Parametric investigation of laser-assisted machining of commercially pure titanium

Turning of commercially pure (CP) titanium was carried out with the assistance of a laser beam. The effects of laser beam arrangement laser power, and cutting speed on the reduction of cutting forces was also examined. A 2.5 kW Nd:YAG laser was used for heating the workpiece. The laser beam was delivered by a 15 m long optical fiber and focused by an optical lens with a focal length of 200 mm. The relative position of the laser beam with the workpiece and tool was adjusted by changing the angle between work-piece axis, tool-beam distance on the surface of workpiece, and lens workpiece distance on chamber surface. The effect of laser power on the reduction of cutting forces was examined at the cutting speed of 20 m/min, with the distance between lens and workpiece of 196 mm, and beam incident angle with the workpiece axis of 40°. The result demonstrated that with increasing cutting speed in LAM, the interaction time between the laser beam and workpiece decreases and the temperature rise at cutting edge due to laser heating is lower.