive improvement in overall machinability. The findings provide theoretical guidance for the synergistic optimization of heat treatment strategies and cutting parameters for TC4 titanium alloy machining.},
keywords = {heat treatment, Ti-6Al-4V titanium alloy, precision machining, mechanical properties, microstructural evolution},
issn = {pending},
publisher = {Institute of Central Computation and Knowledge}
}
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