Water Jet Cutter Research Articles

Effects of stress relief annealing in NGO steels

The effect of stress relief annealing (SRA) has been investigated on two classes of non-grain oriented (NGO) steels and with different sheet thickness. Magnetic properties were measured on mechanically sheared and water jet cut Epstein strips before and after SRA treatment at 800 °C in a nitrogen gas atmosphere. Significant improvement in power loss was achieved for the steel with lower aluminium content after SRA but the effect was much smaller for steel with the higher aluminium level, especially for thinner sheets where the SRA treatment was actually deleterious. No change in steel chemistry after SRA was found that could explain these differences. Microstructural examination showed residual dislocation substructures due to shearing before SRA and recrystallisation along the sheared edges together with recovery of the dislocation structures afterwards.A completely new finding was the presence of dislocation loops after SRA in the steel with higher aluminium content. These were not present previously but were created during the heat treatment. The presence of these dislocation loops is proposed as the reason for the weak or adverse effect of SRA on power loss. Detailed electron microscopy revealed that there are two families of dislocation loops having either Burgers’ vectors of a 〈100〉 lying on {100} planes or a√3/2 〈111〉 on {111 planes}. A model is presented whereby oxidation which occurs at the sheet surfaces causes a concentration gradient within which the Al atoms diffuse. This process necessitates a balancing flux of vacancies diffusing into the interior. When the content of vacancies exceeds the equilibrium content they agglomerate and ‘precipitate’ out as vacancy dislocation loops.

A novel MXene coated liquid crystal display anode derived from a futile computer monitor for microbial fuel cell application

A Ti3C2Tx MXene nanosheet-coated liquid crystal display (LCD) anode is meticulously crafted through precision waterjet cutting, salvaging a discarded LCD monitor. This technique, preserving structural integrity and enhanced electrical conductivity, sets it apart from conventional methods. The resulting MXene-coated LCD anode is well-suited for microbial fuel cell (MFC) applications. Comparative assessments against costlier carbonaceous electrodes like graphite felt and carbon cloth, emphasize that the water-jet cut LCD anode with Ti3C2Tx MXene coating is 3.79 and 2.51 times more cost-effective, with an approximate total cost of $38/m2. Substituting Ti3C2Tx MXene-coated LCD for carbon cloth and graphite felt anodes reduces MFC unit fabrication costs by 19 and 10.45 %, respectively. Notably, the Ti3C2Tx MXene LCD anode-based MFC unit boasts a power density per unit cost of 0.008 W/m2/$, underscoring economic viability. This research highlights waterjet cutting's pivotal role in crafting Ti3C2Tx MXene LCD anodes, opening avenues for scalable, cost-effective electrode production in renewable energy applications.

Research on the Features of Synchronous Cutting of Granite by Abrasive Water Jet and Disc Cutter

Research on the Features of Synchronous Cutting of Granite by Abrasive Water Jet and Disc Cutter

Fatigue performance of laser cut carbon fiber-reinforced epoxy and polyamide 6 considering specimen width

Abstract Since the development of laser systems technology led to a significantly decreased energy input by pulsing, laser cutting became a noteworthy method for cutting fiber-reinforced polymers. Despite the occurrence of heat introduction and heat-affected zones (HAZ), there are advantages regarding processing speed and maneuverability. Within this work, the influence of two cutting parameters (low (A) and high heat introduction (B)) on the fatigue properties of carbon fiber–reinforced epoxy and polyamide 6 were investigated. At the same time, micro waterjet cut specimens were added as a reference. In doing so, laminates were cut to different specimen widths and orientations. Multiple amplitude tests were performed with strain and temperature measurements. The results show an influence of specimen width on fatigue lifetime for the epoxy system, but not in polyamide 6. The 45° specimens for both CFR-EP and CFR-PA6 showed a decreased lifetime when cut with parameters B. However, these findings do not apply to 0° specimens, since parameters A lead to a smaller lifetime for CFR-EP, and no influence was found for CFR-PA6. Furthermore, no clear HAZ could be identified for A. Since there is a decrease in lifetime for CFR-EP, the necessity of applying further methods for HAZ detection is described.

