Carbon fiber laser cutting: promoting carbon fiber applications

Carbon fiber is also called carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP). This material is soft, lightweight but strong. It is widely used in industries such as aerospace, automobiles, wind power generation, and sports. When it comes to cutting carbon fiber, there are many ways to cut it, but each method has some disadvantages. Carbon fiber laser cutting is a relatively ideal cutting method and is very effective in carbon fiber cutting. Carbon fiber laser cutting has fast speed and good cutting accuracy, and has great potential in various industries. For carbon fiber processing companies, laser cutting can be a long-term solution for business development.

Introduction to Carbon Fiber

In theory, carbon fiber is woven from inorganic fibers and then bonded together by a polymer matrix material. This material contains more than 90% carbon and has high strength, high temperature resistance and corrosion resistance. Carbon fiber materials are an important component of lightweight materials and are gradually replacing traditional metal materials in many industries.

Carbon fiber is widely used in many manufacturing industries such as aerospace, wind power generation, and automobiles. It is an ideal material for manufacturing precision parts for aircraft, satellites, automobiles, and medical equipment. In addition, carbon fiber composites are also popular in occasions where weight and mechanical properties are required. Some examples are aviation components, boats, wind turbine blades, sporting goods, medical equipment, auto parts, etc. Carbon fiber is not a metal, but its performance is better than that of metal and the price is much lower. Many professionals predict that carbon fiber will play a more important role in the near future.

How to cut carbon fiber?

Before using carbon fiber material to make any product, we need to cut it into the right size or carve it according to different requirements. There are two main methods for processing carbon fiber: mechanical processing and special processing.

Traditional mechanical processing is to cut carbon fiber directly with a mechanical knife. However, this method has many problems during the processing, such as high tool cutting temperature, severe material wear, and high maintenance cost.

Special processing methods include laser cutting, ultrasonic vibration cutting, and electric spark cutting, which play an increasingly important role in various occasions. These processing methods are widely used in all walks of life. Among these special processing methods, carbon fiber laser cutting is the most widely used cutting method. The laser cutting machine cuts carbon fiber by generating a high-power laser beam and melting and evaporating the material. Laser cutting has the characteristics of non-contact cutting, fast cutting speed, high cutting accuracy and automated operation. Laser cut carbon fiber plates have smooth cutting edges. Carbon fiber laser cutting is a high-end carbon fiber cutting solution.

What is carbon fiber laser cutting?

Carbon fiber laser cutting uses a CO2 laser cutting machine to cut carbon fiber. The principle of CO2 laser cutting is: the laser generator generates a laser beam, and the laser beam is irradiated on the carbon fiber. Then part of the carbon fiber melts and vaporizes instantly, forming a narrow gap.

Compared with traditional mechanical cutting, laser cutting of carbon fiber has many obvious advantages:

First, the laser cutting machine adopts an intelligent cutting control system. And the control system can automatically optimize the layout and reduce material waste.

Secondly, laser cut carbon fiber plates have smooth cutting edges with almost no burrs.

Third, laser cutting has no wear on the cutting head and materials. Thereby greatly reducing the processing cost and improving the product quality.

In addition, laser cutting has high cutting accuracy and small error. And can meet the strict processing standards of precision parts.

Last but not least, laser cutting runs automatically. It is easy to learn and operate for beginners. And brings a good processing experience to users.

Application Prospects of Carbon Fiber Laser Cutting

Carbon fiber is playing an increasingly important role in many industries around the world. As an efficient carbon fiber cutting method, carbon fiber laser cutting has broad prospects in aerospace, automotive, sports, medical and other fields.

Carbon Fiber Laser Cutting in Aerospace Industry

Compared with steel or aluminum, carbon fiber is lighter and can reduce the weight of aircraft by 20% to 40%. It significantly reduces the fuel costs and CO2 emissions of aircraft. Laser cut carbon fiber is widely used to manufacture structural components for aircraft, rockets, and satellites. For example, the avionics panels of aircraft can be precisely laser cut by a CO2 laser cutting machine. Compared with mechanical cutting methods, the laser cutting head has no contact with the workpiece. There are no scratches and wear on the surface of the carbon fiber material. This can meet the high requirements of the aerospace industry. In addition, manufacturers of artificial satellites and rockets need laser cut carbon fiber to manufacture antennas, brackets, engine casings, nozzles and other components.

Carbon Fiber Laser Cutting in the Automotive Industry

In the automotive manufacturing industry, some manufacturers have used laser cutting of carbon fiber to manufacture structural parts, covering parts, interior parts, and body parts for automotive manufacturing. For example, the chassis panels of a car can be laser cut with high precision by a laser cutting machine. Laser cutting of carbon fiber automotive parts greatly reduces the weight of the car and saves fuel costs. With the increasing environmental protection requirements in today's world, lightweight cars with laser cut carbon fiber parts are becoming more and more popular. And laser cutting carbon fiber technology will be used more and more in automotive manufacturing. Laser cutting carbon fiber has great application potential in the manufacture of new energy vehicles.

Carbon fiber laser cutting has many advantages in manufacturing carbon fiber car bodies and other automotive parts. Laser cutting is computer-controlled and is very suitable for mass production of automotive parts. Laser-cut carbon fiber is strong and durable. And laser-cut carbon fiber sheets have smooth and tiny cutting edges. Laser-cut carbon fiber parts are easy to install and assemble on cars.

