Welding International, 2015

Vol. 29, No. 7, 502–520, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09507116.2014.921070

Selected from Quarterly Journal of the Japan Welding Society 31(2) 141– 156

Study on the relationship between the heat transfer characteristics of preheating gas and cutting
performance of oxyfuel gas cutting
Naoki Osawaa, Junji Sawamuraa, Yuichi Ikegamib and Kazue Yamaguchia
a
Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, Osaka, Japan; bAir Water Inc., Hyogo, Japan
(Received 6 March 2013; final version received 24 May 2013)

Plate temperature and heat input in an oxyfuel gas cutting process with H2/LP gas and LPG flame are calculated by three-
dimensional FE heat conduction analyses. FE analyses are performed by using moving coordinates, and cutting groove
temperature is determined by iterative calculation. The two-dimensional groove temperature distribution determined by
Matsuyama’s theory is chosen as the initial values in this iterative calculation. The heat transfer properties of the preheating
flame are determined by using the genetic algorithm-based heat transfer estimation technique proposed in the previous
report. The validity of the proposed numerical procedure and the accuracy of the determined groove temperature are
examined by comparing the calculated and measured plate temperature and heat-affected zone sizes. Heat input due to
preheating, qG, and that due to self-burning of steel, qB, are estimated in these analyses, and they are compared with the heat
inputs estimated by Wells’ and modified Wells’ equations. The relation between the heat transfer characteristics of the
preheating gas flame and plate temperature distribution is examined, and the cutting performance improvement mechanisms
of hydrogen preheating are discussed. As a result, the followings are found: (1) the three-dimensional groove temperature
distribution can be calculated by performing the iterative analyses procedure proposed in this study; (2) the critical cutting
speed can be estimated once the gas heat transfer parameters are known; (3) it is not appropriate to evaluate the magnitude of
cutting thermal deformation only from the preheating gas’s total calorific value; (4) under the conditions chosen, the heat
generated by self-burning is inadequate to maintain the cutting process, and it is essential to supplement heat by preheating;
(5) the faster cutting speed and smaller total heat input of H2/LP gas are results of the larger local heat transfer coefficient
below the gas ejection hole. It is supposed that the improvement in oxyfuel gas cutting performance can be achieved by
modifying the heating apparatus so that the local heat transfer coefficient becomes larger.
Keywords: oxyfuel gas cutting; heat transfer; hydrogen – LP mixed gas; inverse heat conduction problem; genetic
algorithms; moving coordinate; self-burning; cutting speed; heat input; Wells’ equation

