Experiments on the cutting process in ice

Cutting tests were carried out on natural lake ice using parallel motion, orthogonal cutting tools. Parameters that varied were cutter rake angle, from —5 to 30°; cutter velocity from 4.0 to 10.6 in./s; and depth of cut from 0 to 0.200 in. The average horizontal and vertical components of force and the average of the five highest peak horizontal forces were determined and the specific energies were calculated. The maximum average horizontal force was 67 lb and the maximum average vertical force was 33 lb. The 30° rake angle cutter had the lowest specific energy. Since some of the cuts were made from a free surface and some from within a groove made by earlier cuts, all of the data cannot be compared. The sequence of going from the shallowest to the deepest cuts or vice versa in the same groove has a significant effect on the cutting forces and on the contour of the fractured surface. The effect of cutter velocity was not clearly evident, at least within the range of velocities employed.