After working for some time, there is possibly a large amount of dirt(such as the impurities in cooling water, dust, or microorganism) adhere onto the inner wall of co2 laser tube. This would prevent the coolant taking away the heat from the tube, which can cause the laser power and laser beam quality drop. Even worse, the laser tube could also break down totally because of the heat.
To not having such problem, a chiller is required to ensure the laser tube running well with proper cooling, and regular check or maintenance as follow is necessary:
Check the water volume in the tank of chiller: it is recommended to check once a half month in summer and once a month in winter. If the volume of cooling water is below 60% of the total volume, please input more water in time (should be soft water or distilled water; completely replace the cooling water every two months). You can also simply follow the sign marked on the chiller and make sure it is in the middle part of“normal” range.
Check the condition of the chiller condenser, replace new deionization filter and cooling water filter every five months to remove dust and debris from high voltage power supply, laser tube and water cooler.
If the glass tube inner wall is contaminated already, please clean it according to the following instructions:
1. Disconnect the anode and cathode wires and the water inlet and outlet of the co2 laser tube, at the condition that the power is off.
2. Pour out all the water from laser tube, stick adhesive tapes onto the laser beam exit, make sure the output optic will not be contaminated at all when cleaning the tube.
The laser beam exit is attached with adhesive
3. Mix the hydrofluoric acid solution according to the ratio 1:1000( hydrofluoric acid:water). Input it into the water inlet of the laser tube, until it’s full.
4. Place it carefully on the table and wait for 30 minutes, then shake it smoothly, and then make liquid out of the tube.
5. Pour out the mixed liquid, and rinse the laser tube with a lot of water, in case the hydrofluoric acid residue corrodes the glass. After this, if there still is some dirty adhering to the tube, repeat step 4 and 5. Notice: the mixed liquid shall not be kept in the glass tube for more than 30 minutes, and rinse it right after the HF solution is out.
6. Dry the water on the laser tube, the beam exit, and the high voltage end with absorbent material,especially on the electrodes.
7. Take the adhesive tape away from the laser output window, check if the optic is contaminated, clean it properly and carefully if any contamination or water left on it, and then mount the co2 laser tube on the machine according to installing instructions.
NOTE: HF liquid is corrosive, so please operating according to the instruction carefully. The laser tube is a kind of precision component, made of glass, so can not be immersed in the HF liquid.
Lear more about co2 laser tube and operation tips, you can visit at www.sptlaser.net or follow us on Youtube.