1. Introduction of the relationship between preheating heat input and

With oxyfuel gas cutting, the surface of the material to be
cut is heated by a preheating flame; the cutting start point
is heated to at least the ignition point, and oxygen is blown
onto this to cause an oxidation reaction and cutting takes
place with the molten oxide and metal blown away by the
kinetic energy of the cutting oxygen flow. In such cases,
heat is supplied both by heat transfer from the preheating
flame to the material to be cut and the combustion of the
material itself (self-burning). Below, the heat supply due
to the former will be referred to as ‘preheating heat input’
and heat supply due to the latter as ‘material combustion
heat input’.
If the values for preheating heat input and material
combustion heat input during application of a specific
preheating flame state can be quantitatively evaluated, this
may be considered as being of use in elucidating the
relationship between the preheating flame state and the
cutting capability. The findings made in this kind of study
are expected to be of use in solving the skill transfer
problem caused by the de-skilling of preheating flame
adjustment, improvement of cutting performance by
optimization of preheating conditions and reduction in
greenhouse gas emissions.
However, there have been no previous examples, other
than that of Terasaki et al. [1], of the separate quantitative
evaluation of preheating heat input and material combus-
tion heat input and, to the best of the present authors’
knowledge, no examples of the quantitative investigation
q 2014 Taylor & Francis
material combustion heat input. Accordingly, in the
present study, a method was developed whereby the
effects of differences in the heat transfer characteristics of
the preheating gas flame on preheating heat input/material
combustion heat input can be evaluated quantitatively by
numerical calculation. In order to achieve this purpose, it
is necessary to be able to calculate accurately the quasi-
constant heat conduction field in the vicinity of the cutting
groove.
There have been many studies analysing quasi-
stationary heat conduction fields around moving heat
sources [2,3]. Most of these use coordinates fixed to the
work piece (hereafter: fixed coordinates) and, as the
positional coordinates of the heat sources change with
time, transient heat conduction analysis was performed.
When cutting problems are analysed by this method, the
melting of the cut material is expressed by element death
(extinction). According to Matsuyama et al. [4], the
temperature field near the cutting groove is strongly
dependent on the shape of the cutting groove leading edge.
Accordingly, the surface of the element that dies must be
on the cutting groove leading edge at both the new and old
times. A high degree of skill and considerable experience
are required to make this kind of element partitioning.
Even when appropriate element partitioning is performed,
a sudden change in the heat boundary conditions around
element death is thought to cause numerical instability of
both the preheating heat input and material combustion
 Welding International
heat input, resulting in a major deterioration in the
accuracy of the heat input calculation.
One method of solving this problem is the use of
coordinates fixed to the moving cutting torch (hereafter:
moving coordinates). In this case, the positional
coordinates of the torch and a point on the cutting groove
leading edge remain unchanged over time, and the melting
of the material to be cut is such that the temperature field is
expressed by parallel movement in the torch forward
direction movement and reverse movement. Because of
this, it is possible to avoid the difficulty of element
partitioning that is problematic when fixed coordinates are
used and the numerical instability associated with element
death. One example of a quasi-stationary heat conduction
analysis of the cutting problems using moving coordinates
is seen in the study by Matsuyama et al. [4], but this
addresses almost exclusively two-dimensional linear
problems. With oxyfuel gas cutting, a temperature
gradient in the thickness direction of the plate is produced
by the preheating gas flame, and this produces a three-
dimensional heat conduction field. Also as the temperature
of the steel changes from room temperature to melting
point in a short time, linear approximation in which the
temperature dependence of thermophysical properties is
ignored is not appropriate. For the above reasons, it is not
possible to use methods described in the previous studies
directly for the analysis of oxyfuel gas cutting.
Accordingly, in the present study, a numerical
calculation method was developed in which a movable
coordinate system was used, with which three-dimensional
nonlinear heat conduction analysis is possible. This
nonlinear finite element thermal conduction analysis, in
which the temperature dependence of the thermophysical
properties is taken into account, is carried out with the heat
conducted from the preheating gas flame evaluated by a
previously reported [5] method developed for piercing
problems and by the method of Matsuyama et al. [4] being
expanded into three dimensions, and with thermal
boundary conditions on the cutting groove decided. For
the melting of the material to be cut, the temperature at the
finite element node on the cutting groove leading edge
where the position coordinates do not change with time is
treated as being constantly the same as its melting point.
The effectiveness of the developed method has been
verified by a comparison between the estimation results
and experimental results for the thermal cycle of the metal
to be cut during gas cutting tests and the dimensions of the
heat-affected zone (HAZ) dimensions in the groove thus
formed. When the developed method is used, the
temperature and preheating heat input/material combus-
tion heat input of the heated plane at the cutting groove
front are calculated from oxyfuel gas cutting tests using a
pre-heating gas containing hydrogen LP (H2/LP gas) and
LP gas (LPG). This shows that the cutting groove front
temperature distribution is affected by the local thermal
transience rate of the preheating gas flame in the vicinity
of the cutting groove and that it is possible from the
temperature distribution at the front of the cutting groove
to estimate the maximum cutting speed for good cutting.
