Development and validation of a meshless 3D material point method for simulating the micro-milling process

A meshless generalized interpolation material point method for simulating the micro-milling process was developed. This method has several advantages over well-established approaches (such as finite elements) when it comes to large plastic strains and deformations, since it inherently does not suffer from tensile instability problems. The feasibility of the developed material point model for simulating micro-milling is verified against finite element simulations and experimental data. The model is able to successfully predict experimentally measured cutting forces and determine chip temperatures in agreement with conventional finite element simulations. After having verified the approach, the model was applied to perform extensive numerical 3D simulations of the micro-milling process. The goal is to evaluate the response of the micro-milling cutting forces as function of the hardening behavior of the micro-milled material. The meshless 3D simulations reveal a dependency of tool force slopes (with respect to the uncut chip thickness) on the hardening parameters. Based on these findings, a new approach is outlined to determine hardening parameters directly from two micro-milling experiments with distinct, sufficiently large uncut chip thicknesses.