Laser cutting safety


Results 1 to 12 of 12

Thread: Laser cutting safety

  1. #1
    Registered
    Join Date
    May 2012
    Location
    NZ
    Posts
    1
    Downloads
    0
    Uploads
    0

    Default Laser cutting safety

    Hey,

    First time poster, long time lurker.
    I have been running two laser machines (100w and 150w) for the past 18 or so months. My company has recently recieved a third and I am in the process of setting it up.

    My reason for posting is about possible health concerns, I have searched the net but not found alot of solid info on the dangers of laser cutting certain substrates.

    Basically for 7-10 hours a day, I am in a room with both machines running constantly. 95% of things I cut out are:

    a: plain mdf 3-6mm thick
    b: various colored and mirrored acrylic 3-10mm thick (sometimes with high grade double sided tape on the rear)
    c: 4.5mm mdf with digital print on the face and matte black vinyl on the rear (majority of cutting)

    Both lasers have two extractor fans each (total of four), all leading up to the roof and being vented outside. While the room certainly never fills up with smoke, I can ALWAYS smell what is cutting, to the point I am pretty used to it.

    Recently I have been worrying about the long term affects of being exposed to these fumes. I never used to untill I read something about chemicals in MDF etc. and now I've over thought it and can't tell if i'm being paranoid or not lol. My boss and co-workers don't seem to think its dangerous, but im only 25, I gotta lot more years to enjoy if ya know what I mean.

    Sorry if this is the wrong forum, I didn't know where to ask really. Thanks in advance if anyone has any infomation or input.

    Andrew

    Similar Threads:


  2. #2
    Member
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Location
    China
    Posts
    387
    Downloads
    0
    Uploads
    0

    Default

    Hi Andrew,

    Take our laser machine for example,ours comply with CE certificate,it is without radiation,for the smell,we usally suggest our customer choosed filter,which can filtrate most the bad smoke and smell,and for laser rays,goggles maybe help a lot,anyway, like computer or telephone,it is maybe with some effects,but no records.do you think so?

    Hope this can help you

    Best Regards
    Lucy Lee
    G.WEIKE LASER
    han@wklaser.com
    laser engraving machine?laser cutting machine?cutting plotter at G.WeiKe



  3. #3
    Registered
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Location
    UK
    Posts
    873
    Downloads
    0
    Uploads
    0

    Default

    "Smell" is caused by particulates in the air (tiny bits of what you can smell or the by products of the decomposition of those particulates) in general if you can smell it, you are inhaling it.

    While not listed as toxic per-se the vapor from cutting acrylic hasn't been studied for long term health effects so there isn't really as yet a definitive answer. MDF however in some cases contains formaldehyde and the decomposition vapors from formaldehyde are most certainly known and have been shown to be harmful (as well as toxic).
    Some mirrored acrylics contain cyanates....you don't want to be inhaling that ...that's a certainty.

    Ask for the MSDS for each material, they will give you a good idea if the material is harmful or it's by products are harmful.

    If you can see it or smell it then it *likely* isn't going to be doing you any good, will it do long term harm? who knows.

    The worst person to ask in some cases is your boss, he will not want to spend several thousand dollars on extraction unless he *needs to*...need in this case is defined as cost over effect.

    A good example is a well known car manufacturer having a faulty indicator circuit on one of their models that *could* cause fires hence deaths. It was cheaper to pay the wrongful death suits than it was to change the entire production of the unit and recall all cars with that problem.

    best wishes

    Dave

    ps: posts that say "I've been doing it for 20 years and I'm not dead" are worthless. What you need to research are the facts behind the materials, not anecdotal proposals that assume a positive hypothesis.



  4. #4
    Member
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Location
    usa
    Posts
    6028
    Downloads
    0
    Uploads
    0

    Default

    Exsecratio
    Right on the money!
    You really want to know, you need to get air sampling done in the room. I do agree if you can smell it, your breathing it. Sounds like you may need better ventilation as well as HEPA units. I NEVER smell anything coming from our lasers, although we don't do too much engraving. Most ours are cutting and welding exotic materials.



  5. #5
    Registered
    Join Date
    Apr 2012
    Location
    United States
    Posts
    1
    Downloads
    0
    Uploads
    0

    Default

    Hi guys, at a minimum you could be wearing a light respirator or a 3m type of face mask to filter your breathing. Anything non degradeable will just be trapped in your lungs....right? Food for thought. Take care.



  6. #6
    Registered
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Location
    Turkey
    Posts
    75
    Downloads
    0
    Uploads
    0

    Default

    It might sound just like common sense, but acrylic is made of oil/petroleum, so who says that's it's fumes aren't carcinogen? You ever try to set acrylic on fire? Seriously don't, it smells like crude oil on fire. I'm cutting acrylic with a laser, so I'm concerned about the fumes, but who cares? A real air filtration system is very expensive I assume...

