Oxygen cutting

Abstract

An outline is given of the findings of a substantial practical investigation of the, oxygen cutting process dealing with oxygen jet characteristics, preheat intensity and location, and metal composition. Observations from the work are used to define the nature of the process. It is clear that this is controlled by the extent and composition of gas-boundary and slag layers over the reacting surface between the oxygen jet and the steel to be cut. Changes minimizing boundary-layer and slag thicknesses and impurity content lead to higher cutting speeds, but where complete disruption is achieved the instability and resultant poor cut quality may be unacceptable except for scrap severance, although speeds are increased. The critical region for the reaction is at the bottom of the cut, where barriers to the reactionface are thickest and where the oxygen concentration is lowest. Narrower, higher velocity jets for a given flow cut faster, principally since at a given cutting speed more oxygen is available in this critical region.