Hoewel bijna elk materiaal dat je in je graveersysteem stopt, wat restjes of vuil kan bevatten of afgeven, kun je de meeste materialen gewoon veilig in je systeem gebruiken. Er zijn echter bepaalde materialen die niet geschikt zijn voor lasergraveren en -snijden – deze kunnen de binnenkant van je machine aantasten, waardoor de prestaties achteruitgaan en je garantie vervalt. Het kiezen van de juiste materialen is superbelangrijk om je lasersysteem langer mee te laten gaan.
Waterstofchloride en vinylchloride (vooral te vinden in PVC en andere kunststoffen) zijn slecht voor je lasersysteem. Als je deze materialen graveert of snijdt, kan dat onherstelbare schade aan je machine veroorzaken. Het is dus superbelangrijk om te weten waaruit je snij- en graveermaterialen bestaan. Maar hoe kom je erachter waaruit het materiaal bestaat dat je wilt lasersnijden of graveren? Lees verder om erachter te komen.
Material Safety Data Sheet
A Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) is designed to provide you the proper procedures for handling or working with a particular substance. These documents contain the elements used to make up the material and will indicate whether or not it contains elements that are potentially harmful to your engraving system. MSDS’s also include information such as physical data (melting point, boiling point, flash point etc.), toxicity, health effects, first aid, reactivity, storage, disposal, protective equipment, and spill/leak procedures.
Obtaining a MSDS
There are several ways to obtain a MSDS for the material sheet. The easiest way is to perform an Internet search with the key words “MSDS” and whatever material you’re working with (example: MSDS + Neoprene.)
Als je met deze methode niet de info vindt die je zoekt, neem dan rechtstreeks contact op met de fabrikant om een MSDS voor het materiaal in kwestie te krijgen.
Sample MSDS
Below are some sample safety data sheets for various products.
Neoprene – Notice that under hazardous combustion products, the MSDS indicates hydrogen chloride is emitted when the material is heated.
Polyester – there is no mention of toxic or questionable elements in this material so it appears safe to laser cut and/or engrave.
What happens if you engrave or cut something containing hydrogen or vinyl chloride?
If you don’t know what’s in the material you’re engraving or cutting, you may have unintentionally cut or engraved items containing polyvinyl chloride. Performing this once or twice will likely not drastically damage your machine; however, continued engraving or cutting of this material will corrode the inside of your machine.
A more important consideration are the potentially hazardous fumes that might be released from processing these materials. Some materials are quite toxic when burned and the damage to your health is much more important than the minor damage you might do to your machine.
Material Safety Data Sheets are an invaluable resource for laser engravers. To protect your health and the life of your machine, always obtain a MSDS for materials about which you are uncertain.
