Laser Cutting Graphite

[Joseph]

Tonight a sheet of 1/8 pure graphite was brought in for laser cutting. I did some cursory research and he has the documentation that it's pure, so just carbon, but I'm inclined to ask around or at least do a little more research before something like this is tried. The few hits I had seemed to suggest this was done with folks using 2-3kW lasers, but some of that referenced graphite epoxy rather than just graphite. Any thoughts? 

[Joseph]

To clarify, it was a 1/8 inch thick piece, not 1/8 pure. It's pure graphite, he had a spec sheet. Thus, there aren't the chlorine concerns we have for other materials but other concerns such as dust, smoke, or is this remotely effective with our laser? I told the guy (his name is Art) that I wasn't comfortable trying without more research/input, but to stop back next Wednesday or watch this list and I'd try to have an answer for him. 

If this isn't the answer, the design is just rings and would totally be doable on the Shapeoko, I'd think.

Joseph

[tyler martin]

My only concern would be the particulate and the optics.

Tyler

--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "LVL1 - Louisville's Hackerspace" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to lvl1+uns...@googlegroups.com.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.

[Joseph]

Bump for input. But, after some more research, I think that this is not harmful for the machine, but I think the properties of graphite and the size of the pieces to be cut make it a better candidate for the Shapeoko. 

Art, if you're listening and if there's any folks skilled with the Shapeoko (a CNC rotary cutter), this might be a better fit for this project.

[Arta]

Joseph, thanks for the help. How it's cut doesn't matter to me. If the rotary cutter is the way to go I'm up for learning how it works. I'm going to try contacting the manufacturer Monday to see if they have recommendations.
thanks again for the help.