    Last edited by TurkishDelight; 05-04-2012 at 01:44 PM.


  7. #7
    Registered
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Location
    UK
    Posts
    873
    Downloads
    0
    Uploads
    0

    Default

    MSDS

    Not "Toxic" per-se like you imagine (cyanide etc) but anything even nitrogen that reduces oxygen saturation can lead to harmful effects and / or death.

    I'd be more concerned about it's irritant effects.

    I cut Acrylic on occasion and really don't have any concerns, but if I were doing for a day job (8 hour shifts etc) and could smell it then I'd likely be raising a bit of noise with the health and safety guy at my workplace.

    Pure water isn't toxic, drink enough of it over a short time period and it will still kill you.

    best wishes

    Dave



  8. #8
    Registered
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    5
    Downloads
    0
    Uploads
    0

    Default MSDS is the key

    The MSDS is your best source for determining if you are OK cutting it on a laser. For any material look at what the MSDS sheet has to say about what happens if it burns. If it is very flammable you do not want to cut it on a laser for obvious reasons. If the MSDS says that you need portable breathing apparatus and a full suit to cover you skin to fight a fire from the material you should not cut it even with good ventilation. Sending the fumes out of the building with a big enough vent fan to assure most of the bad stuff is gone is the best first measure.

    Some non-flammable materials need caution for long term exposure too. Anything with chromium in it, like stainless steel, can produce hexavalent chromium when cut with a laser. For people who cut stainless a good ventilation system or filtration system is recommended. In addition you should have an independent lab test the air to make sure that it is within OSHA standards for the carcinogen, hexavalent chromium when you are actually cutting stainless steel. I recommend an independent lab rather than OSHA.

    With your low power lasers you probably do not melt enough stainless to matter. Unless the new laser is a 4000 watt metal cutting machine.



  9. #9
    Member
    Join Date
    May 2012
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    24
    Downloads
    0
    Uploads
    0

    Default

    Might I suggest stronger ventilation fans on the machines (venting to outdoors with proper pre-filters to collect dust) and somewhere for air to enter the room from?

    You shouldn't need a filtration mask or even be able to smell a laser cutter if the ventilation is set up properly.

    Last edited by slopecarver; 05-05-2012 at 06:25 PM.


  10. #10
    Registered
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Location
    Turkey
    Posts
    75
    Downloads
    0
    Uploads
    0

    Default

    Yesterday I cut acrylic nonstop for about 4-5 hours, but nothing happened. Today I started to cut acrylic again at about 9 am (almost non-stop) until evening. At about 4 pm I started to feel a strong headache and felt a bit sick in the stomach. It's highly possible that I got mildly poisoned. Lesson of the day: Toxic materials accumulate in the body and won't be flushed for a while by itself. So even if you feel good at the end of the day, even a lesser amount of toxic fumes can make you sick the next day. This happened with a small, closed case machine with proper ventilation. Think what can happen with a open flatbed/blade type machine.



  11. #11
    Registered
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Location
    UK
    Posts
    873
    Downloads
    0
    Uploads
    0

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by TurkishDelight View Post
    At about 4 pm I started to feel a strong headache and felt a bit sick in the stomach. It's highly possible that I got mildly poisoned. Lesson of the day: Toxic materials accumulate in the body and won't be flushed for a while by itself.
    It's highly unlikely this is related to laser cutting acrylic, the by products of acrylic cutting aren't in themselves toxic but anything that excludes oxygen can be a hazard. Acrylic fumes are tiny particles of dust that could present as an irritant but past that the toxicity just isn't there.

    Toxic poisoning affects the body in a different way, most products have an LD50 rating that defines how toxic they are if they enter the body by any means. The well known ones are obvious, Lead, Mercury, Thallium etc but show no real effect until such time as a build up causes problems. Other toxins such as Hydrogen Cyanide have more immediate effect as the saturation level before a hazardous result are far far lower than say Lead or Thallium.
    Everything including plain tap water can in the case of massive intervention into the body can kill you, even air under some circumstances is a lethal gas.

    I wouldn't worry about being poisoned by acrylic but I would have concerns about breathing what amounts to an irritant into my lungs

    best wishes

    Dave



  12. #12
    Registered
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Location
    Turkey
    Posts
    75
    Downloads
    0
    Uploads
    0

    Default

    I just can't keep myself from coming back to this topic. Any suggestion for a Breather, Gas Mask etc. while cutting acrylic with a 150W laser?



Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  


About CNCzone.com

    We are the largest and most active discussion forum for manufacturing industry. The site is 100% free to join and use, so join today!

Follow us on


Our Brands

Laser cutting safety

Laser cutting safety