Plate steel laser cutter is used in many steel markets and machinery industry. Now let me introduce the best way of how to cut steel plate.
Plate Steel Type and Thickness
- The steel plate is flat steel, made by casting and cooling.
- The steel plate is rectangular and can be directly rolled or cut into wide strips.
- The thickness of the steel plate should be less than 4mm (the thinnest is 0.2mm), the medium thickness is 4~60mm, and the special thickness is 60~115mm.
Factors to Consider in How to Cut Steel Sheet:
- Thickness and material of steel plate
- Cutting accuracy requirements
- Cutting speed requirements
- cost budget
Precautions for Cutting Steel Plate:
- Before cutting, the steel plate should be checked for cracks, slag inclusions and other defects, and if any, it should be dealt with first.
- Wear protective glasses, gloves and other protective equipment when cutting.
- After cutting, the cutting surface should be cleaned to prevent rust.
How to Cutting Steel Plate Methods
Steel plates of different thicknesses are cut in different ways.
Shearing Cachine:
The method of cutting steel plates with scissors or shears is a cold cutting method. It can cut rectangular, triangular and other conventional thin steel plates with high speed, guaranteed quality and cost saving. The ordinary shearing method is suitable for steel plates with a thickness of less than 6mm, especially thin steel plates with a thickness of less than 4mm. It can achieve higher cutting accuracy and speed, but it will produce certain deformation and burrs.
Water Cutting Method:
Water flow cutting is a method of cutting steel plates using high-pressure water flow. It is an advanced and environmentally friendly cold cutting method. The water flow cutting method is suitable for steel plates of any thickness and material, especially thick steel plates above 4mm. It can achieve high-quality and high-precision cutting results, but it will consume more energy and water resources.
Laser Cutting:
By moving the upper knife and fixing the lower knife, metal plates of different thicknesses are cut, and the metal plates are separated according to the required size. Forging machinery, mainly used in the metal processing industry. It can process stainless steel below 25 mm with high processing precision, smooth cross section, fast processing speed and good sample quality.
Flame Cutting:
This method uses combustible gases such as oxygen and acetylene to generate high temperatures for oxidation and melting. It can cut thick steel plates with low price, high operational flexibility and can cut different shapes. It is suitable for low carbon steel plates with thickness above 4mm and has high technical requirements for operation. It will produce more smoke and noise, and the cut will be rough.
Plasma Cutting Machine:
This method uses high-temperature plasma generated by high-frequency arcs to melt or oxidize steel plates. Generally, the thickness of the cutter is 0.5~30mm. A few imported high-power cutters can cut more than 30mm. V-shaped grooves are prone to upward, increasing the thickness and inclination. . It is suitable for steel plates of any material with a thickness above 4mm. It can achieve higher cutting speed and quality , but will consume more electricity and gas.
Laser Cutting:
High-energy laser beam melts or oxidizes steel plates. It is currently the most advanced and precise cutting method. It is suitable for steel plates of any material with a thickness of less than 4mm. It can achieve rapid cutting for cutting highly reflective materials such as stainless steel and aluminum alloys. It is By far the fastest way to cut metal.
How to Cut Thick Steel Sheet
Commonly used cutting tools for extra thick steel sheets include flame cutting, plasma cutting, laser cutting, water jet cutting, etc.
Extra thick steel sheets refer to steel sheets with a thickness exceeding 60 mm, which are widely used in ships, bridges, pressure vessels, machinery manufacturing and other fields. Cutting extra thick steel sheets is a technically difficult and challenging process. In order to ensure cutting quality and efficiency, appropriate cutting tools and methods must be selected.
How to Cut 1 2 Inch Steel Plate
A 1/2-inch steel plate offers some flexibility in cutting methods compared to much thicker plates. Here is a breakdown of your options:
Recommended Methods:
- Plasma Cutting: This is a great choice for a clean, precise cut on 1/2-inch plate. Plasma cutters are relatively fast and can handle a variety of thicknesses.