Furthermore, the preheating heat input and material
503
combustion heat input under various cutting conditions
were investigated, and the role of preheating heat input in
achieving continuity in the cutting state was examined.
2. Analysis theory
2.1 Thermal transience from the pre-heating flame
The present authors [7 –11] have previously shown that,
under the working conditions for shipbuilding steel, during
gas heating, the spatial distribution around the torch of the
gas temperature TG on the plate and local thermal
transience rate a do not depend on the torch movement
speed and is the same as the distribution during spot
heating and can be approximated as being unchanged over
time. A method was also developed whereby the
distribution of TG and a can be identified by inverse
thermal conduction analysis from the results of thin
circular plate spot heating tests, using a genetic algorithm
(GA). In a previous report [5], the present authors applied
this identification technique to the analysis of piercing
preheating flame heat transfer during oxyfuel gas cutting
and showed that it was possible to estimate accurately the
thermal cycle of the surface of the metal from room
temperature to when ignition temperature was reached.
It has been demonstrated in the previous report [5] that
the technique can be applied to cases in which the torch is
moved and also with great accuracy to cases in which the
temperature of the metal to be cut reached the ignition
temperature, close to its melting point. Accordingly, it is
thought that the heat transferred from the preheating flame
during cutting can be analysed with great accuracy using
this technique.
2.2 Treatment of combustion heat input
The combustion, melting and dispersion of the cut metal
form a complex phenomenon comprising many elemen-
tary processes. With the development of computational
science, it has increasingly become possible to simulate
each elementary process [12], but there are many unsolved
problems associated with the modelling of elementary
processes and identification of calculation parameters.
The stage has yet to be reached where it is possible to make
a quantitative evaluation of the heat supplied to a metal to
be cut under actual working conditions.
A substitute for direct analysis is a technique in which
the heat flux of heat supplied is determined so as to be the
same as the heat flux necessary for melting the metal to be
cut at the cutting groove leading edge. Specifically, a
quasi-static heat conduction field around the moving heat
source is determined such that the temperature at the
groove leading edge is kept at the melting point, and
thermal cutting conditions are fulfilled at the groove side
surface at a distance sufficiently to the rear of the torch, the
temperature gradient at the groove leading edge is
calculated and the supplied rate of heat flow density
evaluated. Matsuyama et al. [4] applied this technique to
the problems of plasma cutting of thin sheets and
estimated melting efficiency, and from a comparison of
504 N. Osawa et al.
Figure 1. Boundary conditions given in cutting groove.
these results with experimental results demonstrated its
effectiveness as a substitute method. Quasi-constant heat
conduction fields are evaluated using moving coordinates.
The use of moving coordinates in the finite element heat
conduction calculation of thermal cutting facilitates finite
element discretization which faithfully expresses the
groove shape and also makes it possible to prevent
deterioration in the accuracy of heat input calculation
caused by rapid changes in thermal boundary conditions,
without the need for expressing the melting of the cut
metal in terms of element death.
Matsuyama et al. [4] determined the undetermined
coefficients in two-dimensional quasi-constant analysis of
the heat conduction field around a moving heat source to
minimize the residual error between the temperature/
thermal flux and the thermal boundary conditions at a select
point on the cutting groove. The upper boundary conditions
of the cutting groove used in Matsuyama et al.’s analysis are
shown in Figure 1. Temperature uniformity (melting point)
at the cutting groove leading edge (the S1 boundary in
Figure 1) is thermally insulated being well separated from
the torch to the rear (the S3 boundary in Figure 1), and the
temperature and thermal flux are both assumed to be
unstable between S1 and S3 (the S2 boundary in Figure 1).
The subject of Matsuyama et al.’s [4] analysis is limited
to two-dimensional linear problems. Because of this, its
results cannot be applied directly to analysis of oxyfuel gas
cutting in which a temperature gradient in the plate thickness
direction is produced due to heat transmitted from the
preheating gas flame. In the present study, Matsuyama
et al.’s [4] method is expanded so that temperature
dependence of thermophysical properties and three-dimen-
sional heat conduction fields can be taken into consideration.
This expansion is carried out through the use of three-
dimensional heat conduction finite element analysis using a
moving coordinate system fixed to a moving heat source.
2.3 Finite element analysis of heat conduction using
a moving coordinate system
Consider a case in which a torch is in a straight line at a
fixed speed to cut a steel plate. Fixed coordinates (x, y, z)
are placed on the steel plate, with the xy plane in the steel
plate plane. The elapsed time from the start of calculation
is expressed as t and the xy component of the speed vector
of a torch moving in the xy plane as (u, v). Finite element
analysis of heat conduction using fixed coordinates [13] is
performed by iteration of procedures (a) and (b).
(a) At time t0 , with previously known torch xy
coordinates and temperature field, these are, respect-
ively, (x0, y0) and T0 (x, y, z). Equation (1) is solved,
when time increase is Dt and heat boundary
conditions around the torch (thermal flux distribution,
specified temperature distribution, heat transience
coefficient/external temperature distribution, etc.)
centred on (x0, y0) are given and the present
temperature is T0(x, y, z), to calculate the temperature
T1(x, y, z) at the new time t1 ¼ t0 þ Dt.
(b) With the torch coordinates at the new time being
(x0 þ uDt, y0 þ vDt) and the heat boundary con-
ditions are updated to make these coordinates central
and the present temperature becomes T1(x, y, z).


