• Journal of the Korean Society of Manufacturing Process Engineers
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.1-7
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• 2016

In the present study, a plastic surface end-milling was implemented to investigate the effects of processing parameters on surface quality. The end milling can be considered an efficient method for rapid prototyping of thermoplastic bio-systems since it exhibits several beneficial functions including short fabrication time and high dimensional accuracy. In this regard, putative biocompatible thermoplastic materials, such as PMMA, PET, and PC, were chosen as workpiece materials. Among the relevant processing parameters influencing the surface quality of the final product, depth of cut, feed rate, and spindle speed were considered in the present study. The roughness of surfaces machined under various conditions was measured to elucidate the effect of each parameter. We found that the cut depth was the most significant factor. Heat generation during machining also had a remarkable effect. From these investigations, an appropriate combination of processing conditions specific to each type of use and end-product could be found. This optimization can be useful in end-milling of thermoplastic bio-systems.