Thermal losses in the process of gas-assisted laser cutting of metals

Gas assisted laser cutting (GALC) is accompanied by formation of heat affected zone (HAZ). A part of laser beam power is spent on this. Thermal losses cannot only decrease GALC efficiency, but cause thermal deformations of the treated material. The temperature measurement of samples heating under GALC were performed. The dependence of the samples temperature on cutting velocity was obtained under blowing by nitrogen and oxygen. In the first case dross was formed, the contribution of its crystallization enthalpy into plate heating was taken into account in estimations of GALC energy balance. As a result, the limiting physical value of heat losses was obtained, and its dependence on velocity was plotted. It has been revealed that a portion of thermal losses at low cutting velocities was essential. A qualitative physical model was suggested which gave a satisfactory description of the obtained experimental results. The GALC conditions for minimum thermal losses were defined.