5 key benefits of laser cleaning

Contents:

In the past few years, laser cleaners have become very popular. It’s not unreasonable! After all, it has a lot of advantages, which we will consider in this article.

About laser cleaners

Chemical, mechanical, abrasive, steam cleaning — all these methods are traditional and already familiar, but if we compare them with laser cleaner, we can notice that the first ones require manual labor and can be dangerous for delicate materials. Laser cleaning, on the other hand, is a non-contact, precise and environmentally friendly alternative that meets the strict requirements of modern industry.

This cleaning uses high-intensity laser beams to remove impurities from a wide variety of surfaces, including metals, plastics, ceramics, and composite materials. This method is renowned for its precision, allowing operators to target specific areas without affecting the underlying material. As industry is increasingly focusing on sustainability and efficiency, the adoption of laser cleaning technology is gaining momentum.

This method can remove rust, paint, and prepare surfaces for coating or welding. In addition, the laser can be automated and integrated into existing manufacturing lines, increasing productivity and reducing operating costs.

There are two types of laser cleaning — continuous and pulsed.

The pulsed laser is suitable for delicate cleaning. The power of the pulsed laser ranges from 100 to 1500 watts.

A permanent (continuous) one is used for a more serious load with a large area. Thanks to it, it is possible to clean large equipment, structures, as well as wagons and ships. The power of such a laser is from 1000 to 3000 watts.

For example, it is better to clean the paint with a pulse, but any rust can be cleaned.

Method benefits

Let’s talk about each of the advantages!

Speed and efficiency

It is often performed faster than traditional methods, especially when working with large surfaces or complex geometries. This is due to the automation of the workflow and the fact that laser systems can be integrated into production lines for continuous operation. Which in turn leads to consistently good results. The high speed of laser cleaning also makes it possible to reduce downtime. For example, in the automotive industry, this method can quickly prepare surfaces for welding or painting.

Accuracy

Laser cleaning systems can be precisely tuned to affect specific layers of material on the surface. This precision allows spot cleaning to be carried out only in the necessary places, which is very important in cases where the main material must remain intact. For example, when restoring works of art or historical artifacts, a laser can remove layers of dirt, corrosion, or old paint without damaging the source material. The precision of laser cleaning is achieved through adjustable parameters such as laser wavelength, pulse duration, and energy level, which can be optimized for different types of contaminants and substrates.

Gentle cleaning

Due to the non-contact nature of this method, physical impact on the surface to be treated. This is a significant advantage over mechanical or abrasive cleaning methods, which can wear down surfaces over time. This helps to maintain the integrity and service life of materials, which is especially important in areas such as aerospace, automotive, and electronics industries. For example, laser cleaning allows oxides and impurities to be removed from fragile electronic components without mechanical stress or damage.

Universality

Laser cleaning is effective for a wide range of materials and contaminants. It is used to remove rust, paint, topcoats, oxides, oils, and fats from metal, plastic, ceramic, and glass surfaces. Due to this, it is used in industry, and even for the preservation of cultural heritage objects: preparation of metal surfaces for welding or gluing, cleaning of molds and tools in production, restoration of historical buildings and sculptures. The parameters of the laser cleaning machine are very adaptive, which makes it possible to adapt to new production tasks each time.

Eco-friendly and non-toxic

This modern type of cleaning uses focused laser radiation to vaporize or remove contaminants, which does not leave behind waste. Chemicals, solvents, or abrasives are also not used. It reduces the amount of hazardous waste and eliminates the need to recycle by-products of the chemical industry. In addition, chemicals do not need to be stored and disposed of. All this makes it environmentally safe.

Moreover, it should be noted that during laser cleaning, the energy consumption is controlled, so that heat generation can be minimized and the risk of thermal damage to delicate surfaces can be reduced.

Thus, laser cleaning is a unique combination of precision, environmental friendliness, minimal wear, efficiency and versatility, which makes it an advanced and profitable cleaning technology in various industries and applications.

Wattsan’s top purges

What can I choose from the cleaning devices from the Wattsan line? Let’s look at them: their technical features, similarities and differences — in more detail.

Laser Cleaning PA (Pulse 100/200W)

This is a brand new portable laser metal cleaning machine. This model has 1 mirror and 1 type of weld cleaning. Thanks to the air cooling system, the machine is quite small. It is quiet, fast and easy to use.

Due to the pulsed cleaning, it is ideal for removing rust, paint, petrochemicals, oxide layers, welding scales, carbon deposits, etc. from metal products without heating or damage. This portable machine can also clean adhesive and galvanized materials, as well as gypsum and stone products.

Laser Cleaning PW/PW Pro (300/500W)

The Wattsan PW Pro pulse cleaning machine with water cooling can help to significantly simplify production processes. This model has 2 mirrors and 9 types of seams. Supplies are not required for it.

It easily cleans thick layers of rust, paint, petroleum products, oxide films, scale and carbon deposits from metals without heating or damaging them.

Laser Cleaning CW (with one mirror, 1500/2000/3000W)

Wattsan CW continuous laser cleaning is also water-cooled. It is capable of removing rust, paintwork, petroleum products, oxide coatings, welding scale and carbon deposits from various metals. Due to the 1 mirror, this model has 1 type of stripping seam.

Supplies and a lot of space are not required. This compact, portable device can operate from any angle and in the most inaccessible places. The fiber length is 8 meters. The laser gun is lightweight and convenient for comfortable long-term use.

Laser Cleaning CW Pro (with two mirrors, 1500/2000/3000W)

Wattsan CW Pro is a continuous water—cooled cleaner that will change your business forever! There are 2 mirrors and 6 types of seams. It can be used to remove carbon deposits, paint, petroleum products, oxide layers, rust and scale from surfaces.

The CW Pro works well with thin metals, but it may not be able to handle thick layers of dirt, as the continuous laser beam heats up the surface of the material during processing. And if the removal layer is too thick, it takes a long time to act on it, which can lead to melting of the base material.

Conclusion

In this article we have analyzed laser cleaners in detail. As we found out, it’s a very effective way compared to all other existing methods. Keep up with the times — switch to this modern and fast way of cleaning your surfaces!