Effects of Laser Machining Aluminum Alloy in Different Media

Abstract

To study the effects of aluminum alloys processed by a laser in air and water and at different water velocities, corresponding experiments were conducted and the impacting effects of different water velocities on the surface of the workpiece were simulated, respectively. The results show that when laser processing aluminum alloy materials in air, there is more slag and a recondensation layer on both sides of the groove, the heat-affected zone is larger and the surface processing quality is poor. When laser processing aluminum alloy materials in water, the processing quality is improved. With the increase in water velocity, the impacting and cooling effect is enhanced, the groove depth and groove width show a trend of first increasing and then decreasing, the slag and recondensation layer on both sides of the groove are reduced, the heat-affected zone is reduced and the processing quality of the groove is improved. When the water velocity reaches 30 m/s, a better groove can be obtained. Laser processing aluminum alloy materials in water can obtain better processing quality than laser processing in air.

Research Progress of Water–Laser Compound Machining Technology

“…Here, Q is the water flow; ρ is the density of water; v is the water velocity. The kinetic energy Ewater of the water-workpiece is [8,9]:…”

Tensile Property of 7075 Aluminum Alloy with Strengthening Layer by Laser Remelting-Cladding Treatment

“…However, aluminum alloys have poor wear resistance and mechanical properties compared to traditional steel parts, which limits their wider use [7,8]. In order to improve the mechanical properties of aluminum alloy, surface modifications are developed, including thermal spraying [9], vapor deposition [10], surface carburizing [11] and nitriding [12], micro-arc oxidation [13] and laser technology [14,15], and so on. Among them, the laser cladding method has attracted much attention in recent years [16,17].…”