Stainless steel, as an important engineering material, is widely used in construction, chemical, food, medical and other fields. In the processing of stainless steel, cutting is an indispensable part. At present, laser cutting, water cutting and plasma cutting are the three main cutting methods. Although they can effectively cut stainless steel, they are significantly different in terms of principle, scope of application and effect.

Laser cutting is the use of high energy density laser beam irradiation on the surface of stainless steel, so that the material quickly melt, vaporize or reach the ignition point, while the high-speed airflow will melt or burn the material away to form a cutting slit. Laser cutting has the advantages of high precision, fast speed, small heat affected zone, etc., especially suitable for thin plate and high precision cutting. However, the cost of laser cutting equipment is higher, and the technical requirements for the operator are also higher.

Water knife cutting, also known as high pressure water jet cutting, is the use of high speed jet water impact stainless steel surface, so that the material under the strong impact force rupture, separation. Water knife cutting has the advantages of fast cutting speed, no thermal deformation, environmental protection, etc., especially suitable for occasions where the quality of the cutting surface is high. However, water knife cutting has higher requirements for equipment, the cutting speed is relatively slow, and the cutting effect for thick plates is not as good as laser cutting and plasma cutting.

Plasma cutting is the use of high temperature, high energy plasma gas cutting stainless steel. During the cutting process, the plasma gas forms an arc between the electrode and the workpiece, ionizing the gas and generating high temperatures, thereby melting and cutting the stainless steel. Plasma cutting has the advantages of large cutting thickness, fast speed and low cost, which is especially suitable for cutting medium and thick plates. However, the cutting surface quality of plasma cutting is relatively poor and the heat affected zone is large, which may not be suitable for cutting with high precision and high quality requirements.

Laser cutting, water knife cutting and plasma cutting have advantages and disadvantages, and the appropriate cutting method should be selected according to the specific needs. For thin plate and high precision cutting, laser cutting is the best choice; For the occasion of high cutting surface quality requirements, water knife cutting is more advantageous; For the cutting of medium and thick plates, plasma cutting is more cost-effective. When choosing the cutting method, it is also necessary to comprehensively consider the equipment cost, operation difficulty, production efficiency and other factors to achieve the best cutting effect.