Evaluation of the Surface Quality Obtained in AISI 201 Stainless Steel by Fiber Laser Cutting in 2 mm Sheet

Fiber laser cutting technology on materials such as stainless steels is one of the most effective compared to other technologies due to its accuracy and speed of cutting. Stainless steel 201 has a lower nickel and chromium content defining it as a non-magnetic austenitic material resistant to corrosion. Its low nickel content makes it inexpensive, and the similar characteristics to AISI 304 make it reliable a substitute. For the development of this study, the effects of cutting process parameters such as: laser power, gas pressure and cutting speed on surface quality were investigated through the surface roughness with the response surface methodology (RSM). In addition to the use of Taguchi methodology and ANOVA variance analysis to determine the influence of the studied factors. The cutting speed parameter had the most significant influence on the surface quality obtained, varying the roughness from 2.112 to 4.663 µm, and from 30 to 100 mm/s with a remarkable percentage difference of 69.43% with respect to the cutting parameters studied, and an influence of the combined parameters of the gas pressure with the laser power of 15.57%.