Investigation of normal and slant laser cutting using cw and pulsed CO2 laser for laminated object manufacturing techniques

Poonjolai Erasenthiran; William O'Neill; William M. Steen

doi:10.1117/12.281113

18 August 1997 Investigation of normal and slant laser cutting using cw and pulsed CO₂ laser for laminated object manufacturing techniques

Poonjolai Erasenthiran, William O'Neill, William M. Steen

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 3097, Lasers in Material Processing; (1997) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.281113
Event: Lasers and Optics in Manufacturing III, 1997, Munich, Germany

Abstract

The application of laser cutting in Laminated Object Manufacturing has been investigated and applied since the early eighties. Virtually all of the work done has concentrated on normal cutting using oxygen gas assist. In assembling models from normal-cut sheets additional work is required to remove steps which are time consuming and raise production costs. This work investigates the application of slant cutting in the construction of metal laminated models. This paper presents the results of an experimental investigation into normal and slant-cutting operations using both CW and pulsed CO₂ laser modes for 1 mm mild steel. The effects of different cutting gases and cutting gas pressures have been investigated including the use of oxygen, air and nitrogen. High pressure Laval nozzles were used for air and nitrogen gas assist cutting with stand-off up to 15 mm. For normal-cutting, the experiments revealed that pulsed laser cutting with oxygen gas assist provides optimum cutting with a wide range of speeds and gas pressures. It also results in a stable kerf width with 0.78 micrometers standard deviation which produces high dimensional accuracy. Thus laser cutting would be suitable for complex part profiling and layered manufacturing applications. The use of oxygen in slant cutting produces higher kerf widths and edge burning for samples angled from the horizontal above 20 degree(s). The quality of slant cutting was improved with air and nitrogen assist gas. Slant angles up to 50 degree(s) were cut using CO₂ laser with 12 bar air and 20 bar N₂ at the nozzle.

Citation Download Citation

Poonjolai Erasenthiran, William O'Neill, and William M. Steen "Investigation of normal and slant laser cutting using cw and pulsed CO₂ laser for laminated object manufacturing techniques", Proc. SPIE 3097, Lasers in Material Processing, (18 August 1997); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.281113

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