Recently, the rapid cutting process of carbon steel has become a hot topic in the laser industry, and the efficiency improvement brought by the new process further proves that ultra-high power laser is not just a gimmick.At the same time, with the continuous improvement of laser power and processing technology, more and more heavy industry fields begin to try to use laser cutting instead of plasma cutting.To further explore the impact of laser power improvement and process improvement on the metal processing industry, OFweek Laser Network and Chuangxin Laser Application Center have tested the cutting effectiveness of various laser processes.

　　 Process upgrading1.0： From plasma to laser

　　 Prior to the popularization of laser application, traditional processes such as flame cutting, plasma cutting and high pressure water cutting were usually used for carbon steel plate, in which plasma cutting was the representative.Plasma cutting is a processing method that uses the heat of high-temperature plasma arc to melt the metal locally at the workpiece cut and remove the molten metal to form the cut by means of momentum of high-speed plasma arc.Plasma cutting with different working gases can cut almost all kinds of metals, and ultra-thick plates can be cut by adjusting the cutting current.

　　 For plasma cutting, the cutting current of plasma power supply, the most important cutting process parameter, directly determines the cutting thickness and speed: the greater the current, the higher the plasma arc energy, the stronger the cutting ability and the higher the cutting speed.However, the increase of cutting current will also increase the diameter of plasma arc, make the arc coarser and make the cutting seam wider.At the same time, excessive cutting current will increase the heat load of the nozzle and reduce the cutting quality after the nozzle is damaged.

　　 In the process of thin plate, plasma cutting has the advantages of fast speed and smooth end surface, but the thicker the material, the rougher the end surface of plasma cutting and the worse the verticality.In addition, due to the wide diameter of plasma arc, plasma cutting can not cut precise small holes.With the rise of laser, in order to cope with the impact of laser cutting, the plasma cutting industry has developed fine plasma cutting equipment, which produces extremely compressed arc by greatly reducing the nozzle hole size, greatly improving current density, achieving higher cutting accuracy and better finish, but still can not achieve the effect of laser cutting.

　　 Laser cutting is gradually gaining market recognition for its higher speed, higher precision and environmental protection.At the early stage when the laser power was low, laser cutting had advantages only in thin plate processing and could not process medium and thick plates.In recent years, laser power has been continuously increasing from 6kW to 8kW, 12kW, 15kW, 20kW and then to 30kW. Power has been continuously improved, process has been improved and bottleneck of laser cutting has been broken.

　   Process upgrading2.0： Process Iteration of Laser Cutting

　   Up to now, with the increase of laser power, carbon steel cutting has been hammered out into four common processes, namely grinding surface cutting process, bright surface cutting process, air/nitrogen cutting process and the latest oxygen fast cutting process.OFweek Laser Net and Chuangxin Laser Application Center used Chuangxin Laser 20kW to cut 20mm carbon steel material and tested the cutting effect of various laser processes.

　 Early abrasive surface cutting technology used large nozzle oxygen cutting, with lower power, slower cutting speed and larger workpiece taper.In the test, the output power of Chuangxin laser is 2.1kW, the cutting speed is 0.65m/min, and the one-sided taper of the sample is 0.5mm.

　　From plasma to laser: How does a 10,000-watt laser disrupt metal processing?

　　20mmCarbon steel grinding surface cutting

　　Smaller nozzles are used in the bright surface cutting process, which speeds up the cutting and also improves the surface finish and reduces the taper of the workpiece.In the test, the output power of Chuangxin laser is 20 kW, the cutting speed is 1.7 m/min, and the one-sided taper of the sample is 0.1 mm.At present, bright surface cutting is still required for workpieces with high quality requirements.

　　 From plasma to laser: How does a 10,000-watt laser disrupt metal processing?

　　20mmBright cut of carbon steel

　　 The highlight of the air/nitrogen cutting process is the dramatic increase in speed, which increases the cutting speed of carbon steel to the level of stainless steel cutting, while reducing the cost of air cutting, at the same time, only the cost of air compressor and air purification system is needed.However, the air cutting end surface is rough, and the bottom has slag which is difficult to remove. Additional grinding tools are required.In the test, the output power of Chuangxin laser is 20kW, the cutting speed is 3m/min, and the one-sided taper of the sample is 0.15mm.

