Long-distance cutting of 10–30 mm thick stainless-steel with a 6-kW fiber laser for applications in nuclear decommissioning

Abstract

For nuclear decommissioning applications, a study was conducted to investigate the feasibility of using a laser for long-distance cutting in complex structures. Cutting tests were performed on stainless steel plates with thicknesses ranging from 10 mm to 30 mm at distances of 300 mm–700 mm from the laser head, using a laser power of 6 kW. Remarkably, the 10 mm and 20 mm thick stainless-steel plates were successfully cut at a distance of 700 mm from the head. Based on the trends observed in the results, it is anticipated that these thicknesses could also be cut at distances of approximately 1 m. Similarly, the 30 mm thick stainless-steel plate was effectively cut at a distance of 500 mm from the head. To evaluate the amount of secondary waste generated, the kerf width was measured. Due to the long-distance cutting, the average kerf width ranged from 6 mm to 16 mm. Despite the wider kerf width, long-distance cutting holds promise for efficiently handling hard-to-reach targets in nuclear decommissioning scenarios.