Mechanism and application of laser cleaning: A review

Laser cleaning has become a promising technology due to its green, environmentally friendly, and efficient features. It will gradually replace the traditional cleaning processes such as mechanical, chemical, and ultrasonic. As the most potential cleaning technology in the 21st century, laser cleaning is regarded as the "subverter" of the cleaning world. Due to many laser cleaning objects, various cleaning conditions, and strict cleaning requirements, there are still many problems in the efficiency and intelligence of laser cleaning technology and equipment. Based on many experiments and theoretical research, this paper expounds on the specific action mechanism of three laser methods: laser dry cleaning, liquid-assisted laser cleaning, and laser shock wave cleaning in detail. The effects of essential laser parameters such as laser intensity, wavelength, pulse width, and incident angle on the cleaning effect are discussed. The typical applications and cleaning process parameters of pulse laser technology in cultural relics protection, industrial metal surface treatment, semiconductor industry, and optical lens are presented. The existing problems and future development trends of laser cleaning are pointed out, which provides essential engineering practical value for clarifying the multi-action mechanism between laser and the cleaned object and establishing the cleaning process database.