Laser cleaning is a safer, non-abrasive alternative to sandblasting for various applications. This innovative technique effectively cleans surfaces, prepares them for coating or welding, removes rust, and strips paint, all while minimizing damage to the material, ensuring an environmentally-friendly and cost-effective solution for diverse industries.
Sandblasting, or abrasive blasting, is the material processing that results from the propulsion of an abrasive material under high pressure to a surface. The abrasive material is propelled by compressed air or by water.(1) It can serve different purposes; however, its most popular use is the removal of surface contaminants. Rust, different oxides, oil, grease, and paint are commonly removed by sandblasting.
Laser cleaning may serve a similar purpose than sandblasting: removing rust, different oxides, oil, grease and paint. However, it uses laser ablation to remove the contaminants with little to no impact on the underlying material.
Laser ablation vaporizes the contaminants through the emission of short pulses of high levels of energy to very small surfaces. The power that is transmitted increases the temperature of the contaminants to the point that they are vaporized.
It so happens that contaminants usually require less energy per unit surface to be vaporized than the surfaces they reside on. The minimum intensity required to affect a material is called the ablation threshold.
If the intensity of the laser is above the ablation threshold of the material, it will have an impact on the material. Otherwise, nothing happens to the material, except for a slight localized temperature increase. This is true even when you pass several times on a material at intensities below its ablation threshold.
As far as safety goes, Laserax specializes in automated industrial laser solutions that use Class 1 laser safety enclosures. These enclosures prevent exposure to harmful laser beams. They serve the same purpose as the shotblast cabinets shown in the images above. Since workers are not exposed to harmful laser beams, there is no need for personal protective equipment (PPE), special training and other user control measures.
Watch a laser cleaning compilation. You will see, in the following video, Laserax’s lasers removing rust on steel and cleaning heat stain on stainless steel weld. The video also illustrates the ability of our laser systems to manage complex surfaces (round, inclined and V-shaped). Click the image below to start the video demonstrating Laserax’s laser cleaning systems.
Laserax has developed laser cleaning machines that require very little effort on the part of users. Our automated laser cleaning solutions require no training and no PPE. These solutions are built using a modular approach. They are composed of a laser, options and enclosures. Such an approach reduces the price and risks usually associated with highly adapted laser systems. Get worry-free solutions designed and installed by Laserax’s team of laser technology experts.
On-site Laser Cleaning for Repair and Maintenance
Laserax also offers a handheld laser cleaning system. It provides unprecedented flexibility for different on-site laser cleaning operations. It is ideal for maintenance and repair purposes. Especially in areas that are access controlled.
Watch a video demonstration of Laserax’s handheld laser cleaning system. It shows our ergonomic laser cleaning system removing rust, oxidation, paint and other such contaminants.
For small batches of parts that can fit in a sandblasting cabinet, laser cleaning might be harder to justify financially. Nevertheless, for repetitive industrial parts of any size, the advantages of laser cleaning outweigh the initial capital expenditure.
Laserax’s ability to combine field-tested modules to provide automated solutions that are adapted to your needs at an attractive price makes it the laser cleaning system supplier of choice.
Get in touch with our laser technology experts for more information on our offering.
References:
1- Abrasive blasting. (2018, November 13). Retrieved November 28, 2018, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abrasive_blasting
2- "painel de Harvard Mk II" by Ricardo Reis used under license CC BY-SA 2.0
When bonding, coating, painting, printing or sealing, most manufacturers eventually experience adhesion failure, corrosion protection issues, or structural weaknesses. In this article, we will explain what surface treatment is and describe its benefits for various applications. We will also guide you in choosing among today’s 10 most common surface treatment methods.
Removing surface contaminants is an essential step that directly impacts the performance and durability of materials and components. Understanding surface contamination helps compare standard decontamination methods and how laser technology differentiates from traditional approaches.
Laser surface treatments can be used on almost all types of metals, including carbon steel, cast iron, aluminum, molybdenum, and magnesium. They can remove contaminants and coatings (laser cleaning), modify the surface roughness (laser texturing), harden surfaces (laser hardening), and add materials to surfaces to improve surface properties (laser cladding).
