[wisebuy 365]

Hi all friends. Here are some informations about expand lifespan of consumables, hope be helpful to you.

1. Clear away the oxidate in the air or on the oxygen jet
Any dirt on cutting torch or consumables would greatly impair the function of plasma system. It should be put on clean lint when changing the consumables. Connecting screw thread on cutting torch must be examined frequently. Detergent, with hydrogen peroxide should be used to wash the contact area of electrode and the nozzle.

2. Check airflow and cooling flow everyday
Hard water would cause metallic contamination to be attached to the nozzle ring, which would influence airflow activities, reduce the quality of cutting torch and shorten the lifespan of consumables.

3. Inject softened water into cutting torch
When applying air or oxygen plasma, oxidate would be deposited inside the nozzle. This oxidate would impact airflow and shorten lifespan of consumables. Using clean lint to wash the inner part of nozzle could eliminate the oxidate.

4. Keep cutting torch and consumables clean
After consumables were changed, or the machine was halted for a long time, air should be cleared away (lasting for 2-3mins) so that water and mist could be expelled from cutting torch.

5. Air should be cleared away when consumables were changed.
Cinder on protective cover of cutting torch should be cleared away frequently. Otherwise, the cinder would cause destructive heavy plasma arc.

6.Clearing away cinder on protective cover and spread on splash-proof chemical coating would be beneficial to reduce the accumulation of cinder on protective cover. But splash-proof chemical coating could not be used until protective cover was taken down from cutting torch.

7. Spread splash-proof chemical coating on protective cover.
Nozzle and electrode would be consumed fast when arching. Before arcing, cutting torch should be put in the available interval of metals.

8. Reduce unnecessary time of “arcing (or guide arc)”. If plasma arc could not touch object unless it was pulled and extended, then plasma arc would cause stretch and expansion before and after cutting process. It would cause damage to nozzle in an abnormal way. If we applied accurate technique of starting from the edge, and choosing proper signal time of “arc breaking ”, this problem could be resolved.

9. Plasma arc should be prevented from being pulled or expanded.
Cutting process should be started from edge, not to punch. Taking edge as the starting point of cutting could extend the lifespan of consumables. Starting plasma arc since the nozzle was aimed at workpiece, which was the correct method.

10. Cutting from the edge
Plasma system could be run only with dry and clean plasma air. Dirty air is usually produced in air compression system, which could shorten the applying time of consumables and cause damage improperly. The method to testify quality of air is to set cutting torch into testing status. Then, a mirror should be put below when consuming air inside cutting torch. It should be examined and corrected if steam and mist were on the mirror.

11. Keep plasma air dry and clean
Overloading of nozzle (over the regular workflow of nozzle)would cause damage to nozzle. It is proper to make current intensity 95% of the workflow of nozzle. For example, current intensity of 100A nozzle should be settled at 95A.

12. Nozzle should not be overloaded
Cutting machine should not punch at the steel plate, which is thicker than regular thickness. The thickness of the punch should be 1/2 of the regular thickness of cutting.

13. The thickness of punch should be within the requirement of machine system
As required in materials, we should take reasonable cutting distance, which stood for the distance between cutting nozzle and surface of workpiece. When punching, we should apply 2 times of the regular cutting distance or take the maximum height of the plasma arc.

[Aaron Bruce]

:violin: good information, But it is hard to do so.

[jimcolt]

Or you could go to this link to my consumable optimization webinar.....this is the Hypertherm version!

Link: Hypertherm

Jim Colt Hypertherm