Monthly Archives: April 2014

Plastics Additives Allow Inkless Marking

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By Matthew Gailey

Thanks to lasers, manufacturers can write characters and images on any plastic parts you can think of, no matter what shape or surface structure they have. Expiration dates on bottle closures, serial numbers on technical parts, or marking items with an ID number or even indestructible barcodes – it’s all possible with materials advances and lasers.

The NIR laser is gaining importance and preference when it comes to the marking and coding of plastics. Eco-friendliness, durability, indelibility and flexibility are just a few aspects that give priority to laser marking and coding over other marking techniques. In fact, laser marking is generally accepted to be the best way to permanently mark thermoplastics in some industries such as animal identification (cattle tags) and security straps. Continue reading →

High-Efficiency Laser Processing of CFRP

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By Rudolf Weber and Volkher Onuseit

The benefit of CFRP for lightweight construction in automotive and airplane industries is widely accepted. Impressive pictures of high-performance cars and airplanes with numerous high-tech looking carbon fiber parts are familiar to everybody.

However, industrial large-volume application of CFRP requires efficient and high-quality processing. And of course, the laser is a very promising tool. Its advantages and disadvantages have been discussed in numerous papers in the last few years. Continue reading →

LAM 2014 Highlights a Wealth of Success Stories from AM Industry Experts

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By Geoff Giordano

Record attendance and spirited discussion from beginning to end marked the most successful Laser Additive Manufacturing (LAM®) Workshop to date. LIA’s sixth-annual LAM spotlighted a multitude of promising developments in AM research, materials and processes, and previewed progress on the horizon.

Organized into two educational tracks, showcasing powder-bed processes March 12 and powder-fed technology March 13, LAM 2014 brimmed with case studies and highlights from around the world. More than 200 attendees traveled to Houston from more than a dozen countries, drawn not only by a wide-ranging slate of presentations but also the opportunity to talk directly with suppliers of AM solutions. Continue reading →

Laser Cleaning of Carbonaceous Deposits on Combustion Engine Components

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By Yingchun Guan, Chih-Hsing Liu, Gnian Cher Lim, Hong Yu Zheng and Ming Hui Hong

Carbonaceous deposits covering the surfaces of combustion engine components are known to cause abrasive wear, leading to increased oil consumption and reduce engine durability as well as performance. Remanufacturing is the process acting on end-of-life products to recover manufacturing standards and specifications. Dr. Yingchun Guan from Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology (SIMTech), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), and her co-workers have shown how laser technique may be used to remove stubborn carbonaceous deposits without degradation to substrate component.

Laser processing under normal atmospheric conditions may be considered as an environmentally friendly process where no chemicals were used. It has been demonstrated that micron to sub-micron sized surface particulates, corrosion spots as well as thin contamination layer may be cleanly removed without severe damage to the parent substrate. Typical applications include coating or paint removal, biomedical implants decontamination, artwork and cultural heritage conservation and restoration. Continue reading →