Laser Cutting and Its Implementation on Different Metals

When it comes to cutting metals, laser cutting is the most commonly used method. There are more than 100 different types of metals used by different industries as a part of their manufacturing process. In order to implement metal cutting efficiently and safely by cutting down the costs, lasers were introduced in 1960s.

Let’s understand the nuances of laser cutting and know about its application on different metals through examples.

Laser cutting on steel

Steel is the most regularly used metal in the industries all over the world. It is considered to be a very crucial material used in the manufacturing process of automotive and aerospace industry parts. These include the outer bodies of aircrafts and cars. As fiber lasers work on high power and frequency, they can cut through thick and thin steel materials quite easily. Cutting of mild steel – having a thickness of around 0.5mm to 1.9mm can be done at the speed of up to 10m/minute.

Laser cutting on reflective metals

Metals like gold are considered to be reflective metals. Some laser cutters have problems with cutting reflective metals due to the flashback damage (laser beam is reflected back to the laser’s beam delivery optic). Shearing of these metals ask for good quality laser cutting machines having advanced laser cutting spare parts. Such a laser machine would be able to cut through reflective metals easily and efficiently. By using it, you can also create different kind of intricate shapes.

Laser cutting on copper

Apart from Gold and Silver, Copper also has excellent conductive abilities for electrical currents. If a copper metal sheet is thinner than 0.5mm, it can be cut by a fiber laser cutting machine at one go. But with thickness more than that, multiple trials might be required. However, the result will be smooth and successful. To get more idea about how copper cutting is implemented, you can watch different videos available on the website of your local metal cutting fabricator.

Laser cutting on Aluminum Foil

Aluminum foil is used in an array of industries but is most commonly used by the packaging industry. For quickly cutting a thin aluminum foil, the fastest speed used is 100kHz. It is important that Aluminum is cut at one pulse as repeated pulses can cause damage to the material. The maximum cutting speed at a particular frequency is based on the combination of pulse repetition frequency and spot diameter. If these are set right, there isn’t any pulse to pulse spot separation.

Laser cutting on silver materials

Silver is a material used for both industrial and commercial purposes. It is commonly found in electronic items, energy devices and jewellery. Silver is most sought after due to its aesthetic and functional quality like electrical conduction. A single mode laser is used for cutting silver as it is flexible, provides high speed and offers quality cutting at low prices and zero maintenance.

Laser cutting is a widely used method in metal fabrication and can be implemented on a range of metals. You can know more about laser cutting and using the right laser parts and consumables through from the professionals working at a metal fabrication company near you.