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Plasma and laser Plasma and laser cutting of metals- cutting of metals- An overviewAn overview

Tallinn November 21 2007

Bo WilliamssonRegional product managerAGA Gas AB/Region Europé North

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Plasma and laser cutting

1. The different cutting methods

2. Advantages/disadvantages-a comparision

3. Gases for cutting

4. Cutting market/machines

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Plate thickness (mm )

0,1 1,8

..

.

300

150

20

1 Laser

Conventionalplasma

Gas

”Fine plasma”

Water

Linear LaserHigh Speed

mm

”Precision”

Precision of different cutting methods

Source: Intercut AB

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5000

10

6

3

2

1

0,5

10000 20000 30000

30

40

100

300

15

20

400 500 1000100 200 300 … … ……Cutting speed mm / min

Plate thickness (mm)

Oxy fuel cutting CO2 Laser

Conventional plasma

Water jet cutting

”Fine plasma”

Cutting speed-different cutting methods

High Speed Laser

Source: Intercut AB

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Cutting speed

Source: Intercut AB

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Diffrent cutting methods – Plasma Cutting

Source: Intercut AB

Source: Intercut AB

Source: Intercut AB

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What is a plasma ?

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Solid

Liquid

Gas

Plasma

The four aggregations of materia

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Example setup for plasma cutting

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Plasma CuttingConventional Plasma

•Dry or under water•Capacity :50 A: 10 mm1000 A: 150 mm SS

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Molten metal

Cut kerf

Plasma arc

Electrode (cathode)

Shielding gasPlasma gas

Coolant

Power source

Cutting direction

Oxide layer

Work piece(Anode)

Plasma cutting with dual gas flow

Source: Intercut AB

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Constricted Arc Plasma- ”Hy Definition, HiFocus etc…”

• HiFocus ( Kjellberg )

Source: Intercut AB

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Different cutting methods – Plasma CuttingConstricted Arc Plasma- ”High Definition, HiFocus etc…”

•High Definition PlasmaTM (Hypertherm)•Precision Plasma•Fine Plasma•RazorTM Advantages

•Cut quality•Angle deviation < 3o compared to <5o for conv. Plasma•Narrow cut, 1-2 mm (1,5x nozzle diameter)•Cut quality in connection to corners•High precision-tolerances•Less deformation of thin plates (less heat input)

Consider•Limited power = limited thickness of material•Consumption of consumables (electrodes, nozzles)•Strict demands stability of the cutting machine

Source: Kjellberg

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UTBILDNINGSMATERIAL Copyright: Intercut Sverige

High definition plasma Cutting samples

3.4 mm Mild steel30-Amp O2/O2-N2

12.7 mm Mild steel100-Amp O2/O2-N2

6.4 mm Mild steel30-Amp O2/O2-N2.

0.9 mm Stainless steel30-Amp Air/Air

12.7 mm Stainless steel100-Amp H35-N2 /N2

3.2 mm Aluminum70-Amp Air/CH4.

- Tolerance +/- 0,3-0,5 mm- Smallest hole ? 1,0 – 1,5 x

plate thickness

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UTBILDNINGSMATERIAL Copyright: Intercut Sverige

High definition plasmaCutting sample

- Tolerance +/- 0,3-0,5 mm- Smallest hole ? 1,0 – 1,5 x

plate thickness

3.4 mm Kolstål30-Amp O2/O2-N2Ny 260 A finplasma

32 mm kolstål

App. 30 mm

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Gases for PAC with dual gas flow

Plasma gas Shielding gasO2 O2, AirN2 N2, Air, CH4 (stainless steel)Air Air, CH4

Ar/H2 N2

Industrial quality often enough.No strict demands on installation compared to laserAverage gas flow and pressure

Source: ESAB

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HyPerformance HPR 260

•Up to 260 A•Improved lifetime on consumables•From 1000 to 2000 holes•New designed torch

New!

Source: Intercut AB, Hypertherm

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Automatic gas control

Source: Intercut AB, Hypertherm

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Plasma cutting with dual gas flowAdvantages:• Higher density of the plasma• Less risk for double-arc• Shielding gas assists in blowing away molten metal• Higher cutting speed and cut quality possible• Improved cooling of the cutting head• Reduced spatter on the nozzle• Less top edge rounding• Improved piercing

Consider:• More complicated cutting torch, higher cost

Source: Kjellberg

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Laser Cutting – The Cutting Process

Heat affected zone

Work piece

Cut edgeMaterial ejection

Cutting front

Cutting gas

Laser beam

Focusing optics

Nozzle

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Laser CuttingAdvantages:• Smooth cut surface• Straight cut surfaces• High tolerance +/- 0,1 mm• Small holes possible• High capacity• Automated process• Most materials can be cut• Small HAZ

Disadvantages:• High investment from app. 300 T€• max: app. 25 mm in mild steel

Source: Intercut AB

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Laser Cutting – Samples

Thick material, 20 mmFiligree structure: printer head

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Rst 37-2 7.5" 10"

FANUC 4 kW FANUC 4 kW

     

     

10 mm 1800 mm/min 2000 mm/min

12 mm 1400 mm/min 1600 mm/min

15 mm 1100 mm/min 1300 mm/min

20 mm 775 mm/min 900 mm/min

     

Examples of cutting speed for a 4 kW laser

Source: Intercut AB

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Cutting processes

Laser cutting with oxygen

The material is heated up to ignition temperature at the top sheet surface and combusted with the oxygen cutting gas jet

Laser cutting with nitrogen

The material is melted by the laser beam and blown out of the kerf by the nitrogen cutting gas jet.

