An energy based model for laser cutting natural stone

This paper presents an analytical model for cutting natural stones with CO2 laser. The used natural stone, denominated Royal Perlato of Coreno, is a marble quarried in the South of Lazio, Italy. It is mainly composed of calcium carbonate (99%) and represents the earliest example of polymorphism found in natural substances. In particular, an analytical model to simulate the process, was implemented on a personal computer. The implemented model determines the shape and dimension of kerf geometry on a rectilinear path, using such variables as the thermo-physical characteristics of the marble, the characteristics of the laser beam and the variables of the process. The results obtained show very good agreement with experimental values.