ABSTRACT
Metalworking is a major industry in the United States today. Metalworking operations include rolling, forging, stamping, drawing, forming, cutting, and grinding. Practically all metal objects, from structural steel beams to screws, have undergone at least one metalworking operation. This chapter reviews the uses of synthetic lubricants in various metalworking operations. Metalworking is the shaping of a metallic workpiece to conform to a desired set of geometric specifications. Metalworking can be divided into two basic categories, cutting and forming. In cutting operations, the blank is shaped by removing unwanted metal in the form of discrete chips. The extreme pressure lubricity additives used in metalworking operations are usually organic compounds, which contain phosphorus, chlorine, or sulfur. The development of high-speed cutting tools and the increased use of grinding began to show the limitations of oils as metalworking lubricants. Soluble oils tend to emulsify tramp gear lubricants or hydraulic fluids, which can adversely affect the performance of the metalworking lubricant.