Cutting gas: nitrogen

Laserbeam

Cutting gas:oxygen

Laserbeam

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Laser Cutting - Characteristics

Narrow heat-affected zone

~ 0.1 mm

Sharpcorners

Small starting hole

Cuttingfront

Narrow kerf~ 0.2 mm

Fine striationsRa = 10µm

Little or nooxide layer

Perpendicularand parallel

cut sides

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Gases for Laser Cutting

Nitrogen: For cutting of Stainless Steel and Aluminium. High pressure and high flow. Typical: 20 bar, 60 m3/h. The thicker material, the higher pressure.

Also for high speed cutting of thin mild steel at lower pressure.

Oxygen: For cutting of mild steel. Low pressure and low flow. Typical: 1 bar, 1200 l/h

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Higher purity of the Oxygen increases the cutting speed

Material: 1 mm mild steel

Cutting gas: oxygen

Laser power 800 W

Oxygen pressure 3 bar

Nozzle orifice 1 mm

Nozzle stand-off distance 0.3 mm

Focal length of the lens 64 mm

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

99% 100%

Purity of the cutting oxygen

Cut

ting

spee

d [m

/min

]

99.5%

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Laser Cutting in Stainless Steel –Effect from Oxygen impurities in Nitrogen

Col

our o

f cut

sur

face

Cutting speed (m/min)

Oxygen impurity inthe cutting gas

500 ppm

250 ppm100 ppm

50 ppm

25 ppm

5 ppm

0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2

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Statement“It is not only the total purity of the Nitrogen that will affect the result. The types (and amounts) of impurities will determine your cut quality”

Example: Industrial grade Nitrogen gives a good result if the main impurity is Argon. Laser Cutting Nitrogen normally gives a better margin against oxidation because of lower oxygen content.. If the major part of the impurities is oxygen, the result in some case may be disastrous.

Preserve the gas quality from the source to the laser!

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Result from cutting with pure Nitrogen

Result from cutting with impure Nitrogen(500 ppm oxygen)

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Also the process gas system has to be tight…

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Economy – Cutting cost per meter for different methodsC

osts

[EU

R/m

]

Sheet thickness [mm]

Plasma cutting

Flame cutting(three torches)

Laser cu

tting

Flame cutting(one torch)

Material E 3603

2

1

00 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

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Cut width and Heat affected zone

Oxy fuel cutting (OFC)

Plasma arc cutting (PAC)

Laser cutting(LBC)

Material: S235JR previous ST 37/2, plate thickness 3.5 mm HAZ= Heat Affected Zone

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H2O H2O

Beam guiding system

Partial reflectorTotal

reflector

Control unit

Materials handling

Work piece

FocusingunitLaser

resonator

Beam shutter

CO2 laser gases

Beam protection

Process gas

Gas consumption – Laser Processing with a CO2 laser

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Resonator gases for CO2 lasers

Product Name Purity Moisture (ppm) Hydrocarbons (ppm)

Single gases supplied separately to the laser. The correct mixture is produced viaa gas mixer integrated in the laser. A common solution for Trumpf and Bystronic lasers.Available in 20 and 50 L cylinders.

Laser Helium 4.6 ≥ 99,996 % (4.6) ≤ 5 ppm ≤ 1 ppm

Laser Nitrogen 5.0 ≥ 99,999 % (5.0) ≤ 3 ppm ≤ 1 ppm

Laser Carbon Dioxide 4.5 ≥ 99,995 % (4.5) ≤ 5 ppm ≤ 1 ppm

General recommendation to avoid problems with contaminationand laser stability:

Moisture content ≤ 5 ppm Hydrocarbon content ≤ 1ppm

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Lasermix – Premixed gases

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Lasermix – Premixed gases

A number of laser gas mixtures tailor made for specific laser brands.

All mixtures fulfill the specific requirements on purity and mixing accuracy from different laser suppliers. New mixtures are added as new laser models are introduced on the market.

The mixtures are expressed as Lasermix xyz, where x indicates the number of components while yz is an order number.

Example: Lasermix 302 – A gas mixture consisting of 3 components, with the order number 02. In this case the gas mixture is designed for use with the new generation of lasers from Mazak.

All Lasermix gas mixtures are available in 20 L and 50 L cylinders as well as with or without analyze certificate.

