If you have seen clips of lasers removing rust on YouTube you probably found them quite compelling to watch – it’s almost hard to believe.

Read on as we de-mystify laser cleaning technology and give you a sense of where it can be a helpful option for plant maintenance.

Portable lasers have only recently become commercially available as a tool for surface cleaning of rust, oxides, and films such as grease and oil.  A focused beam of light vaporises the surface contaminants while leaving the main substrate such as steel, aluminium or stone intact.

The laser can remove paints but it does depend on the paint colour and type of coating. There are different power and optical patterns that influence how the laser performs. Lasers are well suited to heavier castings but can transfer some heat into the substrate so care is required on thinner surfaces.  Heat transfer can be managed by adjusting the power of the laser and how quickly it tracks across the item.

The package of equipment required for laser cleaning easily fits within a van and can be wheeled into site relatively easily. The laser is a hand-held gun at the end of a long flexible hose which makes it versatile within a variety of spaces.

Relative to other cleaning options the laser is very safe to use with only ventilation, laser safety glasses and gloves required during operation.

A helpful aspect of the laser is light conforms to the surface where it is pointed making it a lot easier to clean complex shapes with a lot of angles and curves. Importantly laser cleaning minimises secondary effects associated some surface cleaning options.

There is no blast media or chemical residue to contend with. The vaporised contaminants are simply captured by a vacuum system alongside the laser head.  This makes it a particularly useful for surface cleaning of plant and equipment where cleanliness is key. 

Common examples are equipment associated with food and beverage production or where there are environmental considerations to manage.

Maintenance of plant and equipment can be time consuming and disruptive. When speed and hygiene is the main driver, the laser can provide a clean, keyed surface ready for the application of protective coatings.

A recent practical application of laser cleaning is with a major New Zealand beverage producer. A piece of the production line managing 600 bottles a minute was rusty as a result of the regular caustic cleaning process.

The resolution of this quality assurance issue had to be achieved without impacting machine availability. The relatively short set up time of the laser meant cleaning and surface coating could be fitted around the production schedule with no impact on capacity requirements.

Laser Clean has been able to remove the surface rust, clean the surface and apply a high performance food grade coating system without impacting productivity. It has been reassuring to hear the words “exceeded expectations” from the client.

As this is a relatively new technology Laser Clean NZ is happy to do testing with clients as a proof of concept prior to confirming full requirements.

While Laser Clean is based in Auckland the machine can be easily transported to site and wheeled into production environments.

www.laserclean.co.nz