Micro-end milling of biomedical Tz54 magnesium alloy produced through powder metallurgy

In this study, micro machinability of Mg5Sn4Zn (TZ54) alloy produced by a hot-pressing process (one of the powder metallurgy methods) is investigated. For this purpose, micro-milling experiments were carried out, considering different cutting parameters. In order to determine the appropriate cutting parameters, the variation of cutting forces, surface quality and burr width were investigated. The cutting forces obtained in micro-milling of the TZ54 alloy are relatively small compared to other biomedical materials. In terms of both cutting forces and surface roughness, the minimum chip thickness is between 7% and 34% of the tool edge radius. However, compared to alloys such as Ti6Al4V and 316 L, the burr width is about 80% smaller. An important contribution of the study is that the minimum chip thickness (0.1 μm) has been confirmed in terms of both cutting force and surface roughness. In addition, even at high material removal rates, the minimum cutting forces are important findings of the study. The predominant wear mechanism in the cutting tool is abrasive wear. In view of tool life, surface roughness and burr formation, it is envisaged that the TZ54 alloy can be an easy machinable, alternative biomedical material.