Carbon Fiber Laser Cutting in the Sports Industry

Laser cutting technology also has broad application prospects in the sports industry. The laser cutting method can produce many types of sports goods. And laser-cut carbon fiber sports goods are deeply loved by sports enthusiasts. Sports goods made of carbon fiber are wear-resistant and have a longer life. Laser-cut carbon fiber sports goods are lightweight and easy to use. Compared with wood and plastic, carbon fiber sports goods are more durable. There are many kinds of laser-cut carbon fiber sports goods in our daily life. Laser cutting can make carbon fiber rackets, carbon fiber skis, carbon fiber skateboards, carbon fiber bicycles, carbon fiber helmets, etc.

Compared with mechanical cutting, carbon fiber laser cutting has obvious advantages. Non-contact laser cutting can protect the carbon fiber surface from wear and tear and improve the qualification rate of sporting goods. In addition, laser cutting is automated, simple and controllable. It can be used for mass production of carbon fiber sporting goods processing.

Carbon Fiber Laser Cutting in the Medical Industry

High-end medical devices attach great importance to the quality, stability and precision of raw materials. Medical devices made of laser cut carbon fiber composites are lightweight, stable and strong. In addition, laser cut carbon fiber can resist the damage of X-rays to patients. Laser cut carbon fiber can be used for medical equipment structural parts, such as X-ray tables, booms, head frames, etc. Laser cutting has high processing accuracy and can meet the processing accuracy requirements of medical equipment parts. In addition, laser cutting has a fast cutting speed, which improves production efficiency for companies engaged in mass production of medical equipment.

Advantages of CO2 Laser Cutting Machine

Since carbon fiber is a non-metallic material, CO2 laser cutting machine is suitable for cutting and has good cutting effect. CO2 laser cutting machine has the following advantages in carbon fiber processing.

Non-contact cutting

The CO2 laser cutting machine uses a laser beam instead of a cutting knife. The laser head does not contact the material, so there is no wear.

Automatic processing

The CO2 laser cutting machine is controlled by software. It has the characteristics of accurate positioning, high processing precision and automatic typesetting.

High Precision

The CO2 laser cutting machine has high cutting precision, almost no burrs, and no need for subsequent processing. This greatly reduces the processing cost.

Strong Cutting Capability

CO2 laser cutting machines provide a high-density laser beam that can melt thick materials. The higher the laser power, the thicker the cutting depth. For example, a 100W CO2 laser cutting machine can cut 5-20mm non-metallic materials.

Wide Application

CO2 laser cutting machine can process a variety of non-metallic materials including carbon fiber, acrylic, paper, wood, leather, fabric, glass, crystal, etc., which can help many companies and individuals expand their business, save processing costs and labor costs, and get more profits.

Unlimited processing modes

The movement of the laser cutting head is controlled by a computer, so there is no limit to the pattern. The CO2 laser cutting machine can process simple and complex patterns on the workpiece.

Factors affecting the effect of carbon fiber laser cutting

Frankly speaking, the laser cutting machine is not a perfect machine. Some professionals have studied that laser cutting may cause a certain degree of thermal damage to carbon fiber. Therefore, users need to pay attention to the following points and adjust appropriate parameters to reduce the heat impact:

Laser focus position

During the laser cutting process, the laser beam will be focused on a small point to melt the cutting seam. The smaller the laser spot diameter, the smaller the heat affected zone.

Laser cutting speed

Generally speaking, the faster the laser cutting speed, the smaller the heat affected zone and the better the cutting quality. Therefore, it is necessary to adjust the appropriate laser cutting speed to reduce the heat impact and ensure the cutting quality.

Laser cutting power

When the laser cutting power increases, the carbon fiber cutting efficiency is faster and the cutting quality is better. But the laser cutting power cannot be too large. Too much power will increase the heat affected zone and cutting seam. Users need to adjust the appropriate laser power to obtain better cutting quality.

Gas Pressure

Gas pressure affects the quality of laser cutting to a certain extent. During laser cutting, a high-speed airflow quickly blows out the molten material to form a cutting seam. However, if the gas pressure is too high, the blowing ability will decrease. If the gas pressure is too low, it will cause uneven cutting seams. Therefore, the gas pressure must be moderate to obtain good cutting quality.

In summary, users need to pay attention to the above factors to reduce the thermal impact on carbon fiber materials. We recommend that you conduct multiple tests and adjust parameters such as laser power and cutting speed to find the most suitable settings.

Summary

Carbon fiber laser cutting has broad development prospects in the aerospace, automotive, sports, medical and other industries. There are also many laser-cut carbon fiber commodities, such as carbon fiber wallets, carbon fiber signs, carbon fiber clothes, etc., which are very popular in our daily life. Carbon fiber laser cutting makes carbon fiber easier to cut. The CO2 laser cutting machine can achieve efficient and precise cutting without wear. However, users need to adjust the parameters of the laser cutting machine to obtain the best cutting effect. DXTECH has rich experience in manufacturing high-end laser cutting machines. If you need to find a laser cutting machine to meet your carbon fiber processing needs, please feel free to contact us. We will do our best to provide you with the most suitable carbon fiber laser cutting machine.