×
INTELLIGENT WORK FORUMS
FOR ENGINEERING PROFESSIONALS

Log In

Come Join Us!

Are you an
Engineering professional?
Join Eng-Tips Forums!
  • Talk With Other Members
  • Be Notified Of Responses
    To Your Posts
  • Keyword Search
  • One-Click Access To Your
    Favorite Forums
  • Automated Signatures
    On Your Posts
  • Best Of All, It's Free!
  • Students Click Here

*Eng-Tips's functionality depends on members receiving e-mail. By joining you are opting in to receive e-mail.

Posting Guidelines

Promoting, selling, recruiting, coursework and thesis posting is forbidden.

Students Click Here

Jobs

Etching Aluminium

Etching Aluminium

Etching Aluminium

(OP)
Hi there, i would like to know if it is possible to do etching on Aluminium. Amada said it is not impossible but it may cause reflection and dammage the machine. In a forum it says that you can use a ceramic powder to do it.

RE: Etching Aluminium

Etching on aluminum is a risky thing to do because of the reflection factor involved.  Although etching is usually done with low power, there's still a risk of damaging the cutting lens.

In the past, we used a bit of paint (Dykem) just to lightly engrave a program to see if it would fit on the sheet and nothing more.

I would follow their advise

RE: Etching Aluminium

Since Aluminum reflects so well, you need a high beam intensity to even touch it. You can try a high power and very low duty cycle, so that the individual 'dots' created by the beam are a bit separated. Use a low gas pressure to leave a smooth surface, or a bit more pressure to blow the melt laterally and make more of a mark.
The total power (CW * duty%) must be well below what would cut the material. Keep the total down, because much of that power will be reflected back into the lens and optics.
Cheers
Jay
(at Amada 82-02)

Jay Maechtlen
http://home.covad.net/~jmaechtlen/

Red Flag This Post

Please let us know here why this post is inappropriate. Reasons such as off-topic, duplicates, flames, illegal, vulgar, or students posting their homework.

Red Flag Submitted

Thank you for helping keep Eng-Tips Forums free from inappropriate posts.
The Eng-Tips staff will check this out and take appropriate action.

Reply To This Thread

Posting in the Eng-Tips forums is a member-only feature.

Click Here to join Eng-Tips and talk with other members!


Resources