How a Water Jet Cutting Machine Works
Waterjet cutting machines cut with a supersonic stream of water
that is so powerful it can cut through materials in one pass without shredding
or crushing them. The Jet Edge water jet is created by pressurizing water up to
50,000 psi (3,400 bar) with a Jet Edge waterjet intensifier pump. The waterjet
cutting action takes place as a result of the ultra-high pressure (UHP) water
being forced through a pre-mounted orifice as small as .005 inches. In many
applications, an abrasive material such as garnet is added to the waterjet to
create an abrasive waterjet (also known as an abrasivejet) that can cut cleanly
through virtually any material.
Abrasive Waterjet System
The Waterjet Intensifier Pump - Power Made
Simple
The intensifier pump acts as an amplifier as it converts the
energy from the low-pressure hydraulic fluid into ultra-high pressure water.
The hydraulic system provides fluid power to a reciprocating piston in the
intensifier center section. A limit switch, located at each end of the piston
travel, signals the electronic controls to shift the directional control valve
and reverse the piston direction.
The intensifier assembly, with a plunger on each side of the
piston, generates pressure in both directions. As one side of the intensifier
is in the inlet stroke, the opposite side is generating ultra-high pressure
output. During the plunger inlet stroke, filtered water enters the high
pressure cylinder through the check value assembly. After the plunger reverses
direction, the water is compressed and exits as ultra-high pressure water and
then enters the pressure vessel (attenuator). The attenuator smoothes pressure
fluctuations from the intensifier and delivers a constant and steady stream of
ultra-high pressure water to the cutting or cleaning tool.
Waterjet Intensifier Pump Animation
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between
waterjet and abrasive waterjet (abrasivejet)?
Waterjet cuts with ultra-high pressure water alone. Abrasivejet cuts
with an abrasive material (usually garnet) that has been added to the water
stream.
What can be cut with Jet Edge
abrasivejet/waterjet?
Jet Edge abrasivejets can cut virtually any material, including
metals, stone, composites, glass and much more. Jet Edge waterjets cut softer
materials such as food, foam, paper and rubber.
How is cutting motion controlled?
Jet Edge waterjet/abrasivejet cutting systems are controlled by
PC-based motion control systems that can accept any CAD files.
What tolerances can Jet Edge hold?
Jet Edge waterjets/abrasivejets can hold an accuracy of 0.010 inch
with a repeatability of 0.001 inch over the entire work envelope.
How thick of material will abrasivejet
cut?
Abrasivejets have been known to cut metals as thick as 20 inches.
How much water does a Jet Edge system
use?
Jet Edge waterjet/abrasivejet systems use a half gallon to
approximately one gallon of water per minute depending on the cutting head
orifice size. The water can be recycled using a closed-looped system. Waste
water usually is clean enough to filter and dispose of down a drain.
Is water treatment necessary?
Before installing your Jet Edge system, we recommend that you have
a water quality analysis performed by a commercial company that specializes in
water conditioning equipment. They can recommend the most suitable equipment
for your specific water conditions. Inlet water should be treated for either
the removal of hardness or the reduction in Total Disolved Solids (TDS). A
water treatment producing TDS content of less than 0.5 ppm is not recommended
since the aggressiveness of the purified water may damage the intensifier pump
components. Treated water must have a pH value of 6 to 8.
- If your water has low TDS
(<100 ppm), it can be treated by softening alone.
- If your water has moderate TDS
(100-200 ppm), it can be treated by softening, deionizing (DI) or reverse
osmosis (RO) equipment.
- If your water has high TDS
(>200 ppm), water quality is considered poor and should be treated with
DI or RO equipment.
- If your water has high silica
concentration (>15 ppm), dual strong-base DI is recommended.
How much garnet does abrasive waterjet
(abrasivejet) use?
Abrasivejets use approximately 0.5 to 1 pound (0.25 to 0.5Kg) of
abrasive per minute.
What do you do with used garnet?
Garnet is a non-toxic natural substance that can be recycled for
repeated use using a Jet Edge Abrasive Recycling System. Spent garnet
usually can be disposed of in a landfill.
What Can be Cut with Jet Edge
Waterjet/Abrasivejet?
Virtually anything can be cut with Jet Edge waterjet or
abrasivejet! Here are a just a few examples of what you can cut with your Jet
Edge waterjet/abrasivejet cutting system.
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Water Jet Cutting 6.5" titanium |
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Soft Rubber |
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Why should I use waterjet or abrasive waterjet versus conventional
cutting methods?
Cut Without Heat
Jet Edge waterjet technology is ideal for cutting heat sensitive material.
Costs due to thermal distortion of machine parts are eliminated. Risk of
fatigue failure resulting from process induced thermal stressing and associated
material structural change is minimized.
Accurate Cutting
Jet Edge waterjets can hold an accuracy of 0.010 inch with a repeatability of
0.001 inch over the entire work envelope.
No Sharpening Required
Unlike conventional cutting tools, waterjets cut with a supersonic stream of
water that never dulls. With waterjet, you will never need to shut down to
sharpen or clean blades.
Minimize Dust and Toxic Fumes
The practical elimination of airborne dust particles, smoke, fumes, and
contaminates from cutting materials such as asbestos and fiberglass greatly improves
the work environment and reduces problems arising from operator exposure.
No Finishing Operation Required
Selection of appropriate cutting parameters such as operating pressure,
material feed rate, abrasive particle size, and flow rate can eliminate the
need for secondary operations. Jet Edge systems also reduce machining time and
production costs.
Non-Contact Cutting and Cleanliness
USDA approved equipment designs promote the use of ultra-high pressure waterjet
streams in the sanitary cutting of food products. Using UHP waterjet results in
higher cutting speeds and the elimination of associated downtime incurred for
cleaning and resharpening delicate blades. One of the biggest advantages is
that fixturing associated with other machining methods is minimized.
Near Zero Lateral Cutting Force
Jet Edge systems reduce fixturing costs plus avoid excessive stress to finished
parts. Also, minimal lateral force simplifies material handling and allows
cutting close to material edges.
Minimum Waste Material
With typical orifice diameters in the range of 0.003 – 0.045 inches,
waterjet kerf width is kept to a minimum, thus maximizing material utilization.
Omni-Directional Cutting
Waterjet cut profiles are not confined to straight-line geometries. Part
complexity is limited only by the motion control system specified and
traditional start holes are eliminated.
Environmentally Friendly
Waterjets produce no hazardous waste, reducing waste disposal costs. They
can cut off large pieces of reusable scrap material that might have been lost
using traditional cutting methods. Parts can be closely nested to
maximize material use, and the waterjet saves material by creating very little
kerf. Waterjets use very little water (a half gallon to approximately one
gallon per minute depending on cutting head orifice size), and the water that
is used can be recycled using a closed-looped system. Waste water usually
is clean enough to filter and dispose of down a drain. The garnet
abrasive is a non-toxic natural substance that can be recycled for repeated
use. Garnet usually can be disposed of in a landfill.