›T
½K
fT} þ ½C
¼ fF}; ð1Þ
›t
where [K ] is the heat conduction matrix, [C ] is the
thermal capacity matrix, {F} is the heat flux vector,
{T}, ( ›T/ ›t) are node temperature and node
temperature change rate vector.
In procedure (b), when the torch position coordinates
are unchanged at (x0, y0) and T1(x 2 uDt, y 2 vDt, z) is
given as the present temperature at positions (x, y, z), it is
possible to carry out heat conduction analysis using a
moving coordinate system fixed to the torch. When the
metal being cut is of limited dimensions, a domain which
was not the subject of analysis before the present time
appears within the model, at the edge in front of the torch
and the model must also be extended behind the torch.
In this study, this problem is addressed as follows.
A simplified drawing of the calculation model and
definitions of the quantities are shown in Figure 2.
A moving coordinate system (z, h) was formed on a steel
plate. The normal direction of the z and h axes is the same
direction as the fixed coordinate system (x, y). The torch
velocity expressed by the (x, y) coordinate system is
notated as (u, v), the torch position coordinates in the (z, h)
coordinate system as (Oz, Oh) and the norm of vector (u, v)
as jvj. With the (z, h) coordinate system, (Oz, Oh) is
Figure 2. A finite plate model for transient heat conduction
analysis using moving coordinates.
 Welding International
unchanged over time and the temperature field moves in
parallel by ( 2 u, 2 v) in a unit time. This vector
is referred to as ‘temperature field movement velocity’.
The distance of torch movement up to time t is jvjt.
With the torch position (Oz, Oh) in the (z, h)
coordinate system as the origin, the coordinate c is set as
the vector for the direction of the temperature field
movement velocity. This is c , 0 in front of the torch,
becoming c . 0 to its rear. With the mean value of the
heat conductivity of steel being k, ~ there is a significant
temperature rise within the domain – 16k=jvj ~ 2
# c , 0 in
front of the torch. The c coordinate (a negative value) at
the front edge of this domain is expressed as ‘fore’ and the
c coordinate (a positive value) at the rear edge of this
domain as ‘aft’. ‘aft’ increases with t. ‘aft’ expresses the
values of each of t ¼ 0, calculated finish time tE and time t
as aft0, aftE and aftt.
When the model front edge is more distant from the torch
than jforej, any temperature rise in a calculation domain
newly occurring at the model front edge due to temperature
field movement can be ignored. Room temperature is given as
the temperature of this domain. The rear of the model is
prepared up to a position at a distance aftE from the torch and
at t ¼ 0, an element at c . aft0 is killed (i.e. its conductivity is
reduced to the minimal value) and the calculations begun and
when the time changes from t to t þ Dt, the element at aftt #
c , afttþDt is born (i.e. an effective value is given to its
conductivity). The temperature at the calculation point of the
element thus born is given as the temperature at the
calculation point that is c ¼ aftt and at the same distance
from the cut line.
2.4 Parallel movement of the temperature field
In analysis using the moving coordinates described in
Section 2.3, the moving coordinate system (z, h) in the
plate and the fixed coordinating system z in the plate
thickness direction are combined to express the locations
of the calculation points (z, h, z). In this analysis, the
temperature field T1(x, y, z) moves in parallel after the time
increment to the same extent as the torch displacement
(u dt, v dt) multiplied only by 2 1 during Dt. Thus, the
temperature at the locations (z, h, z) at the new time is
given by the temperature at the location at the end of the
previous time step (z 2 uDt, h 2 vDt, z). Below, this point
in the coordinates is referred to as the ‘target’.
The temperature at the location of the temperature field
during T1 (z 2 uDt, h 2 vDt, z) was calculated by the
following procedures.
(a) A list Ltarget is prepared by selecting those of the various
finite elements in the model where the distance from the
centre of the element to the target is below a fixed value
(several times the average value of the side lengths of the
elements surrounding the target).
(b) The normal coordinates (rx, ry, rz) of the target location
are calculated by the Newton–Raphson method for the
various elements in Ltarget.
(c) If there are ie elements, where the absolute value of all
components of the normal coordinates is 1 or lower, it is
505
judged that the target is within the ieth element and the
temperature of the target is calculated from the node
temperatures within the element, using the shape
function of the elements and the target normal
coordinates.
2.5 Calculation of groove temperature
2.5.1 Summary of the analytical method
In the present study, the thermal flux on the groove was
evaluated by estimating the temperature field around a
moving heat source which satisfies the thermal conditions at
the cutting groove. For the estimation of the temperature
field, the two-dimensional temperature field on the groove,
as shown by boundaries S1 and S2 in Figure 1, is evaluated
using the method of Matsuyama et al. [4], with reference to
the groove width, cutting speed and leading edge shape
measured in the cutting tests. This two-dimensional
temperature field is given consistently in the plate thickness
direction by the groove in the three-dimensional finite
element model, and heat boundary conditions for preheating
gas heat transience at the heating face are thus given for the
three-dimensional heat conduction analysis to be performed.
As a two-dimensional temperature field takes no
account of the plate-thickness-direction heat gradient
produced by preheating, a large temperature discontinuity,
bordered by planes S2 (the temperature regulation plane)
and S3 (insulation plane), is caused in three-dimensional
measurement. In order to reduce this temperature
discontinuity, the temperature of the S2 plane in the
three-dimensional model is adjusted so that there is a
smooth continuity between the S2 surface temperature and
the S3 surface temperature. When there is an unignorable
temperature discontinuity at the S2/S3 plane boundary even
