Bystronic 3015: Parameters for Cutting Aluminum

Hello,

I am in charge of the daily use of our Bystronic 3015 and seeking help with cutting aluminum. Our stock for the laser consists of .080" (2.5mm) , .125" (3mm), and .250" (6mm) 5052 alloy - 4'x10' and 5'x10'. Please refer to the lower part of this post for machine specs.

Currently, we are receiving a hard, "sawblade" burr on all cut edges of .125" and .250". The .080" leaves a smaller burr is the same density. Both burrs are hard enough to shred our strongest 80 grit that we use for debur. The plume is usually tilted slightly away from the the feed direction with white and yellow "sparks". We don't typically get a plasma burn on the top of the material, but it does still happen at points where an axis change will happen on top of a grate. In the past, .250" has always produced a worse result, but we have been succesful in reducing the burr to the same as what we get on .125". The .080" tends to cut clean, only leaving a finger-rocking burr if any.

We use Nitrogen for all of our aluminum work and Oxygen for steel. .250" aluminum requires Oxygen as an assist gas.

Tape shot reveals that we have an oval shaped or "cat's eye" beam path. Main operator claims that this causes a lot of our trouble. I have not found enough information to back up that claim.

Our ultimate goal is to minimize impact on our Spray Prep department with post-laser prep. I'm personally trying to set a tolerance of less than 1mm for acceptable burr.

Here are our parameters:

.080
Head: 5"
Focal Point: 1mm
Nozzle Diameter: 1.5mm
Nozzle Type: HK15
Power: 4K, 70% piercing, 40% Cutting
Feed: 7500 mm/min
Gas Pressure: 3 bar piercing, 8 bar cutting

.125"
Head: 7.5"
Focal Point: 3.5"
Nozzle Diameter: 1.75"
Nozzle Type: Hk17
Power: 4k, 80% piercing, 75% cutting
Feed: 3150 mm/min
Gas Pressure: 2 bar piercing, 9 bar cutting

.250"
Head: 7.5"
Focal Point: 6.9"
Nozzle Diameter: 2.5mm
Nozzle Type: HK25
Power: 4k, 80% piercing, 90% cutting

Machine Specs:
Resonator: BTL 4000 (DOB 2001) - 4200w - 20 mm beam
Chiller: Koolant Kooler - 13HP Compressor - 5HP Pump
Filter: Torit Filter System (Barrel)
Air Supply: Shop Air on isolated line set - 120 gal - 175 max pressure - 1100 rpm - 15 hp motor

Any suggestions are welcome and I will try to respond as quickly as possible. I can provide pictures of the cut quality, if interested.

Thanks for your time.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by AceLaser

Hello,

I am in charge of the daily use of our Bystronic 3015 and seeking help with cutting aluminum. Our stock for the laser consists of .080" (2.5mm) , .125" (3mm), and .250" (6mm) 5052 alloy - 4'x10' and 5'x10'. Please refer to the lower part of this post for machine specs.

Currently, we are receiving a hard, "sawblade" burr on all cut edges of .125" and .250". The .080" leaves a smaller burr is the same density. Both burrs are hard enough to shred our strongest 80 grit that we use for debur. The plume is usually tilted slightly away from the the feed direction with white and yellow "sparks". We don't typically get a plasma burn on the top of the material, but it does still happen at points where an axis change will happen on top of a grate. In the past, .250" has always produced a worse result, but we have been succesful in reducing the burr to the same as what we get on .125". The .080" tends to cut clean, only leaving a finger-rocking burr if any.

We use Nitrogen for all of our aluminum work and Oxygen for steel. .250" aluminum requires Oxygen as an assist gas.

Tape shot reveals that we have an oval shaped or "cat's eye" beam path. Main operator claims that this causes a lot of our trouble. I have not found enough information to back up that claim.

Our ultimate goal is to minimize impact on our Spray Prep department with post-laser prep. I'm personally trying to set a tolerance of less than 1mm for acceptable burr.

Here are our parameters:

.080
Head: 5"
Focal Point: 1mm
Nozzle Diameter: 1.5mm
Nozzle Type: HK15
Power: 4K, 70% piercing, 40% Cutting
Feed: 7500 mm/min
Gas Pressure: 3 bar piercing, 8 bar cutting

.125"
Head: 7.5"
Focal Point: 3.5"
Nozzle Diameter: 1.75"
Nozzle Type: Hk17
Power: 4k, 80% piercing, 75% cutting
Feed: 3150 mm/min
Gas Pressure: 2 bar piercing, 9 bar cutting

.250"
Head: 7.5"
Focal Point: 6.9"
Nozzle Diameter: 2.5mm
Nozzle Type: HK25
Power: 4k, 80% piercing, 90% cutting

Machine Specs:
Resonator: BTL 4000 (DOB 2001) - 4200w - 20 mm beam
Chiller: Koolant Kooler - 13HP Compressor - 5HP Pump
Filter: Torit Filter System (Barrel)
Air Supply: Shop Air on isolated line set - 120 gal - 175 max pressure - 1100 rpm - 15 hp motor

Any suggestions are welcome and I will try to respond as quickly as possible. I can provide pictures of the cut quality, if interested.

Thanks for your time.

---

Seems to me that your Bypos Mirror may not be clean or you are out of alignment possibly. I would check into your gas flow and focal point too, I assume you are using nitrogen which you may need to increase pressure and put the focal higher in number (lower on the material).

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by HwilsonHuffmanWelding

Seems to me that your Bypos Mirror may not be clean or you are out of alignment possibly. I would check into your gas flow and focal point too, I assume you are using nitrogen which you may need to increase pressure and put the focal higher in number (lower on the material).

---

Hello there.

Since this post we have been able to achieve a nearly clean cut with our materials. Further investigation brought to light a broken seal on our MultiPak. This was allowing random drops in pressure which snowballed into several other issues. After we resolved these, we were able to adjust our parameters to become more consistent. It took an increase in power to drive our focal point further, which allowed us to reduce our burr. We also did bump our NO2 output by a bar or two.

We have the same machine as you. We need help with basic operation and startup. Would you be able to help us? We would compensate. Thank you

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Workingmetal1

We have the same machine as you. We need help with basic operation and startup. Would you be able to help us? We would compensate. Thank you

---

Hello, We can help you to retrofit your machine with fiber laser.