Fume extraction

During laser marking, a certain degree of the surface is thermally degraded/”blasted”. This thermal degradation contains a mixture of particles and gaseous substances. The thermal energy causes the gases and the surrounding air to expand rapidly and the highly animalised ones escape from the surface, with all particles being entrained by the gases. This is smoke.

There are two main reasons for smoke capture:

• Operational reasons – the smoke deposits on the laser optics, which leads to lens damage and deteriorates the quality of the laser marking.
• Health and safety – particles released during manufacturing processes are smaller than one micron. Inhalation of these particles leads to health hazards. Some materials release harmful gases from which operators must be protected. BOFA industrial filters capture these particles in a multi-stage filtration system and bring clean air back into the workplace, preventing damage to the bronchial tubes or lungs.