　　From plasma to laser: How does a 10,000-watt laser disrupt metal processing?

　　Air cutting of 20mm carbon steel

　   The latest rapid oxygen cutting process has been applied in the market and is popular for its high speed (over 13% for air cutting and 100% for bright surface cutting) and no burr.Although this process does not cut the end face as well as the bright one, it is superior to the air/nitrogen process.In the test, the output power of Chuangxin laser is 20 kW, the cutting speed is 3.4 m/min, and the single-sided taper of the sample is 0.15 mm.

　 From plasma to laser: How does a 10,000-watt laser disrupt metal processing?

　　 Rapid cutting of 20mm carbon steel

　　 In addition to the above cutting tests, Chuangxin Laser Engineer also cut 30mm carbon steel with the latest technology.The test shows that the cutting speed of 30mm carbon steel can reach 2m/min and the conicity of one side is 0.2mm by using oxygen fast cutting process.

　　 From plasma to laser: How does a 10,000-watt laser disrupt metal processing?

　　 Rapid Cutting of 30mm Carbon Steel

　　 Technology Integration: Optimized Process Flow with One Million Watt, One Machine and Multiple Use

　 Early low-power laser cutting was mostly used for blanking processing. With the continuous improvement of laser power and new technology, the technology integration space of equipment manufacturers was further released. Laser cutting in the 10,000-watt era has begun to develop towards multi-purpose.For example, when machining the gear shown below, the 20kW laser cutter can replace the 300A plasma cutter, deburring machine and milling machine with the advantages of one-off sharp angle cutting and smooth end surface, to meet the high-precision requirements of aerospace, electric power equipment, petroleum equipment, automobile manufacturing and other industries.The machining time is reduced from 27 min5s to 58 s (12kW laser cutting machine is 1 min30s).

　　 In addition, the system integrator has added groove cutting capabilities to the 10,000-watt laser, enabling one machine to replace several machines such as plasma cutting, drilling, milling and deburring.At present, more and more laser companies have introduced high power groove laser cutting machines to the market.

The multi-purpose effect of the groove cutter was demonstrated at the Shanghai Industrial Expo in September.A 2m diameter, 18mm thick carbon steel disc with 560 round holes of various sizes, including flat cutting, 45 degree V-type and Y-type groove cutting processes.If the production is carried out by traditional technology, it needs several processes, such as drilling small holes, milling large holes, deburring, chamfering, etc. After many times of transfer and re-positioning, it takes 4 people 2 days to complete.The laser 15kW laser cutting machine with groove can complete all the working procedures with only one worker on one machine tool. The whole process takes 3.5 hours, which greatly improves the efficiency and saves time, space and manpower.

　　 Expo Exhibition Slots Cut 2m Discs

　　 Are the watt lasers in demand or will they continue to increase?

　 Through process testing and market application jointly with Chuangxin Laser, we can see that power improvement promotes process upgrading: on the one hand, it can improve the ability, efficiency and quality of cutting materials, on the other hand, it can also replace traditional processes and equipment, liberate manpower and save time.

The application and promotion of Wanwatt laser bring more possibilities for metal processing, and therefore, it is sought after by the market.According to the situation of Shanghai Industrial Expo, the 10,000-watt laser has become a conventional weapon and all manufacturers have displayed the 10,000-watt product.From the perspective of market choice, the 10,000-watt laser has also evolved from being questioned to being shipped in excess of 1,000 quantities and towards higher power.

　　 Laser Manufacturer Wan Wa Qifa of Shanghai Industrial Expo

　　 At present, IPG and Chuangxin Laser are in the leading position on the installed capacity of 20kW end users, and Chuangxin Laser was the first to deliver 30kW products not long ago.Will the power of fiber laser continue to increase in the future?Some people believe that the current power is enough to meet the needs of the market, while matching can not keep up, the pursuit of higher power is a castle in the air.However, Zeng Jianfeng, head of market and brand of Chuangxin Laser, firmly believes that as a pioneer of domestic MW lasers, Chuangxin Laser constantly puts forward more stringent requirements to itself and continuously outputs industry standards and schemes.In the future, Chuangxin Laser will continue to widen the road of domestic ultra-high power industrial lasers. It will drill cutting solutions for each sub-industry in 10,000 watts or even higher power to promote the development of domestic pan-industrial fields and industry upgrading!!