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What is a Waterjet Cutter: Everything You Need To Know

Waterjet is cutting steel plates underwater
Water jet cutting machine at work

Waterjet cutters are commonly used in large industries to shape, carve, or cut a variety of materials. It is less expensive to operate and more versatile compared to other industrial cutting tools such as laser and plasma.

This article aims to explain waterjet cutters and their many functions in detail, as well as delve into why they are the preferred industrial cutter for many industries. So, let’s get started!

What is a Water Jet Cutter?

Waterjet cutting is an industrial cutting process used to cut all materials. A waterjet cutting machine pumps water from a thin nozzle orifice with tremendous pressure.

The basic principle behind waterjet cutting is quite simple. A machine compresses water to an exceedingly fine point and uses that fine water jet to cut anything in front of it. The water jet usually comes out in a stream at least as thin as 1 millimeter or thinner.

History of Water Jet Cutting Machine

The history of waterjet cutting starts with the Roman Empire. The Romans used a mining technique called Hushing. Housing was a process of slowly eroding rocks with water streams.

From the early 1800s, and throughout the gold rush in America, Hydraulic mining played a pivotal role. While far inferior to the modern-day waterjet cutter, these machines could produce around 500 PSI. A proper waterjet cutter first appeared in 1933.

After the Second World War, Carl Johnson developed a sufficiently powerful waterjet cutter to cut plastic in 1956. Only two years later, in 1958, the first high-pressure water jet cutter was born.

Components of Water Jet Cutter

Waterjet cutters have many modular components. The main parts are the high-pressure pump, control system, cutting head, catch tank/cutting table, automation device, abrasive system, and high-pressure pipe.

Bomba de alta pressão: The high-pressure pump is one of the core components of a waterjet cutting machine. The cutting process starts when water enters this pump’s pressure chamber.

Control System: The control system has the user interface, velocity data, and other things. The handler needs to use it to initiate the machine.

Cabeça de corte: The cutting head is the component around the nozzle. The pressurized water flows out of its orifice. Manufacturers make high-end cutting heads with precious jewels, often called “jewel heads.”

Waterjet Machine Table/Catch Tank: The Waterjet machine table provides the cutting surface. You will need a catch tank for abrasive water jets to catch the abrasive material.

Motion Equipment: The handler can use the moving equipment to move the nozzle around for precise cuts. XY is the most common motion equipment, but some allow more angles and movement options.

Abrasive Delivery System: The abrasive delivery system connects to the cutting head and mixes the abrasive material into the water flow as it comes out of the cutting head.

High-Pressure Piping: The high-pressure piping carries the pressurized water to the cutting head. It is a pipe with a very smooth inner surface.

How Does a Water Jet Cutter Work?

Water Jets are quite simple. First, they intake water from a water source and pressurize it before shooting it out. Here’s how they work:

Step 1: Pressurize The Water

Rotary pumps use a piston system. An electric motor moves a piston that builds up pressure inside the crankcase. That pressure is then transmitted to the high-pressure plunger.

Linear pumps use hydraulic oil to generate pressure with an uneven plunger. It presses on a large piston, roughly twenty times the size of the high-pressure plunger.

Step 2: From Pump To Nozzle

After the water leaves the high-pressure water pump, it travels through the pipe until it reaches the cutting head. The cutting head then disperses the water through its thin nozzle.

Step 3: Initial Piercing

When the water first hits the material, you will need to give it some time before it can pierce through. This process is called the initial piercing. When a waterjet cutter cuts through something, it shaves away a bit of material; we call that “Kerf.”

Benefits Of Using Waterjet Cutter

A range of benefits of using waterjet cutters is mentioned below-

No material restrictions: Waterjet cutters can cut through any material with ease. You can use pure water cutters for softer material without any other enhancers. But for harder metals, you will need to use some abrasives.

Efficient productivity: Waterjet cutters are efficient in terms of performance, material waste, and cost. It operates with a very energy-efficient system and uses natural resources as the primary cutting tool.

Excellent edge quality: Waterjet cutters leave very little distortion on the material they cut. A waterjet cutter cuts by grinding and eroding the base material. So, it leaves very little impact on the surface surrounding the piercing point.

Highly accurate cutting: Waterjet cutters produce a lot of penetration power and just as much precision. That is why it is highly precise and strong enough to cut through most things.

No thickness restrictions: Waterjet cutters do not have any notable thickness restrictions while cutting any substance. The penetration power of a high-pressure water jet can tunnel through anything. But the Kerf may taper in the middle if your material is too thick.

No heat affected zone: O waterjet cutter does not produce heat because it does not cut using friction or any strong chemical.

No hazardous waste: Water Jet cutter does not contain any harmful chemicals. From start to finish, it only uses fuel and filtered water. The abrasive materials are also natural things like garnet and sand.

Types Of Water Jet Cutting Machine

Pure and abrasive are the two types of waterjet cutters.

1. Pure Waterjet Cutter

Pure water jet cutters use purified water and nothing else. A pure water jet cutter is usually the best option if you want to operate the machine by hand.

However, a pure water jet cutter does not have as much penetration or cutting power as an abrasive one. Industries generally use a pure water jet to cut relatively softer material.

2. Abrasive Waterjet Cutter

An abrasive waterjet cutter uses abrasive-infused water to whittle down harder materials like titanium and steel. The abrasives are tiny particles of hard substances that can erode things faster.

