Extrusion Technology Trade Show

The Metalworking fluid industry is facing many challenges such as machining new metal grades including light weight and high stress aluminum materials, the need for improved productivity while achieving excellent surface finish, superior emulsion stability with extremely low foam in a wide range of water hardness and quality, and the maintenance of fluid biostability and longevity. However, metalworking fluid formulators still widely use conventional formulation procedures, traditional knowledge and outdated equipment for new product development which limits their ability to develop innovative, high performing fluids efficiently. Houghton International Inc. has been pursuing innovative ways to develop novel technologies and new products to meet these new challenges. In this presentation we will discuss a systematic approach to develop water-based metal removal fluids which includes utilizing advanced instruments to evaluate product and additive lubricity as well as emulsion stability. We will also demonstrate more sophisticated and systematic formulation methods for new product development such as design of experiments (DoE) and statistical analysis tools such as ANOVA to optimize lubricity and emulsion stability. Finally, we will share some examples of good performance of our recently developed water based metal removal fluids from some successful field applications particularly in aluminum machining operations.