Processes and operational requirements
Compared with pickling methods up to a dozen of processes, laser cleaning has achieved the most simplified process, basically in one step. The cleaning time and material loss is greatly reduced.
The pickling method has strict requirements for the operating process: the workpiece must be thoroughly degreased to ensure the quality of the descaling; the concentration of the pickling solution must be controlled so that the workpiece is not corroded due to high acid concentration; the temperature must be controlled according to the process specification so that the workpiece and equipment are not corroded; the pickling tank gradually deposits sludge, which sludges the heating pipes and other control devices and needs to be removed regularly; in addition to this, attention needs to be paid to the pickling time, the injection pressure, the operating sputtering, the exhaust air equipment and so on.
Laser cleaning can be foolproof or even automated after setting the parameters in advance
Cleaning effectiveness and environmental pollution
In addition to the greater cleaning effect, laser cleaning has the advantage of being more forgiving
Oxygen spots, yellow spots, redness and blackness often occur due to errors in the acid cleaning process, resulting in high scrap rates
MRJ-laser experiments prove that laser cleaning even if oversaturated cleaning still has a strong metallic lustre, and does not produce hydroxide and other contaminants, and will have no effect on the next step of the process such as welding.
Laser cleaning is the greenest way of cleaning as there is no environmental pollution such as waste liquid and slag.
Unit costs and conversion costs
The acid cleaning method requires chemicals as consumables, so the unit cost is composed of equipment depreciation + consumables cost; laser cleaning does not require other consumables in addition to the purchase of equipment. The unit cost is the depreciation of the equipment; therefore, the larger the scale of cleaning, the longer the life, the lower the unit cost of laser cleaning.
The composition of the pickling line requires a complex process and the ratios of pickling agents are not the same for different metal materials, so the conversion line requires larger conversion costs, a single metal material to be cleaned in the short term and no flexibility to change.
Laser cleaning does not have conversion costs: the same cleaning machine can be realized after switching software parameters to clean steel plates one minute before and aluminium alloys the next. It is convenient for companies to implement JIT flexible production.
National Policy and EIA Review
With the introduction of China's "carbon peak, carbon neutral" policy in the past two years, the requirements for structural transformation and upgrading of the manufacturing industry have become increasingly stringent and environmental protection has become increasingly important. The environmental assessment reports for pickling production lines are also becoming increasingly stringent and the profit margins of the relevant companies are becoming thinner and thinner. In turn, the support for high technology has increased. The overall environment is more favourable to laser cleaning.
Pickled plates have a wide and deep application in our manufacturing production and play an active role in supporting our industry. However, with the upgrading of China's manufacturing industry, capacity optimisation and structural adjustment are slowly taking place.
Perhaps in the next decade, acid-washed panels will have a new name - radical wash panels.