Research on the hard rock cutting characteristics of disc cutter under front-mounted water jet precutting kerf conditions

To reveal the rock-breaking mechanism of the disc cutter under the front-mounted water jet precutting kerf conditions and study the effect of water jet kerf depth (H) and cutter spacing (S) on rock-breaking performance. The rock-cutting test and numerical simulations by disc cutter under the water jet precutting kerf conditions are conducted. The effects of H and S on the rock-crushing state, rock-cutting force, and rock-breaking efficiency are investigated, and the failure mechanism of internal rock cracks is revealed and discussed. The results show that with the increase of H, the disc cutter's vertical force and rolling force can be reduced by 48.2% and 32.9%, respectively, at maximum, but fail to improve the internal crack expansion capacity of the rock. The optimal combination of S of 80 mm and H of 9 mm can promote the expansion of the main crack and improve the rock-cutting efficiency. Meanwhile, the numerical simulations result further show that the microcrack initiation and propagation can describe the rock damage process. The rock internal crack initiation stage is accompanied by tensile and shear cracks, while the crack propagation stage is dominated by tensile cracks. Microscopic observation of the scanning electron microscope (SEM) reveals that the fracture mechanism for the major crack is tensile type.

X-ray Based Robotic E-Waste Fractionation for Improved Material Recovery

Small handheld battery-powered devices contain complex material combinations. Current recycling methods achieve low recycling rates for these materials. For a more efficient recycling, fractionation of the devices according to the material composition before a mechanical shredding is helpful. However, this requires either manual disassembly or knowledge of the internal structure of the devices, which is not provided by the manufactures. Since manual disassembly is not economical, due to high labour costs, another methodology is needed. With the help of X-ray technology, the internal structure of the devices can be exposed and analysed without opening them manually. With the obtained data, a fractionation strategy can be generated to perform a robotised fractionation with a high pressure waterjet cutter, allowing higher recycling rates. Which is achieved by a reduction of the material complexity of each individual fraction, and the avoidance of inseparable material mixtures. Additionally complex fractions can be treated in specialised recycling facilities where processes are applied economically for a fraction of the device compared to the entire unit.

Designing, fabricating, and testing of portable electrospun nanofilter systems for domestic water purification

Membrane technology has been playing a vital role in water filtration and purification. Various technologies such as sand filtration, reverse osmosis, treatment with chemical disinfectants, and distillation have been used in the past for clean water sources. Membrane technology is a relatively easy method with many important features, including low operational temperature, low power consumption, and free of chemical additives. Membrane filtration can be further improved by using nanofibrous media in portable forms for drinking water supplies. Electrospun nanofibers possess high porosities, high surface area, good permeability and flexibility, unidirectional orientation, and well-connected pore structures, and therefore, an ideal candidate for portable water filtration purposes. Electrospinning is a novel method of fabricating nanofibers in various forms. In this study, nanofibrous membranes were fabricated using two polymers (polyacrylonitrile - PAN and polyethylene glycol -PEG), one solvent (dimethylformamide - DMF), and activated charcoal at different electrospinning conditions (DC voltages, pump speeds, and collector distances). Different water samples from the local pond, water jet cutter water, tap water, deionized (DI) water, and carbon black (CB) deionized water were used in this study. The water samples were tested for turbidity, total dissolved solids (TDS), electrical conductivity (EC), pH, and refractive index. The test results indicated that the proposed portable nanofilter system substantially improved the quality of the water sources for drinking and other household use. It is concluded that these nanofibrous membranes can easily purify contaminated water by eliminating impurities, such as organic and inorganic particles, viruses, bacteria, algae, and other pathogens.

