Surface interactions of SiO2-nanofluids with 100Cr6-steel during machining

Nanofluids consisting of nanoscale particles in a carrier medium are increasingly used as cutting fluids in minimum quantity lubrication (MQL) due to their enhanced cooling and lubricating properties. These improvements have already been demonstrated, but a fundamental understanding of the underlying mechanisms and particle-surface interactions is still lacking. Therefore, in this research nanofluids are used in tribological applications and the interactions of the particles with the workpiece surface are investigated. A tribological test rig is used and various SiO2-based nanofluids are applied under different machining conditions. Special attention is given to the deposition of the particles on the workpiece surface.