Is the resultant water pressure?

The resultant water pressure would be 10 times that of the hydraulic oil

Htf\ pressure. The quick answer is 30,000 psi.

The entire unit is designed for long life, while also designed to fail in a safe way. Waterjet systems fail in a gradual,

rather than instantaneous way. The seals and connections begin to leak slowly through specially designed weep

holes. The operator or maintenance person can see a drip escaping from a weep hole. The location of the drip and

the amount of water indicate when maintenance should be performed. Usually, the maintenance person can

schedule the periodic maintenance of seals and check valves out 1 to 2 weeks into the future by simply monitoring

the gradual weeping. Warning and shutdown sensors also cover the pumping unit to further safeguard against

pump damage.

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Troubleshooting of an intensifier is quite simple. Dripping of hot water from a weep hole indicates a high-pressure leak,

cold water indicates low-pressure. In the actual image, those drops labeled hot or warm are in red, cold is in blue.

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How Waterjet Cutting Works

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Introduction

In the battle to reduce costs, engineering and manufacturing

departments are constantly on the lookout for an edge. The

waterjet process provides many unique capabilities and

advantages that can prove very effective in the cost battle.

Learning more about the waterjet technology will give you an opportunity to put these cost-cutting capabilities to

work.

Beyond cost cutting, the waterjet process is recognized as the most versatile and fastest growing process in the

world (per Frost & Sullivan and the Market Intelligence Research Corporation). Waterjets are used in high

production applications across the globe. They compliment other technologies such as milling, laser, EDM, plasma

and routers. No noxious gases or liquids are used in waterjet cutting, and waterjets do not create hazardous

materials or vapors. No heat effected zones or mechanical stresses are left on a waterjet cut surface. It is truly a

Versatile, productive, cold cutting process.

The waterjet has shown that it can do things that other technologies simply cannot. From cutting whisper thin

details in stone, glass and metals; to rapid hole drilling of titanium; to cutting of food, to the killing of pathogens in

beverages and dips, the waterjet has proven itself unique.

History of Waterjets

Dr. Norman Franz is regarded as the father of the waterjet. He was the first person who studied the use of

ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) water as a cutting tool. The term UHP is defined as more than 30,000 pounds per square

Inch (psi). Dr. Franz, a forestry engineer, wanted to find new ways to slice thick trees into lumber. In the 1950's,

Franz first dropped heavy weights onto columns of water, forcing that water through a tiny orifice. He obtained

short bursts of very high pressures (often many times higher than are currently in use), and was able to cut wood

and other materials. His later studies involved more continuous streams of water, but he found it difficult to obtain

high pressures continually. Also, component life was measured in minutes, not weeks or months as it is today.

Dr. Franz never made a production lumber cutter. Ironically, today wood cutting is a very minor application for UHP

technology. But Franz proved that a focused beam of water at very high velocity had enormous cutting power — a

power that could be utilized in applications beyond Dr. Franz's wildest dreams.

In 1979, Dr. Mohamed Hashish working at Flow Research, began researching methods to increase the cutting

power of the waterjet so it could cut metals, and other hard materials. Dr. Hashish, regarded as the father of the

abrasive-waterjet, invented the process of adding abrasives to the plain waterjet. He used garnet abrasives, a

material commonly used on sandpaper. With this method, the waterjet (containing abrasives) could cut virtually

any material. In 1980, abrasive-waterjets were used for the first time to cut steel, glass, and concrete. In

1983, the world's first commercial abrasive waterjet cutting system was sold for cutting automotive glass. The first

adopters of the technology were primarily in the aviation and space industries which found the waterjet a perfect

tool for cutting high strength materials such as Inconel, stainless steel, and titanium as well as high strength light-

weight composites such as carbon fiber composites used on military aircraft and now used on commercial

airplanes. Since then, abrasive waterjets have been introduced into many other industries such as job-shop,

stone, tile, glass, jet engine, construction, nuclear, and shipyard, to name a few.

Waterjet Cutting Applications

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Endless Possibilities

Waterjet cutting technology is one of the fastest growing major machine tool processes in the world due to its

versatility and ease of operation. Manufacturers are realizing that there are virtually no limits to what waterjets are

capable of cutting and machining. Machine shops of all sizes are realizing greater efficiency and productivity by

implementing UHP waterjets in their operations. Waterjets are becoming the machine tool of choice for many

shops. Since abrasive waterjet (AWJ) technology was first invented by Flow in the early 1980s, the technology has

rapidly evolved with continuous research and development. What makes waterjets so popular? Waterjets require

few secondary operations, produce net-shaped parts with no heat-affected zone, heat distortion, or mechanical

stresses caused by other cutting methods, can cut with a narrow kerf, and can provide better usage of raw

material since parts can be tightly nested. As a result of the FlowMaster PC control system and intuitive operation,

waterjets are extremely easy to use. Typically, operators can be trained in hours and are producing high quality

parts in hours. Additionally, waterjets can cut virtually any material, leaving a satin-smooth edge. These benefits

add up to significant cost savings per part in industries that have traditionally defined productivity by cost per hour.

Waterjet cutting offers a host of benefits to manufacturers of all types. Some highlights include:

Unmatched Versatility

Flow waterjets enable you to cut a variety of applications with ease. Whatever the shape, dimensions, or material,

our easy-to-use FlowMaster® software lets you bring valuable versatility to your business.