The aim of this study was to improve the machinability of wood-plastic composites by exploring the effects of different wood-plastic composites on machinability. In particular, the effects of milling with cemented carbide cutters were assessed by investigating cutting forces, cutting temperature, surface quality, chip formation, and tool wear. The cutting parameters determined to yield an optimal surface quality were rake angle 2°, cutting speed 9.0 m/s, feed per tooth 0.3 mm, and cutting depth 1.5 mm. In these optimized milling conditions, the wood-plastic composite with polypropylene exhibited the highest cutting forces, cutting temperature, and tool wear, followed by polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride wood-plastic composites. Two wear patterns were determined during wood-plastic composite machining, namely chipping and flaking. Due to the different material composition, semi-discontinuous ribbon chips and continuous ribbon chips were generated from the machining process of wood-plastic composites with polypropylene and polyethylene, respectively. The wood-plastic composite with polyvinyl chloride, on the other hand, formed needle-like chips. These results contribute to a theoretical and practical basis for improved wood-plastic composite machining in industrial settings.

Enhancing energy efficiency is the key to realizing green manufacturing. One major area of interest in this regard is the improvement of energy efficiency of machine tools during the production of building materials. This project focuses on energy efficiency during the spiral milling of wood plastic composites. To this end, a response surface method was adopted to develop a model and establish the relationship between energy efficiency and milling conditions. Analysis of variance based on individual factors as well as two-factor interactions was performed to gauge their effects on energy efficiency. It was found that milling depth was positively correlated to power efficiency, while spiral angle and feed per tooth displayed non-monotonic behavior. An attempt was made to predict milling conditions that will yield the greatest material removal rate and power efficiency. For wood plastic composites subjected to up-milling, it was determined that a feed per tooth of 0.1 mm, milling depth of 1.5 mm, and spiral angle of 70° were ideal. Considering the potential improvements in energy efficiency and surface quality that these process parameters will bring, it is strongly recommended for use in the industrial machining of wood plastic composites.

Walnut (Juglans regia L.) is widely used in wood furnishings, and machinability is a key factor for improving product quality and enterprise benefits. This work focused on the influence of the rake angle, depth of cut, and cutting speed on the cutting force and machined surface roughness during the straight-tooth milling of walnut. On the basis of the experimental findings, a mathematical model was created using a response surface methodology to determine the relationship between the cutting force and the cutting conditions, as well as the relationship between the surface roughness and the cutting conditions. Variance analysis was used to study the significant contributions of the interactions of various factors and two-level interactions to the cutting force and surface roughness. The optimized combination of milling conditions, resulting in lowest cutting force and surface roughness, was determined to be a rake angle of 5°, a depth of cut of 0.6 mm, and a cutting speed of 45 m/s.

This work focused on changes in surface roughness under different cutting conditions for improving the cutting quality of beech wood during milling. A response surface methodology and an adaptive network-based fuzzy inference system were adopted to model and establish the relationship between milling conditions and surface roughness. Moreover, the significant impact of each factor and two-factor interactions on surface roughness were explored by analysis of variance. The specific objective of this work was to find milling parameters for minimum surface roughness, and the optimal milling condition was determined to be a rake angle of 15°, a spindle speed of 3357 r/min and a depth of cut of 0.62 mm. These parameters are suggested to be used in actual machining of beech wood with respect of smoothness surface.

Cutting force and temperature are critical indicators for improving cutting performance and productivity. This study used an up-milling experiment to ascertain the effect of tool tooth number, cutting speed, and depth on the machinability of bamboo–plastic composite. We focused on the changes in the resultant force and cutting temperature under different milling conditions. A response surface methodology was used to build prediction models for the resultant force and temperature. A verification test was conducted to prove the model’s reliability. The empirical findings suggested that the number of tool teeth had the most significant impacts on both the resultant force and the cutting temperature, followed by the depth of cut and the cutting speed. Moreover, the resultant force and cutting temperature showed increasing trends with decreasing numbers of tool teeth and increasing cut depths. However, cutting speed had a negative relationship with the resultant force and a positive relationship with temperature. We also determined the optimal milling conditions with the lowest force and temperature: four tool teeth, 300 m/min cutting speed, and 0.5 mm depth. This parameter combination can be used in the industrial manufacture of bamboo–plastic composite to improve tool life and manufacturing productivity.