The effect of bronze particles on CO2 laser cutting of reinforced polytetrafluoroethylene

• Published in: International journal of advanced manufacturing technology 2018-06, Vol.96 (9-12), p.4029-4039
• Main Authors: Davari, M., Hashemzadeh, M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Bronzes; CAE) and Design; Carbon dioxide; Carbon dioxide lasers; Chemical properties; Computer-Aided Engineering (CAD; Cutting parameters; Cutting speed; Diameters; Dross; Engineering; Industrial and Production Engineering; Kerf; Laser beam cutting; Lasers; Mechanical Engineering; Media Management; Metal sheets; Optical microscopes; Organic chemistry; Original Article; Particulate composites; Polytetrafluoroethylene; Thickness
• ISSN: 0268-3768; 1433-3015
• DOI: 10.1007/s00170-018-1856-6

Nowadays, laser cutting of the composite sheets has been significantly developed in industries. This is believed that the physical and chemical properties of these materials affect the laser cutting process. Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE or Teflon) sheet reinforced by bronze particles is one of the composites that can be cut by laser. The purpose of the present study is to investigate the effect of the bronze particles on the laser cutting process of the Teflon-bronze sheets. As far as the effect of bronze particles on the laser cutting is concerned, a comparison between Teflon-bronze and non-reinforced Teflon in terms of CO 2 laser cutting has been presented in this study. First of all, the maximum cutting speed, in which the cut takes place, was obtained for various thicknesses of the Teflon-bronze and Teflon using a variety of powers. Then, regarding the commercial cutting speeds, the cuts were performed using 80% of the maximum speeds for each thickness and power. An optical microscope was used to measure the upper and lower kerf widths. The results show that the upper kerf width for both materials is in order of 0.5 mm for a beam diameter of 0.4 mm. However, the comparison shows that the presence of bronze particles in the reinforced Teflon causes an increase in the lower kerf width. Moreover, with using the same power for both materials, a decrease in the cutting speed can be observed for Teflon-bronze. In the range of applied laser cutting parameters, the cuts for both materials are qualitatively acceptable with no significant attached dross at the bottom of the kerf.