- Oxy-Fuel Cutting: This is a more economical option if precision is not critical. Oxy-fuel cutting uses a torch to melt the steel, resulting in a rougher cut with some heat distortion.
- Cutting: Cutting is ideal for straight cuts on thinner plate. A metal fabrication shop may have a cutting machine that can handle 1/2-inch steel.
- Angle Grinder with Metal Cutting Discs: This is a portable option for occasional cuts. However, it is slower and requires multiple passes for 1/2-inch plate, potentially creating a less precise cut.
How to Cut 1/4 Stainless Steel Sheet
CNC cutting machine is currently the most widely used steel sheet cutting equipment. It has the advantages of high precision, high efficiency, high degree of automation, relatively low cost and high cost performance.
If you have high requirements for the smoothness of the cutting surface, you can choose a laser cutting machine or a wire cutting machine.
Carbon Steel Sheet
Carbon steel sheet has good cutting ability, and laser cutting is easy and uncomplicated, but the cutting process for different thicknesses of carbon steel sheets is different.
Generally, there is no special difficulty during cutting, and no special precautions are required. However, the gas cutting process used for different thicknesses of steel sheets is different.
Carbon Steel Laser Cutter Cutting Process:
- Steel sheet thickness gas cutting process
- Thin steel gas cutting process
- Thick steel sheet gas cutting process
Large thickness Hong Kong version. Semi-thick steel sheets mainly refer to steel sheets with a thickness of 4-300mm, thin steel sheets refer to steel sheets with a thickness of less than 4mm, and large thickness steel sheets refer to steel sheets with a thickness of more than 300mm.
Cutting of Steel Sheets of General Thickness
General thickness steel sheets are more suitable for gas cutting, so you can choose G01-100 or G02-100 cutting torch. The distance between the cutting nozzle and the workpiece is calculated by adding approximately 2-4 mm to the length of the flame core.
When cutting steel sheets with a thickness of 25 mm or more with gas, a back tilt angle of 20-30 degrees can be used to improve the efficiency of gas cutting. It should be noted that the length of the winding wire should exceed 1/3 of the thickness of the steel sheet to be cut with gas.
Gas Cutting of Steel Sheets of Large Thickness
Laser cutting carbon with a thickness of more than 300 mm is called large thickness steel sheet cutting. Since the steel sheet is relatively thick, more than 300 mm, gas cutting has certain difficulties. Large cutting torches and cutting nozzle models can be used.
When cutting large-thickness steel sheets, sufficient oxygen supply must be provided, that is, sufficient oxygen flow must be provided to the cutting area. If necessary, multiple oxygen bottles can be used to supply gas in parallel with a busbar. Multiple sets of busbars alternately supply air.
The entire oxygen supply system, including the pressure reducer, various connections and valves, the cutting torch inlet pipe and the diameter of the cutting nozzle, must meet the corresponding oxygen supply capacity.
In addition, since it is very difficult to restart the cutting of large-thickness steel, it is necessary to estimate the entire gas consumption according to the thickness of the steel sheet and the cutting length before laser cutting carbon fiber sheet cutting, and prepare sufficient resources to prevent the cutting from being interrupted due to oxygen depletion in the middle.
For cutting large thickness steel plates, it is more difficult to start cutting, so the cutting start should be according to the following requirements; when starting cutting, the preheating flame should be large, and the edge of the workpiece should be preheated from the edge of the workpiece.
When preheating to cutting temperature, gradually open the cutting oxygen and tilt the cutting nozzle backward. When the edges of the parts to be cut are completely cut, increase the cutting oxygen flow and make the cutting nozzle perpendicular to the workpiece, while the cutting nozzle moves forward along the cutting line, the cutting nozzle should make a suitable lateral oscillation, the cut should be widened, and the slag discharge should be used.
During the re-cutting process, if there is an impassable phenomenon, stop cutting and start cutting again from the other end.
For large thickness cutting, equal pressure cutting nozzles and external mixing cutting nozzles can be used. The latter is better. Jet suction cutting nozzles are prone to tampering and are generally not suitable for use.