when calculation is performed again using the amended S2
surface temperature, the S2 surface temperature is
modified again.
By carrying out the above procedures, it is possible to
obtain a heat conduction field consistent with the heat
gradient across the plate thickness caused by preheating,
while also approximately meeting the thermal conditions
for the groove leading edge and rear side surface.
2.5.2 Identification of two-dimensional temperature
fields
Two-dimensional temperature fields are calculated by the
analytical method of Matsuyama et al. [4]. The analytical
method used is described below.
Consider quasi-constant two-dimensional thermal
conduction around a cutting torch. The cutting groove
leading edge is approximated by the semi-ellipsoid shown
in Figure 1 and separated in domains S1 –S3. F is the
centre point of the groove leading edge and M is a point
directly transversal to the torch centre. As metal is melted in
S1 (section FM), the temperature on S1 can be approximated
to be constant at the melting point. S3 is a groove side
surface at an adequate distance to the rear of the torch,
which can be approximated as the insulation boundary. S2 is
506 N. Osawa et al.
a domain where the temperature and thermal flux are
unstable.
In this section, physical values used when the temperature
dependence of thermophysical values is ignored are referred
to as ‘representative values’. With the torch centre point O
shown in Figure 1 as the origin, the polar coordinates (r, f) in
Figure 1 are set in the plate surface and z coordinate in the
plate thickness direction so z ¼ 0 at the plate face. When the
heat reflection at the face and back surfaces of the plate are
estimated, using a cylindrical coordinate system (r, f, z), and
the temperature dependence of thermophysical properties is
ignored, the two-dimensional quasi-constant temperature
field around a moving heat source in a plate of infinite size is
given by the following equation.
  1  
vj X v X
T 2 T 0 ¼ exp 2 Cm K m g cosðmfÞ;
2k m¼0 2k~ ð2Þ
j ¼ r cos f;
where T is the present temperature, T0 is the initial
temperature, v is the velocity of the heat source movement,
k~ is representative value for heat conductivity, Km(x) is a
Bessel function of the second kind distortion, f is the angle
that the line section joining the torch location and evaluation
point makes with the heating line, g is the angle the groove
normal vector makes with the heating line and Cm is an
undetermined coefficient. The thermal flux qn on the groove
can be calculated as T in Equation (2), the gradient in the
direction of the groove normal vector.
A finite number is collocated in domains/domains S1
and S3 on the groove. It is required that T ¼ T1 (melting
point) at the select point in S1 and qn ¼ 2 dT/dn ¼ 0
(insulation condition) at the select point in S3. In Equation
(2), when m has a N term of 0 – N 2 1, the select point in
the S1 domain has number L and the select point in the S3
domain has number M, it is possible to obtain a
simultaneous linear equation of numbers (L þ M) from
the above conditions for an undetermined number
Cm(m ¼ 0,1, . . . ,N 2 1). Cm(m ¼ 0,1, . . . ,N) is chosen so
that the residual difference of the conditional expression is
minimized. In the present study, Cm is chosen using the
Moore– Penrose generalized inverse matrix. The specific
calculation procedures are shown below.
T 2 T0 is divided by Tf, and qn by c~ p~ vT f to render these
non-dimensional, expressed as T, ~ q~ n . The following equation
is obtained by rearranging Equations (2) and (3). c~ and p~ are
representative values for specific heat and density.
X
N 21
AIm Cm 2 BI ¼ 0;
m¼0 ð3Þ
I ¼ 1; . . . ; L; L þ 1; . . . ; L þ M;
where AIm and B1 are defined by the following
equations.
8
< exp ð2mI cos fI ÞK m ðmI Þ cos ðmfI Þ;
AIm ¼  
ð4Þ
: K m ðmI Þ 2cos p2 cos ðmfÞ 2 v1 m sin p2 2 fI ;
(
1:0; 1 # I # L;
BI ¼ ð5Þ
0:0; L þ 1 # I # þL þ M;
where mI ¼ vrI/2k in Equation (4). Cm in Equation (3) can
be calculated by the following equation in order to
minimize residual error.
 21
fC m } ¼ ½AIm
T ½AIm
½AIm
T fBI }: ð6Þ
The value T~ I of T~ in select point I can be calculated by
substituting Cm in Equation (6) into Equation (2), as in the
following equation.
N 21
T~ I ¼ expð2mI cosðfI ÞÞ Cm K m cosððI 2 1ÞfI Þ: ð7Þ
m¼0
The groove temperature on the groove in select point I can
be calculated if T~ is converted into a physical quantity.
2.5.3 Estimation of three-dimensional temperature field
If the distance in plate thickness direction from the heating
face to the evaluation surface is z, the cutting groove shape
is unchanged in respect of z. The finite element model of
the metal to be cut (the plate shape) is prepared by
extruding the calculation mesh on the heating face in the
plate thickness direction. A surface formed by nodes
parallel to the heating face is referred to as an ‘evaluation
surface’, and the distance in plate thickness direction from
a heating face to an evaluation surface is z. Domains S1 – S3
are set on each of the evaluation surfaces. The gauged path
length along the groove from the intersection F of the
heating line centre and the groove leading edge as shown
in Figure 1 is s. The section length from point F to S1
terminal is l1, and the section length from the S1 terminal to
the S2 terminal is l1. The groove temperature at a point at a
distance s from point F on the evaluation surface where
z ¼ z is referred to as T(s, z). The two-dimensional
temperature field, as defined in Section 2.5.2, gives the
temperature and thermal flux on the evaluation surface
groove when there is no temperature gradient in the plate
thickness direction and the thermophysical properties have
no temperature dependence.
With gas cutting, a temperature gradient in the plate
thickness direction is caused by the preheating gas flame,
and the temperature dependence of the thermophysical
properties cannot be ignored. Accordingly, the tempera-
ture distribution on the groove is modified by the following
procedures at the evaluation surfaces and is used as the
thermal boundary conditions for three-dimensional anal-
ysis. As the temperature on S1 is constant at melting point
and the S3 domain is treated as insulating, modification of
1 # I # L;
 
