Modeling of flow separation of assist gas as applied to laser cutting of thick sheet metal

The present paper describes the results of mathematical modeling of supersonic flows of a viscous compressible gas, obtained by numerically solving three-dimensional full Navier-Stokes equations, and also the results of experiments with visualization of gas jet flows in channels geometrically similar to the laser cut. Separation of the gas flow from the cut front is predicted numerically and then validated by experiments on a model setup. The gas flow structure arising in a narrow channel behind a sonic (conical) or supersonic nozzle is described. Specific features of originating in the flow separation on a smooth surface in a narrow channel are examined, and mechanisms controlling the separation are proposed. Flow separation directly affects the changes in the shape and structure of striations and is the one of main reason for the worse quality of the laser cut surface. It is shown that the changes in the structures of striations over the thickness of the sheet being cut are closely related to aerodynamic features of jet flows of the assisting gas in the cut channel. (C) 2008 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.