THE EFFECT OF CO2 LASER ENGRAVE PARAMETERS ON SURFACE ROUGHNESS ON POLYMETHYLMETHACRYLATE (PMMA)

Abstract

The investigation of the laser engraving process has been the focus of a significant amount of research in the field of laser machines. On the surface of the material, gaps and imperfections will appear as a natural result of the engraving process. It is widely held that the surface texture of a material has a significant impact on the material's mechanical qualities, as well as its functional performance and aesthetic appeal. As a result, the purpose of this study is to investigate the influence that different process parameters have on the PMMA (polymethylmethacrylate) surface during the engraving process. PMMA was used throughout this investigation in the engraving process, which was carried out by a machine equipped with a 40W CO2 laser tube. In order to explore the effect that laser engraving has on materials, a total of 25 separate experiments were carried out in line with the Taguchi design principles. It has been investigated how surface roughness (Ra), as well as total machining time, is affected by the laser power, scanning speed, scan gap, and nozzle distance that are considered to be input factors. According to the findings, the surface roughness of the sample had a value that varied from 0.810 to 5.159 micrometres when measured in terms of distance. The factor that has the greatest influence on the Ra value is the scanning speed, which is followed by the nozzle distance, laser power, and scan gap. On the other hand, the amount of time necessary for the machine to finish engraving on the sample can range anywhere from 58 to 135 seconds, with the scanning speed being the characteristic that has the most influence on this figure.