L þ 1 # I # L þ M;
 Welding International
the temperature is only required in the S2 domain.
(1) The two-dimensional temperature distribution at a
point at distance s from point F determined by the
method of Matsuyama et al. [4] is expressed as
T2D(s). Three-dimensional finite element heat con-
duction analysis is performed using a moving
coordinate system, with the temperature T2D(s)
given at the S2 boundary of all evaluation surfaces
and the preheating gas flame and its heat conduction
conditions given at the heating face. The groove
temperature in the three-dimensional temperature
distribution at a point at a distance s from point F on
the evaluation surface where z ¼ z is expressed as
T3D(s, z).
(2) When a discontinuity of temperature occurs at the
S2/S3 boundary (s ¼ l1 þ l2) at the evaluation surface
T3D(s, z), where z ¼ z, the temperature on S2 is
modified as follows.
s 2 l1
Tðs; zÞ ¼ T 2D ðsÞ þ fT 3D ðl1 þ l2 ; zÞ
l2 ð8Þ
2 T 2D ðl1 þ l2 ; zÞ}; ðl1 # s # l1 þ l2 Þ:
(3) When a discontinuity of temperature occurs at the
S2/S3 boundary, even when the temperature at S2 is
modified by Equation (8), Equation (8) is repeated
until the discontinuity is negligible.
3. Gas cutting tests
3.1 Spot heating tests
3.1.1 Test materials and methods
With the aim of identifying the heat transience
characteristics of the preheating flame, a spot heating
test was performed using a 300-mm diameter, 6-mm
thickness mild steel (SS400) thin disk as shown in
Figure 3. The disk was held horizontal on top of insulating
material, and the centre was heated with a gas preheating
flame. A hydrogen-LP gas mixture (hydrogen 70%,
propane 30%; hereafter: ‘H2/LP gas’) was used as the
pre-heating gas. As, in the present study, hydrogen was
produced by the electrolysis of H2O, a mixed gas of
hydrogen 52%, propane 22% and oxygen 26% was supplied
as the H2/LP gas. In the heating by H2/LP gas, oxygen was
added to this mixed gas and a preheating flame formed.
The heating conditions were the same as in the
previous report [5]. Thus, the cutting device was a Type
6023 Precision Thick Material Cutting Machine (Koike
Oxygen Industries) for both H2/LP gas and propane, with a
burner nozzle of Type 105A-2 (Koike Oxygen Industries)
for H2/LP gas and of Type 106-2 (Koike Oxygen
Industries) for LPG. The flow rates and pressures of the
fuel gases (H2/LP gas, LPG) and the oxygen are shown in
Table 1. As noted above, the flow rates and pressures of the
H2/LP gas shown in Table 1 are values for mixed gases
with an admixture of oxygen produced by the above
electrolysis. Under these conditions, the ratios between the
quantity of oxygen supplied and the quantity of oxygen
507
Figure 3. Test specimen used in spot heating tests.
required for total combustion were approximately 76% for
LPG and , 79% for H2/LP gas, that is, approximately
equivalent. The white core length was , 5 mm with both
LPG and H2/LP gas. The torch height (the distance
between the steel plate surface and burner nozzle) was
6 mm (during piecing, the white core length þ 1 mm, as
recommended by the manufacturer). The flow rate for
H2/LP gas and for the oxygen was controlled by a
Yamatake mass flow meter/mass flow controller (Type
CMS500 for H2/LP gas; Type CMS50 for preheating
oxygen; Type CMS500 for cutting oxygen; Type CMQ200
for LPG). Conversion of flow rate signals to mass flow rate
was carried out using the conversion factor (CF) supplied
by the flow meter manufacturer in the cases of LPG and
oxygen, and a CF determined by calibration tests using a
prior capacity-step flow meter for H2/LP gas. The calorific
values in Table 1 were calculated as 10.7 MJ/m3 for the net
calorific value of hydrogen and 92.6 MJ/m3 for the net
calorific value of LPG and propane. The calorific value of
H2/LP gas, assumed to be proportional to the ratio of the
flow quantity of its components, was calculated on the
basis that hydrogen generates 5.34 MJ/h and propane
19.6 MJ/h. Under these conditions, the calorific value of
H2/LP gas is , 75% that of LPG.
As in the previous report [5], the temperature
distribution of the back surface of the steel plate was
measured using earth-type K thermocouples with a sheath
diameter of 0.1 mm fitted at two perpendicular directions
Table 1. Heating conditions employed in spot heating tests.
H2/LP gas LPG
Distance between nozzle and plate (mm) 6.0 6.0
Pressure of fuel gas (MPa) 0.038 0.023
Flow of fuel gas (l/min) 16.0a 6.0
Pressure of oxygen (MPa) 0.053 0.077
Flow of oxygen (l/min) 13.0b 22.8
Total calorific value (MJ/h) 24.9c 33.3
a
H2, 8.32 l/min; LP, 32 l/min; O2, 4.16 l/min.
b
O2, 4.16 l/min is supplied additionally from the fuel gas.
c
H2, 5.34 MJ/h; LP, 19.5 MJ/h.
508 N. Osawa et al.
Figure 4. Arrangement of thermocouples for spot heating tests.
