The current work presents a study of alternative methods of cooling-lubrication for the external plunge grinding of advanced ceramics using diamond wheels. These two alternative methods, which are intended to reduce cutting fluid expenses, are commonly referred to as the optimized cooling-lubrication method and minimal quantity of lubrication (MQL). The techniques were evaluated by process monitoring and by the assessment of output variables such as tangential cutting force, G ratio, roundness errors, surface roughness, microstructure and residual stresses measured by X-ray diffraction. The obtained results showed that the two proposed techniques can replace the conventional cooling-lubrication method, i.e., flood coolant. In particular, optimized cooling-lubrication method reduced wheel wear and produced workpieces with the best geometric and dimensional finishes, while MQL significantly reduced the amount of fluid employed in the process without harming the workpiece quality.

Researches concerning cooling-lubrication optimization in grinding have been conducted to contribute to a more sustainable process. An alternative to flood coolant is minimum quantity lubrication (MQL), which spray oil droplets in a compressed air jet. However, problems related to wheel cleaning were reported, due to wheel loading by a mixture of chips and oil, resulting in worsening of surface quality. This work aims to evaluate the viability of Teflon and aluminum oxide for wheel cleaning, compared to MQL without cleaning and MQL with cleaning by compressed air, through the following output variables: surface roughness, roundness, wheel wear, grinding power and acoustic emission. Vickers microhardness measurements and optical microscopy were also carried out. The results showed that both materials were efficient in cleaning the wheel, compared to MQL without cleaning, but not as satisfactory as compressed air. Much work is to be done in order to select the right material for wheel cleaning.

The use of cutting fluids is fundamental to machining processes, mainly when it comes to high heat generation, which is the case of grinding. Thus, lubrication and cooling provided by cutting fluids improve the final quality of the workpiece. However, cutting fluid usage provide some drawbacks concerning environmental, costs and health issues. Therefore, new methods for application and optimization of cutting fluids are being researched aiming to reduce the amount of fluid used, as well as the minimization of cutting fluid hazards. The present study analyzes the behavior of a recently proposed optimization method, up to now only tested in turning, which consists of adding water to minimum quantity lubrication (MQL). Three different proportions were tested in this study: 1/1, 1/3 and 1/5 parts of oil per parts of water. The following output variables were evaluated: surface roughness, roundness errors, grinding power and diametric wheel wear. Also, optical microscopy and microhardness measurements were conducted, in order to detect burns and surface alterations. The obtained results were also compared to conventional (flood coolant) cooling-lubrication and traditional MQL (without water). MQL with water (1/5) presented better results of surface roughness and roundness errors, when compared to traditional MQL, and the results are very close to when using flood coolant. For grinding power and wheel wear, the results for MQL with water (1/5) were the best among the tested conditions.

The plunge cylindrical grinding operation has been widely employed in the manufacturing process of components which require excellent surface quality achieved within small ranges of dimensional tolerance. The sparkout time has proved to be an important parameter in this operation, contributing to obtain surfaces with high geometric and dimensional precision. This parameter, which is defined as the period in which there is no wheel radial feed, allows the elimination of elastic deformations that build up as the grinding wheel is fed. Experimentation with sparkout time was applied in the plunge cylindrical grinding operation and included the Minimum Quantity Lubrication (MQL)technique, which has proved to be an environmentally correct alternative, combining a small amount of lubricating oil with an intense flow rate of compressed air. The conventional lubrication and cooling method and the method involving the nozzle proposed by Webster [10] were also used. The results showed that longer sparkout times led to a decrease in tangential forces, wheel diametrical wear and surface roughness values for the MQL method.