Martian regolith—Ti6Al4V composites via additive manufacturing

AbstractIn order to investigate the in‐space in situ resource utilization, directed energy deposition (DED)‐based additive manufacturing (AM) has been utilized to process Martian regolith—Ti6Al4V (Ti64) composites. Here we investigated the processability of depositing 5, 10, and 100 wt% of Martian regolith premixed with Ti6Al4V using laser‐based DED, analyzing the printed structure via X‐ray diffraction, Vicker's microhardness, scanning electron microscopic imaging, and wear characteristics utilizing an abrasive water jet cutter to simulate abrasive environments on the Martian surface. The results indicate that the surface roughness and hardness of the composites increase with respect to the Martian regolith’ weight percentage due to in situ ceramic reinforcement. For instance, i5‐wt% addition of Martian regolith increased the Vicker's microhardness from 366 ± 6 HV0.2 for as‐printed Ti64 to 730 ± 27 HV0.2 while maintaining similar abrasive wear performance as Ti6Al4V. The results point toward laser‐based AM for fabricating Ti64—Martian regolith composites with comparable properties. The study also reveals promising results in limiting the mass burden for future space missions, resulting in cheaper and easier launches.

Damage analysis of a CFRP cross-ply laminate subjected to abrasive water jet cutting

The abrasive water jet (AWJ) cutting technique is one of the promising techniques used in machining of composite materials due to lack of thermal damage, lower tool wear and higher productivity. In this study, the AWJ cutting of a cross-ply CFRP laminate was investigated experimentally and numerically. The purpose is to understand the underlying physics of the AWJ cutting of a composite plate, which can be later used to control the process as well as optimizing its parameters. In the performed tests of the plate with a stacking sequence of [0°/90°/0°/90°] and having a total thickness value of 0.84 mm, where the pressure of particles and impact angle were varied, different failure characteristics such as fiber pull-out, fiber breakage, fiber debonding, matrix cracking and delamination were noticed. A three-dimensional FE model of the process was developed using ABAQUS finite element software to understand the underlying physics. In the model, the pure water jet particles following the linear Hugoniot form of the Mie-Grüneisen equation of state and highly rigid abrasive particles were modelled using smooth particle hydrodynamics. While the three dimensional Hashin damage model was used to simulate the intra ply damage, cohesive zone elements were used to predict the delamination. The damage characteristics in the composite plate was investigated for different process parameters. When the speed of the AWJ particles increased from 300 m/s to 600 m/s, the amount of delamination decreased from 6.44% to 5.69% at the top interface with no more delamination observed at the middle and bottom interfaces. The delamination performance of 0°/90°/0°/90° orientation was found to be better than those of 0°/90°/90°/0° and 0°/0°/90°/90° orientations. The impact angle of the particles affected the material removal rate in the process significantly. The failure behaviour of the laminate subjected to AWJ and pure water jet cuttings (PWJ) were also compared.

MIG and TIG Joining of AA1070 Aluminium Sheets with Different Surface Preparations.

In this work, AA1070 aluminium alloy sheets are joined using TIG and MIG welding after three different edge preparations. Shearing, water jet and plasma-cut processes were used to cut sheets, subsequently welded using ER5356 and ER4043 filler metals for TIG and MIG, respectively. Mechanical properties of the obtained sheets were assessed through tensile tests obtaining a relation between sheet preparation and welding tightness. Micro-hardness measures were performed to evaluate the effects of both welding and cutting processes on the micro-hardness of the alloy, highlighting that TIG welding gives rise to inhomogeneous micro-hardness behaviour. After tensile tests, surface fractures were observed employing scanning electron microscopy to highlight the relation between tensile properties and edge preparations. Fractures show severe oxidation in the water jet cut specimens, ductile fractures and gas porosities.

Prediction of Surface Roughness of an Abrasive Water Jet Cut Using an Artificial Neural Network.

