We鈥檙e investigating the effect of nanosecond pulsed laser beams on manufacturing processes such as welding, cutting, scoring and surface cleaning of single and multiple materials.
  • DatesOctober 2016 鈥� September 2018
  • SponsorCfIM in laser based production processes (EPSRC)
  • Funded拢228,000
  • PartnersUniversity of Manchester

The most recent, top of the range pulsed fibre lasers have short pulse duration, a high repetition rate and high peak intensity. This is achieved by a combination of high peak power and beam diameter in 碌m scale. Laser-material interaction will be investigated under different conditions of power density, interaction time and the total applied energy effective for welding and scoring. Joining of dissimilar and highly dissimilar alloys will be studied with particular focus on the effect of temporal application of the pulse energy. The programme will also look at the use of these laser in the non-contact cleaning of a surface before it is joined with another.

Impact and findings

The project is at an early stage with no results yet produced. The work plan has been developed, the literature review is underway and the material and experimental setup is being arranged.