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Lasermix – Premixed gases

Some examples:

1. Lasermix 302 – New Mazak lasers2. Lasermix 312 – Bystronic ByVention3. Lasermix 320 - Old Coherent lasers4. Lasermix 321 - Amada lasers/Fanuc5. Lasermix 324 - Mazak lasers (older)6. Lasermix 483 – New Amada(Mitsubishi)7. Lasermix 690 - Rofin Sinar slab lasers

Source: Amada

Source: Mazak

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Plasma or laser…or anything else?

Thick Stainless Steel, high tolerance WaterThin Stainless Steel, high tolerance LaserStainless Steel, average tolerance PlasmaMild Steel 10-300 mm, low tolerance Oxy-fuelMild Steel 10-60 mm, average tolerance Plasma under waterMild Steel 0,5-25 mm, high tolerance LaserVariation thin and thick Fine plasma/Oxy-fuelVarying tolerance >+/- 0,5 mm Fine plasma/Oxy-fuelMany holes Laser or waterLarge details, average tolerance PlasmaLarge series Laser or gas

TolerancesHigh 0,1 mmAverage 0,5 – 0,8 mmLow > 1,0 mm

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Comparision Fine plasma vs Laser

Investment from 150 k€ 250 k€Tolerances +/- 0,5 mm +/- 0,1 mmCutting speed (mm/min) 10 mm 2600 (130A) 1400 (2,5 kW)Automation (unmanned production) No Yes (optional)Small holes 1,5 x t < 1 x tPositioning speed (m/min) 35 >100Service cost Low HigherConsumables (consumption) High LowerMax piercing 25 mm (130A) 16 mm(2,5 kW)

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Plasma, fine plasma or laser ?

Depends on the application:

Geometry

Material

Plate thickness

Tolerances

Cut quality

Demands on productivity

Size of investment

Piercing?

In some cases the choice is obvious. In other cases every part of the production must be analyzed to make the right decision.

Source: Intercut AB

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Laser suppliers

                     

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Bystronic

•One of the major suppliers of cutting lasers•Focus on laser cutting.•2D (sheet metal cutting)•Standard cutting tables 1250x2500 up to 8000x3550 mm•Flying Optics•Laser output up to 6 kW•Not very active in application development (standard machines)

-Bysprint-Bystar-Byspeed -ByVention

Source: Bystronic

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Bystronic

Bysprint 3015

-3000x1500 mm

-Max cutting speed x/y 140 m/s

-Laser output 2,2 – 3 kW

Bystar (3015, 4020, 4025)

-Modular system for cutting of sheet metal, tubes and profiles

-Laser output 2,2 – 6 kW

Source: Bystronic

Source: Bystronic

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Bystronic

Byspeed (3015, 4020)

Up to 3G acceleration

-Laser output 4,4 –6 kW

Source: Bystronic

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BystronicByVention 3015

Compact, all included, suitable as first machine

Laser output 2,2 kW

Lasermix 312 premixed gas

Global price

Agreement AGA/Bystronic

Source: Bystronic

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Trumpf

•One of the largest actors on the market•Laser cutting, welding and other applications.•2D and 3D •Standard cutting tables 2500x1250 up to 6000x2000•Flying Optics/Combi machines•Laser output up to 15 kW •Also Nd:YAG lasers (Haas)

•Very active in applications development

TruLaser Serie 7000    TruLaser 7025 / 7040 Average/large format, 2 cutting heads,laser output: 3,2 kW, 3,6 kW

TruLaser Serie 5000    TruLaser 5030 classic / 5040 / 5060 Different plate formats, linear motors, laser output: 5 kW, 6 kW

TruLaser Serie 3000    TruLaser 3530 Different plate formats, Extra X axis,laser output: 3,2 kW, 4,0 kW    TruLaser 3030 / 3040 / 3060 Different plate formats, laser output : 2,0 kW – 4,0 kW

TruLaser Serie 2000    TruLaser 2525 Average plate format,laser output : 2,0 kW – 4,0 kW

   TruLaser 2025 / 2030 Average plate format, integrated automation, laser output : 2,0 kW

Source: Trunpf

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Mazak

                         

Hyper Gear!The first standardlaser machine with automatic control and exchange og cutting heads and nozzles.

                         

Mark IIConstant beam length, Cutting up to 25 mm.

                         

Space GearCombined laser cutting both 3D- and 2D.

           

              

STX-3DProcessing of 3-dimensional details.

                         

Fabri Gear 3005-axis processing of tubes and profiles up to 8 m length and Ø 270 mm.

                         

FMSStorage system for automatic, JIT production.

                         

CellAutomatic production of details with identical shape

Source: Mazak

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Amada

                                                     

                   

Quattro

LC alpha

FO NT

LC Thetha

Source: Amada

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Amada

EML 3510

Quattro

Source: Amada

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Finnpower

Laser Brilliance (combi)

LP6 (combi)

Source: Finnpower

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Finnpower

LPE (combi)

L6Source: Finnpower

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Laser beam

Laser beam forming

Partial reflector

Water coolingRF frequency

Water cooling

Mirror

Laser activemedium

Electrodes

Rofin Sinar slab laser

Source: Rofin Sinar

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Source: Prima Industrie

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LVD

Source: Intercut AB