Cutting Titanium with Water Jet

Pegasus Northwest uses a Jet Edge waterjet machine to cut titanium billets for Boeing. Two cutting heads are used to double productivity! Visit Jet Edge Waterjet Systems at http://www.jetedge.com.

Category:

Howto & Style

Tags:

• waterjet
• water
• jet
• cutting

[GingleGangle1]

Is that a flame??

[nancylauseng]

No. When you cut very hard materials such as titanium, it can create some sparks.

[padix900]

how can they get so much pressure in the water?

[nancylauseng]

With a waterjet intensifier pump.

[avi8tor4fn]

This is abrasive waterjet cutting where typically a 80 grit garnet mineral is added to the water stream. Water without abrasive is used to cut soft materials life foam or rubber, or very thin metals. For all other cutting of thicker, or harder materials, an abrasive must be used. Titanium, heat treated metals, and other hard aerospace alloys are good candidates for waterjet cutting.

[avi8tor4fn]

That same machine can cut some materials with water only, no abrasive. You do not cut metals, or hard materials with water, however. You can cut foam, rubber, other soft materials and very thin metal foils with water. For harder materials you have to add an abrasive mineral, called garnet, to the high pressure water stream.

[moonroverer]

@nancylauseng What does the back side of the cut look like? Any material roll like with plasma?

[Ogur1981]

@TheDukeit It does. Depending on what material the tip is made from you have something like 25 to 40 hours per nozzle. The water beam is channeled through a synthetic saphire or diamond. Diamonds have a long running time. several 100 hours. Saphires around 80/ 100 hours.

[welder2985]

@Woodsyone raither use some like chainsaw blade itb works very good and it comes out clean and very shinning too its like 2o gage steel

[tmcunlimited]

can you see this system at any exhibitions in the uk ?

[TheDukeit]

how does the water not destroy the tip. i mean if it cuts threw anything then how does it not destroy the tip? just wondering

[spinjector]

Wow even though it's water cutting, it still sprays sparks? Is there abrasive in the water? Does the water liquid or does it instantly vaporize?

[Ogur1981]

@nancylauseng indeed. a hydraulically driven plunger pump will do the trick. Anywhere from 3000 to 6000 bar can be generated. And titanium does indeed produce very pretty sparkles. Almost as bright as a welding flame. I've only seen sparks occasionally on other materials though.

[Woodsyone]

Hmmh, point taken, there are alot of variations of steel aswell. Some soft and flexible some ahrd but brittle.

Thats how a proper sword is made, soft and flexible core to keep the brittle but hard edge from breaking.

Yeah ceramic, or a piece of antler or bone. Well that is another topic though.

[weldmaster80]

@Woodsyone depends on the steel some are hot hard (like H-1), and others are great to pound on and still reativly hard (like O-1, W-1) and some can be fine hot and fine if cooled slowly, but if coold to fast will be almost like glass (A-1 for example) Titanium resist deforming, its not really "hard" though, try forging some aluminum cold and you'll get the idea.

Ti sets off metal detectors so that plan wouldn't work, if that the idea I wouild go with some kind of composit or ceramic knife