ENHANCING LASER CUTTING QUALITY OF GALVANIZED IRON THROUGH MULTI-OBJECTIVE OPTIMIZATION USING TOPSIS

Abstract

A cutting procedure that uses heat energy to cut materials without coming into direct contact with the workpiece is laser cutting. Galvanized steel is favored because of its remarkable durability, which combines steel's strength and formability with resistance to corrosion. The Taguchi technique and TOPSIS, a multi-criteria decision-making model, are applied in this work to determine the optimal laser cutting parameters for enhancing surface quality. This study investigates how Cutting Speed (CS), Laser Power (LP), and Gas Pressure (GP) affect kerf width, surface roughness, and cutting time. To ascertain the influence of each input parameter on the output responses, an ANOVA is performed. The best set of parameters, according to the data, is a gas pressure of 8 bar, a power of 1000 W, and a cutting speed of 18 m/min. After laser cutting under optimal conditions, SEM was employed to view the material's surface topography. Furthermore, the results reveal that the grooves and surface marks are less apparent, which is indicative of a rather stable melting and material removal process when the conditions are optimal.