Some popular abrasive materials are garnet, silicon carbide, and sand. Abrasive waterjet cutters have a catch tank that catches the abrasive material.

Materials Cuttable By Waterjet Cutter

Waterjet cutters have no limitations in terms of what they can cut. Here are some examples:

Stone & Tiles: Water jets are particularly good at cutting stones. Water jets do not produce high temperatures and leave a very even kerf while cutting. The constant water flow also protects the edges from crumbling.

Glass: Water jets have minimal kerf, which is exceedingly precise, making it a great choice for cutting glass.

Metals: Water jets can cut through plenty of metal, but you’ll need to add proper abrasive materials.

Plastics: It is easy to cut complex patterns easily with water jets and is non-reactive against any form of plastic.

Rubber: Water jet cutters are strong enough to cut even reinforced rubber. But you’ll need to use abrasives.

Foam: Forms are usually very soft, so you can easily cut them with pure water jets.

Food: Surprisingly enough, waterjet cutters also appear in the food industry. Cutting food with water jets is an FDA-approved method. It is mostly seen in the meat industry.

Industries Served By Water Jet Cutter

Many industries use waterjet cutters because it is an efficient and cost-effective cutting method.

Aerospace: Preciseness is imperative for the aerospace industry because every part needs a perfect fit. The pieces themselves are quite complex and design-intensive. It requires both power and precision. Waterjet cutters are one of the few cutting methods that can easily handle such tasks.

Automotive: The automotive industry is in the same boat as the aerospace industry. The automotive industry requires many different components, and waterjet cutting is one of the few systems they can use to get all of that done in one place.

Médico: Abrasive waterjet cutting is highly precise and powerful. So many manufacturers of surgical instruments started using waterjet cutters in the production line.

Architecture & Design: The architecture sector has a lot of thick material. It needs a lot of precise cutting for the designs. Waterjet cutters are the go-to choice because they can cut through any material, regardless of its thickness.

Food Processing: The food industry uses waterjet cutters to increase sanitation standards. Waterjets are also very efficient, as there’s very little waste during the cutting process. Cutting meat and other frozen foods with a waterjet ensures very little chance of cross-contamination.

Oil & Gas: The oil & gas industry mainly uses waterjet cutting to shape tough metals like stainless steel, Hastelloy, and Inconel. While these materials are highly resistant to heat, exposure could still change their structure. So a heat-free cutting system like the waterjet is a good solution.

Defense: The defense industry deals with a wide range of materials, including hard and soft types. Therefore a versatile cutter like a water jet is very useful to them.

Products Manufactured By Waterjet Cutter

There are many applications for waterjets across different industries. Here are some examples that you may be familiar with:

Wooden Electric Guitar: Water jets are often used for wooden instruments such as electric guitars. The main reason is that it leaves the base material with an intact composition.

Making Gears: Waterjets are used to cut and shape all metallic gears. Gears require extreme precision, and even a slight diversion can cause faulty performance. Many industries choose waterjet cutting because it can handle the load.

Cams: Many industries use waterjet cutters to shape cams. Cams require three-dimensional precision cutting, and waterjet helps keep the material composition intact.

Name Plates: Nameplates come in many shapes, sizes, and materials. Companies use the waterjet as a versatile cutting tool for shaping nameplates. Regardless of your client’s orders, you can always cut the material with just one machine.

Shower doors: Water jets are excellent for cutting shower doors. Shower doors are mostly made of glass, so waterjet is an excellent choice for manufacturing them. It reduces material waste and is a risk-free cutting method for dealing with glass.

Art Parquet Floor: The art parquet floor is a type of wooden flooring with distinct installation patterns. Cutting them requires high precision, so a waterjet is a good option.

Marble Countertops: Marble is a tough material to shape, and regular cutters can easily ruin it. Waterjet is one of the few safe options for cutting through thick marble slabs to make countertops.

Water Jet Cutter Vs Other CNC Machine Tools

Many CNC machines compete with waterjet cutters. But they usually fall short in one aspect or another. Here’s a comparative outlook:

Material Type: The biggest limitation of other cutting methods like laser, blade, or plasma cutters is that they can not work with every material type. There are certain materials, like PVC, PVB, and carbon fiber that you can not cut with a laser due to their composition.

Material thickness: Thickness is a huge issue for lasers and plasma, as they start losing their penetration power after a certain distance.

Cutting stress: Laser and plasma cutters naturally produce stress while cutting materials. You’ll need to treat the material after cutting to remove the stress manually.

Energy consumption: O water jet cutter has the lowest operation cost compared to its counterparts. Laser cutters come in a close second, and plasma cutters have high energy consumption.

Edge quality: While laser and plasma cutters can produce finer edges, they do not work on all types of materials. They also start losing their effectiveness on thicker material.

Scrap from cutting: All types of cutters produce some scrap at the end of a project. But lasers are slightly better at preventing material loss during the cutting process. Waterjets still need to waste a bit of material on kerfs.

Conclusão

As someone from an industry that requires heavy-duty cutting tools, chances are you already knew something about waterjet cutting machines even before reading this article. Hopefully, this article helped you further understand why it is the preferred cutting method in many industries. If you like the value that waterjet cutters offer, and want to acquire some, then contact us, and we can hook you up with a reliable manufacturer.

Última modificação: Novembro 15, 2022
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