The study’s primary purpose was to explore the abrasive water jet (AWJ) cut machinability of stainless steel X5CrNi18-10 (1.4301). The study analyzed the effects of such process parameters as the traverse speed (TS), the depth of cut (DC), and the abrasive mass flow rate (AR) on the surface roughness (Ra) concerning the thickness of the workpiece. Three different thicknesses were cut under different conditions; the Ra was measured at the top, in the middle, and the bottom of the cut. Experimental results were used in the developed feed-forward artificial neural network (ANN) to predict the Ra. The ANN’s model was validated using -fold cross-validation. A lowest test root mean squared error (RMSE) of was achieved. The results of the predicted Ra by the ANN model and the results of the experimental data were compared. Additionally, as TS and DC were recognized, analysis of variance at a % confidence level was used to determine the most significant factors. Consequently, the ANN input parameters were modified, resulting in improved prediction; results show that the proposed model could be a useful tool for optimizing AWJ cut process parameters for predicting Ra. Its main advantage is the reduced time needed for experimentation.

Characterization of Cellulosic Fibres from Coconut Peduncle Leaf Stalk Fibres (CPLSF)

In this examination the Mechanical Properties of Coconut Leaf Stalk Fibre Peduncle is found for the various lengths (3mm, 6mm, 9mm) are taken and treating with two different process. One set of fibre is washed with the distilled water and another set of fibre is treated with sodium hydroxide (NaOH) solution to increase the strength of the fibre. Here the NaOH mixer is about 5% are considered. After treatment the fibre are dried for 2 days and cut to the required sample size. All sample composite materials were made using the standard die (hand layup method) and samples were cut using high-pressure water jet cutter as per ASTM standard. The test was taken with ASTM D638, ASTM D790 and ASTM D256 standard Universal testing machine (UTM). The result exemplify that the 6 mm alkali-treated CPLSF (6 NTCPLSF) composite exhibited the maximum tensile strength of 26.14MPa, the flexural strength of 79.81MPa and impact strength (Izod) 9.7 kJ/m2.

Edge strength of core drilled and waterjet cut holes in architectural glass

In structural glass design, an often-applied connection is a bolted connection subjected to in-plane tensile loads. Traditionally, the hole in the glass pane is manufactured by core drilling and conical edge finishing. An alternative method is by waterjet cutting the holes, resulting in cylindrically shaped holes. This research compares the edge strength of core drilled and waterjet cut holes. It focuses on in-plane tensile tests and consists of an experimental part in combination with a numerical part. In the in-plane tensile tests, peak stresses occur perpendicular to the load direction. These stresses are found to be higher for waterjet cut holes (+ 13%) compared to core drilled holes. As a result, the characteristic ultimate load is lower for waterjet cut holes (− 16%). Furthermore, the influence of thermally toughening the glass is found to be more favourable for the characteristic ultimate load of specimens containing core drilled holes than it is for waterjet cut holes. Next to that, it was found that the ultimate load linearly increases with the panel thickness. Eccentric loading, caused by insufficient bushing material or rotation of the bolt, only slightly decreases the ultimate load, provided that no hard contact between bolt and glass occurs. In addition, coaxial double ring tests were performed in the hole area, showing that waterjet cut holes result in larger stresses near the hole edge than core drilled holes. Furthermore, waterjet cut holes are found not to be perfectly round, while drilled holes are. This un-roundness negatively influences the ultimate load and the stresses in the glass; the larger the extent of un-roundness, the higher the stresses and the lower the ultimate load. Also, the orientation of the un-round hole is of influence on the stresses and ultimate load for the tensile test. It is concluded that waterjet cut holes result in lower characteristic ultimate loads and higher stresses. Due to the different edge finishing, the ultimate load still is lower compared to core drilled holes, even if the waterjet cut holes are perfectly round.

Depth of Penetration and Surface Roughness Analysis of Al6061 cut by Abrasive Water Jet

In this study, model equations to predict average surface roughness value of abrasive water jet cut aluminium 6061 alloy are developed. Model equations are developed considering water jet pressure, abrasive flow rate and traverse speed of the jet. Model equations help in knowing average surface roughness value on the cutting and deformation wear regions. 27 abrasive water jet cutting experiments are conducted on trapezoidal shaped aluminium 6061 block. Depth of penetration values are found for all experimental cutting conditions. Average surface roughness values are found by non-contact surface roughness tester. Surface roughness testing is carried out along the length of depth of penetration. Low and high average surface roughness values are noticed on the cutting and deformation wear regions respectively. Smooth surface finish and rough surface finish with striations are observed on the cutting and deformation wear regions respectively.

