Long-distance cutting of 10-30 mm thick stainless-steel with a 6-kW fiber laser for applications in nuclear decommissioning

For nuclear decommissioning applications, a study was conducted to investigate the feasibility of using a laser for long-distance cutting in complex structures. Cutting tests were performed on stainless steel plates with thicknesses ranging from 10 mm to 30 mm at distances of 300 mm-700 mm from the laser head, using a laser power of 6 kW. Remarkably, the 10 mm and 20 mm thick stainless-steel plates were successfully cut at a distance of 700 mm from the head. Based on the trends observed in the results, it is anticipated that these thicknesses could also be cut at distances of approximately 1 m. Similarly, the 30 mm thick stainless-steel plate was effectively cut at a distance of 500 mm from the head. To evaluate the amount of secondary waste generated, the kerf width was measured. Due to the long-distance cutting, the average kerf width ranged from 6 mm to 16 mm. Despite the wider kerf width, long-distance cutting holds promise for efficiently handling hard-to-reach targets in nuclear decommissioning scenarios.