Effects of operating parameters on surface quality for laser cutting of mild steel
- Rensselaer Polytechnic Inst., Troy, NY (United States). Dept. of Mechanical Engineering
Over the last 20 years, laser cutting and drilling, welding, surface heat treatment, cladding, scribing, balancing, and other laser systems have gradually made their way into the industrial workplace. However, there remain significant uncertainties in the understanding of the important physics of laser-material interaction and in material removal processes. Most research focuses on a one- or two-controlling-parameter investigation of cut quality. Furthermore, the implied definition of quality most often involves kerf width and HAZ, not surface roughness. The present work constitutes a quantitative experimental study to determine the effects of cutting speed, assist gas pressure, and thickness on the surface roughness of laser-cut mild steel. The effects of focal plane location and laser power level were also studied through a series of factorial design experiments. This systematic approach, combined with a constraint that a minimally acceptable cut must yield a surface roughness smaller than that produced by a band saw, allowed a large number of operating parameters to be investigated with a moderate number of individual experiments. A unique aspect of the study was the use of wedge-shaped test pieces which were 2.5 cm wide with a thickness varying from 0.05 cm to 0.65 cm over a 15 cm length. In this way, surface quality at a given cutting speed could be determined for a range of thicknesses using a single cut.
- OSTI ID:
- 5989947
- Journal Information:
- Journal of Engineering for Industry; (United States), Vol. 115:3; ISSN 0022-0817
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
STEELS
LASER BEAM MACHINING
SURFACE PROPERTIES
CUTTING
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
OPERATION
PARAMETRIC ANALYSIS
ROUGHNESS
THICKNESS
ALLOYS
DATA
DIMENSIONS
INFORMATION
IRON ALLOYS
IRON BASE ALLOYS
MACHINING
NUMERICAL DATA
360101* - Metals & Alloys- Preparation & Fabrication
360104 - Metals & Alloys- Physical Properties