Abrasive Waterjet Cutting

Abrasive Waterjet Cutting employs high pressure water with garnet in suspension as the cutting medium. Benefits include:
• 5-axis control
• No heat input and no recast
• Ideal for non-metallics and super alloys
• Thick cross sections (up to 2" in steel, 5" in aluminum)
• Fast and accurate
• Low distortion

Abrasive Waterjet Facts and Features

Abrasive Waterjet Benefits

Edge Quality:
• Typical finished 125-250 microns — Q1 through Q5
• Dependent upon materials and thickness
• Reduced need for secondary finishing
• No cutter-induced distortion
• Low cutting forces on workpiece
• Limited tooling requirements
• Little to no cutting burr
• Small kerf size (.020"-.045") reduces material scrap
Preserves Metallurgical Integrity:
• No heat affected zone
• Localizes structural changes
• No cutter-induced metal contamination
• Eliminates thermal distortion
Composite Cutting—Non-metallic
• Minimal delimitation of edge cut surfaces
• No fraying of edge cut surfaces
• No thermally-induced cracking
• No splintering
Smooth Cutting:
• No slag or cutting dross
Omni-Directional:
• Precise, multi-plane cutting of contours, shapes, and bevels of any angle

Abrasive Waterjet Limitations
• Cannot drill flat bottom "Non-through" holes with precision
• Cannot cut materials that degrade quickly with moisture
• Surface finish degrades at higher cut speeds which are frequently used for rough cutting

How an Abrasive Waterjet Works
High pressure water as a work tool has reached the machine tool industry with great benefits. The abrasive waterjet process is controlled with CNC programming and can hold tolerances normally associated with laser cutting. Five-axis controls allow for complex geometries, as well as flat sheet processing capabilities.

	Schematic

The abrasive waterjet operates at a maximum pressure of 55,000 psi (technology is allowing for the introduction of higher pressure capabilities) flowing through a ceramic orifice and mixing tube. The pressures required to operate are generated through high pressure intensifiers (pumps), and high pressure attenuators (smoothening the peaks and valleys of the pumps). The orifice finely focuses the water stream to a pin point, creating an intense water stream projection. The abrasive waterjet's mixing tube facilitates the introduction of a cutting media; typically the abrasive material is garnet. The combination of expulsion from the nozzle at speeds reaching 2.5 times the speed of sound, and the near homogenous mixture of abrasive and water creates an extremely powerful cutting device.

The abrasive waterjet process is not a thermal process and therefore does not introduce recast, re-melt, or heat related distortion. This attribute creates a tremendous value for subsequent operations with little finishing needed.