Effect of material positioning on fatigue life of the friction stir processed dissimilar joints

The investigation on the fatigue behavior of the friction stir processed (FSPed) dissimilar joint is reported in this work. The main focus was to analyze the influence of material positioning on the fatigue life of the joint. The 1pass friction stir processing technique was applied on the friction stir welded AA8011/AA6082 and AA6082/AA8011 dissimilar joints (AA8011/AA6082 means AA8011 on the advancing side, AA6082/AA8011 means AA6082 on the advancing side). The friction stir processing was conducted under normal conditions (room temperature). The samples were prepared for different analyses using waterjet cutter technology. The tests conducted include tensile, microstructural analysis, microhardness, fatigue, and fracture surface morphology. The microstructural analysis revealed a correlation between material positioning and grain sizes. There was a notable decrease in grain size when AA6082 was positioned on the advancing side during processing. The tensile properties of the FSPed AA6082/AA8011 joint were found to be higher compared to the AA8011/AA6082 joint. The AA6082/AA8011 joint was found to be more ductile compared to the AA8011/AA6082 joint. The stir zone microhardness values for the AA8011/AA6082 and AA6082/AA8011 joints were found to be approximately 68HV and 73HV, respectively. The fatigue strength of AA6082/AA8011 was found to be higher compared to that of AA8011/AA6082.

Non-cuttable material created through local resonance and strain rate effects

We have created a new architected material, which is both highly deformable and ultra‐resistant to dynamic point loads. The bio-inspired metallic cellular structure (with an internal grid of large ceramic segments) is non-cuttable by an angle grinder and a power drill, and it has only 15% steel density. Our architecture derives its extreme hardness from the local resonance between the embedded ceramics in a flexible cellular matrix and the attacking tool, which produces high-frequency vibrations at the interface. The incomplete consolidation of the ceramic grains during the manufacturing also promoted fragmentation of the ceramic spheres into micron-size particulate matter, which provided an abrasive interface with increasing resistance at higher loading rates. The contrast between the ceramic segments and cellular material was also effective against a waterjet cutter because the convex geometry of the ceramic spheres widened the waterjet and reduced its velocity by two orders of magnitude. Shifting the design paradigm from static resistance to dynamic interactions between the material phases and the applied load could inspire novel, metamorphic materials with pre-programmed mechanisms across different length scales.

Predictive mechanics-based model for depth of cut (DOC) of waterjet in soft tissue for waterjet-assisted medical applications.

The use of waterjet technology is now prevalent in medical applications including surgery, soft tissue resection, bone cutting, waterjet steerable needles, and wound debridement. The depth of the cut (DOC) of a waterjet in soft tissue is an important parameter that should be predicted in these applications. For instance, for waterjet-assisted surgery, selective cutting of tissue layers is a must to avoid damage to deeper tissue layers. For our proposed fracture-directed waterjet steerable needles, predicting the cut depth of the waterjet in soft tissue is important to develop an accurate motion model, as well as control algorithms for this class of steerable needles. To date, most of the proposed models are only valid in the conditions of the experiments and if the soft tissue or the system properties change, the models will become invalid. The model proposed in this paper is formulated to allow for variation in parameters related to both the waterjet geometry and the tissue. In this paper, first the cut depths of waterjet in soft tissue simulants are measured experimentally, and the effect of tissue stiffness, waterjet velocity, and nozzle diameter are studied on DOC. Then, a model based on the properties of the tissue and the waterjet is proposed to predict the DOC of waterjet in soft tissue. In order to verify the model, soft tissue properties (constitutive response and fracture toughness) are measured using low strain rate compression tests, Split-Hopkinson-Pressure-Bar (SHPB) tests, and fracture toughness tests. The results show that the proposed model can predict the DOC of waterjet in soft tissue with acceptable accuracy if the tissue and waterjet properties are known. Graphical Abstract (Left) An overview of the problems of traditional steerable needles and the solutions provided by waterjet steerable needles. (A) Traditional tip-steerable needles and tip-bent needles suffer from poor curvature, especially in soft tissues. (B) Traditional steerable needles are unable to accomplish many bends because the cutting force only results from drastic tissue deformation. (C) The first step for realization of waterjet steerable needles is to understand and model the interaction between waterjet and soft tissues at the tip (predictive model for depth of cut). (D) Then, the equilibrium between shapes cut in the tissue and the straight elastic needle should be understood. (Right) Waterjet steerable needles in which the direction of the tissue fracture is contr olled by waterjet and then the flexible needle follows. The first step for waterjet steerable needle realization is to predict the depth of waterjet cut.