from the centre of the back surface. As shown in Figure 4,
the thermocouples were fitted using a percussion welder at
pitches of 2 mm up to 12 mm from the centre, 4 mm up to
40 mm from the centre and 8 mm at the periphery; 25-
mm-thick steel wool was stretched over the back surface
of the disk. In the experiment, the thermocouple output
was measured for ,5 s at 0.5-s intervals after a lit torch
had been moved over the centre of the disk. The
movement of the torch was controlled by a Daiden Fanuc
ARC Mate DR-4000 welding robot.
3.1.2 Identification of heat transfer parameters
In this study, the gas temperature TG on the plate and the
distribution of local heat transience rate a around the
torch centre were identified from the results of the spot
heat tests by a method based on GA, as previously
reported [5]. The symmetrical finite element model for
procedure analysis shown in Figure 5 and the
temperature dependence of thermophysical properties
shown in Figure 6, as in the previous report [5], were
used in the GA analysis. Below, r is the distance from
the centre of the disk, r0 and rend are r at, respectively,
the preheating gas nozzle and the outer edge of the
analysis domain and r0 ¼ 3 mm and rend ¼ 32.4 mm. The
distribution of TG and a is genetically expressed as a
polygonal line with section points at locations at r ¼ 1.2,
1.6 and 1.8 mm on the inner side and r ¼ 4.28, 7.32,
13.4, 21.0 and 32.4 mm on the outer side of the gas
nozzle, and the parameters at r ¼ 0, r0 and rend were
given values within the range shown in Table 2. The GA
analysis was performed according to the self-adaptive-
evolution algorithm [14] using OPTIMUS 5.2 [15]
commercial optimization software (Table 3).
The distributions of the TG and a of H2/LP gas and of
LPG thus identified are shown in Figure 7. In the figure,
there are no marked differences between the TGs, but the
a for H2/LP gas to the outside of the combustion gas
nozzle (r ¼ 3 mm) is significantly greater than that for
Figure 5. The FE mesh used in direct heat conduction analysis of spot heating tests.
LPG. This trend was also noted in the previously reported
[5] piercing tests performed under almost identical gas
conditions.
The back surface temperature distributions shown in
Figure 7 of TG and a at r ¼ 2, 4, 6, 18 and 12 mm by
symmetrical heat conduction analysis, with thermal
boundary conditions given, were compared to the
measured temperatures at the same locations as the
measurement points shown in Figure 8 for H2/LP and
Figure 9 for LPG. It is clear from these figures that under
the experimental conditions of this study, it is valid to
make the approximation that the distributions of TG and a
are unchanged over time and that the heat transience
parameters thus identified are highly accurate.
3.2 Cutting tests
3.2.1 Test materials and methods
Gas cutting tests of a rectangular plate were performed
under the preheating conditions shown in Table 1,
identical to those for the spot heating tests in Section
3.1, with the aim of investigating the relationship between
the temperature of the metal to be cut during cutting and
the pre-heating flame behaviour and cutting groove shape.
The test specimen was, as shown in Figure 10, a 500-
mm-long, 300-mm-wide, 12-mm-thick mild steel plate
(SS400, surface as forged). The chemical composition of
the specimen is shown in Table 4.
Below, the length direction coordinate originating at a
point on the central line of one end of the plate is x and the
width direction coordinate originating at the central line is
y, heating is carried out along the x axis, starting at position
x ¼ 75 mm and ending at position x ¼ 425 mm. A 10-mm
diameter hole was made at the start point with a drill, and
there was no piercing due to the preheating flame. In the
test, the temperature-time history within the metal to be
cut is measured by K thermocouples with a sheath 0.1 mm
in diameter positioned as in Figure 10 (y ¼ 20 and 40 mm,
2 mm below the heating face), and the temperature of the
heating face is measured in a non-contact way using
infrared thermography (Flir Systems SC620NTSC). This
was taken at an emissivity of 0.97 and a measured
temperature range up to 20008C. The distance between the
steel plate heating point and thermography lens was
, 1.5 m, and a 640 £ 480 pixel temperature image of the
entire plate was recorded. After the completion of the
cutting, the groove leading edge shape was measured at
the end point, and the groove width was measured at the
centre of the heating line. Macroscopy of the lateral cross-
section was performed after cutting at a location
x ¼ 220 mm and the distances measured from the heating
face, plate thickness mid-plane and groove side surface on
the back surface to the HAZ periphery.
 Welding International 509

