Abstract

Subtractive manufacturing, especially traditional material removal processes, is considered one of the heavily power consumption operations. Integrating sustainability principles into the process engineering and technology in response to environmental challenges is highly demanded and the key to improve the manufacturing for energy consumption optimization. A wide array of research directions to address manufacturing sustainability; from environmentally friendly designs the operational conditions to optimizing the outcomes. This research emphasizes the need to integrate sustainability in manufacturing technology aspects. The approach of this research work focuses on experimentally test the impact of main operational conditions on power consumption in turning manufacturing processes. Four critical operational factors—rotational speed, feed rate, tool angle, and lubrication—are examined for their influence on process power consumption. The work used a lathe machine and a wireless three-phase clamp meter placed into the machine’s motor to measure the voltage output along with tools and steel workpiece samples. Full factorial design of experimentation is applied to test and analyze the relationships between the factors and response function of power consumption. The results reveal significant effects for the main factors and the interactions as follows: rotational speed, and feed rate, lubrication, and rake tool angle. Increasing the rotational speed and applying oil to lubricate the cut zone during the process decrease operational power consumption supporting the hypothesis for the lubrication. Surprisingly, increasing the rotational speed decreases operational power consumption and increasing the rake tool angle increases the operational power consumption - not as expected. Interaction effects emphasize the additive and subtractive influences of the factors on operational power consumption. While the full factorial design of experimentation application allows for comprehensive factor effects analysis, it acknowledges limitations in the specific selected levels for machine rotational speed, tool feed rate, and the tool cutting angles. This research provides valuable insights into the impact of various operational conditions on electrical power consumption in material removal manufacturing processes. Main and interaction effects contribute to the knowledge in sustainability manufacturing and undergraduate independent research. The study paves the way for further investigations on optimal experimental conditions and effective teaching and mentoring strategies in the field of sustainable manufacturing engineering and technology.