Simulation and experimental investigation on energy distribution of water column in waterjet guided laser processing

Under the condition of limited laser energy, it is of great significance to understand and effectively control the laser distribution in the laminar flow column to solve the problem of depth capability decline caused by the taper effect of the slit in the thick plate material waterjet guided laser processing. In this paper, the distribution of laser energy in the water column is analyzed by means of simulation and experiment. In the simulation analysis, using ZEMAX software, the energy distribution of axial position and radial position (diameter section) in water column is simulated and analyzed for the different focal length and nozzle diameter. In addition, the simulation results are verified by experiments. The results show that: the laser energy in the laminar water column still presents the characteristics of Gaussian like distribution, which will make the material remove very difficult at the edge of the water column due to the insufficient power density. This is easy to produce machining taper effect. Finally, the energy distribution conditions of high efficiency material removal by water guided laser are given. This study provides a theoretical and technical basis for further understanding the law of energy transmission and distribution of water column in water guided laser.