Experimental investigation, modeling and Optimization in laser machining of al 1200

Abstract

Laser cutting is used from all non-traditional machining due to high production rate. It is observed as quality cutting process for narrow and complex cuts with high geometrical accuracy for various materials. In automotive and aeronautics industries, there are huge applications of aluminium sheets due to its high strength to weight ratio. In this work, an attempt is made to identify the optimum parameters for precise cutting of commercial aluminum (Al) sheet of 12mm thickness. Input parameters selected are cutting speed, gas pressure and laser power for simultaneous improvement of kerf width and dross height. Machining is carried out using 6 kW fibre laser machine implementing experimental plan received from design expert software. Box Behnken Design (BBD) method of response surface methodology (RSM) with 17 trial runs is selected. Mathematical calculations are carried out using analysis of variance (ANOVA) software. Models created can be used for predicting output parameters and further optimization. Desirability based optimization is used to minimize responses simultaneously by optimizing input parameters. Cutting speed is found as most significant factor for both kerf width and dross height.