Research on mechanism and process of paint removal with pulsed fiber laser

Abstract

Compared with the traditional cleaning technology, laser cleaning, as a new type of industrial technology, has the advantages of high cleaning rate, green pollution-free and low cost. So laser cleaning is widely used in the fields of paint removal. This paper analyzes that the mechanism of paint removal and heat transfer process in the paint layer and substrate, also determines the process parameters of affect the laser paint removal. The removal of paint from steel substrate with fiber laser of frequency adjustable 20 to 500kHz at 1064nm is reported, researching impact that laser energy density,scanning speed and line width on the paint removal effect. The results show that, the 100μm paint layer can be removed completely while keeping the substrate undamaged with the laser energy density of 10.19J/cm2 and speed of 4200mm/s and width of 0.02mm. In order to get better results, the cleaning efficiency can be improved by increasing the power, speed and spot size under the right energy density.