A novel polycaprolactone/carbon nanofiber composite as a conductive neural guidance channel: an in vitro and in vivo study

The current study aimed to investigate the potential of carbon nanofibers to promote peripheral nerve regeneration. The carbon nanofiber-imbedded scaffolds were produced from polycaprolactone and carbon nanofibers using thermally induced phase separation method. Electrospinning technique was utilized to fabricate polycaprolactone/collagen nanofibrous sheets. The incorporation of carbon nanofibers into polycaprolactone’s matrix significantly reduced its electrical resistance from 4.3 × 109 ± 0.34 × 109 Ω to 8.7 × 104 ± 1.2 × 104 Ω. Further in vitro studies showed that polycaprolactone/carbon nanofiber scaffolds had the porosity of 82.9 ± 3.7% and degradation rate of 1.84 ± 0.37% after 30 days and 3.58 ± 0.39% after 60 days. The fabricated scaffolds were favorable for PC-12 cells attachment and proliferation. Neural guidance channels were produced from the polycaprolactone/carbon nanofiber composites using water jet cutter machine then incorporated with PCL/collagen nanofibrous sheets. The composites were implanted into severed rat sciatic nerve. After 12 weeks, the results of histopathological examinations and functional analysis proved that conductive conduit out-performed the non-conductive type and induced no toxicity or immunogenic reactions, suggesting its potential applicability to treat peripheral nerve damage in the clinic.

Effect of Substrate Surface Roughness on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Cold-Sprayed Ti6Al4V Coatings on Ti6Al4V Substrates

Surface condition, especially surface roughness of substrates, critically influences the adhesion of cold-sprayed titanium alloy coatings. To study this, Ti6Al4V (Ti64) coatings were deposited on Ti64 substrates with increasing surface roughness (Ra) from 0.05 µm (polished surface) to 5.4 µm (water-jet cut surface). It was found that the substrate surface roughness did not significantly affect the porosity, hardness and coating surface roughness because these properties were dependent on the deposition parameters such as propellant gas pressure and temperature and nozzle traverse speed. The adhesion test results showed that smoother substrate surfaces improved the coating bond strength of the cold-sprayed Ti64 coatings from about 7.1 MPa (Ra: 5.4 µm, interface failure) to 68.7 MPa (Ra: 0.05 µm, glue failure). The fracture characteristics of the debonded coating/substrate interfaces revealed that there were more adiabatic shear-induced craters observed on the smoother substrate surfaces. Finite element modeling also showed that the substrate surface features (i.e., peaks and valleys) possibly prevented the intimate contact between the particles and substrate and thus induced the non-uniform distributions of temperature, stress and strain at the particle/substrate interface.

Notched strengths of asymmetric woven hybrid laminates

In this article, the notched strengths of asymmetric woven hybrid laminates were studied by using both experiment and the finite element-based point stress criterion (FEMPSC). It was experimentally shown that the notched strength decreases with the increase of hole radius for all the laminates machined by water jet cut, drilling, and milling. Particularly, it is noted that the notched strength of specimens of the same hole size made by water jet cut is obviously higher than those made by both drilling and milling, due to stress redistribution. The results also indicate that the notched strengths predicted by FEMPSC agree well with the experimental data, with only a 4% margin of error.