Types of plasma

Traditional single-flow plasma

This type regularly applies air or nitrogen gas, which may produce and cool plasma.

Double-flow plasma (without a shield) 

This type makes use of a gas for plasma and another one in the form of a shielded gas. In case of a small system (below 125 amps) pressed air serves for plasma as well as a shielded gas. Double gas unshielded system has got an open headpiece and it is not suitable for dragging cut.

Double-flow plasma (with a shield)

This type makes use of plasma and shielded gases. In case of a system below 125 amps, air-gas mostly serves as plasma and shielded gases. Shielded system is advantageous as it implies insulating the headpiece off touching the melted metal rollbacks from piercing. It makes possible dragging cut in manual application. Onward improvements (conic-flow system) have brought on advanced cutting efficiency as well as longer headpiece life in certain technologies.

Top Precision plasma cutting

This technique implies increasing power as the special headpiece structure makes the arch narrower. Due to it, plasma cutting provides high precision cutting of materials no more than 50 mm (2 inches) with excellent angular depth, narrow cuts and more cutting speed compared to the traditional plasma cutting techniques. This technique often suggests cutting accuracy in the ranges of +/- 0.25 mm (0.010).

Modern top precision technologies realize automation of top degrees and are suitable for automatic application. Many improved technologies offer CAM software managing usual cut applications. Top precision plasma allows having circular holes that do not possess tapers. Ridges are quadrate, free of dross.  Between cut intervals provide more efficiency. Single Plasma technology allows cutting thickness more than 182 mm through the single torch. The torch cuts and marks the material by means of the same headpiece opening.

X precision plasma. 

This is the latest and most innovative technique. It provides great efficiency for mild steel.
It also extends the application of the innovative Hypertherm high-definition process for a wide range of applications in non-ferrous metallurgy. In case it is set upon top-quality automation cut machines, X definition plasma delivers angular accuracy for edges thus competing with laser (until ISO 9013 Range 2 for thin stuff, Range 3 for thick stuff providing more constancy).

This technology includes a series of innovative cut techniques such as:

MyFlow vortical or ventilated headpiece technique, which is a special two-part headpiece, aligns and concentrates plasma arch to increase arc stability and energy density leading to a clean, sharp, stable edge performance for various steels as well as aluminum.

Ventilated water injection(VWI)

Patented process using ventilated plasma gas N2 and protective gas H2O reduces angular and sharper ridges upon aluminum and stainless steel. Vent-to-Shield is a technique which allows hydrogen from the produced plasma gas get regenerated and mixed with a protective gas, decreasing angularity and providing more uniform ridge colors for stainless steels less than 12 mm.

Plasma resurfacing is a patented technology which implies adding a chamber to the headpiece to suppress and absorb fluctuations creating arch inconsistency during cuts for weak currents, for extremely narrow arches that are required in case of thinner stainless application. This excepts waved and unevenly cutting surface.

Cool headpiece is a patented feature for the 300A oxygen processing, that implies sending cool liquid directly to the headpiece opening, which improves the quality of cutting over the consumability life above 40%.

Improved arc stability is a technology modifying the shielding of the protective gas to increase the consistency of the arch when exiting the piercing hole or from a sharp angle to reduce the length of the input and improve cutting performance.