Figure 6. Temperature dependency of the material properties.
Table 2. The maximum and minimum values of heat transient
parameters at r ¼ 0, r ¼ r0, and r ¼ rE.
Figure 8. Comparison of the measured plate back surface
temperatures during spot heating tests with those obtained by
direct heat conduction analysis using the identified TG and a of
H2/LP gas.

Heat transfer coefficient, Gas temperature right on

a (W/(m2 K)) the plate, TG (K)
r Minimum Maximum Minimum Maximum
0 1900 2600 3400 3700
r0 2500 3500 3800 4200
rend 480 600 867 1500

Table 3. Control parameters of self-adaptive evolution

employed in the analyses.
Random seed 1
Number of parents 5
Sexuality 5
Population size 60
Initial step width 1
Average stopping stepwidth 0.01 Figure 9. Comparison of the measured plate back surface
Stepwidth mutation factor 1.3 temperatures during spot heating tests with those obtained by
Maximum number of iterations 30 direct heat conduction analysis using the identified TG and a of
LPG.

Before the measurements, preheating cutting tests
were performed and at various cutting speeds and under
the preheating conditions shown in Table 1 and the high-
quality cutting speed range, up to the upper limit Vmax of
the cutting speed V, at which dross does not adhere to the
back surface, was investigated. In this investigation of
Vmax, the speed was increased in 50 mm/min stages from
V ¼ 300 mm/min, with Vmax being 1 stage slower than the
speed at which cutting became impossible. It was found as
a result that, in the case of H2/LP gas preheating as shown
in Table 1, Vmax ¼ 550 mm/min, and it was possible to
achieve good-quality cutting, with no dross adhering to the

Figure 7. Distributions of gas temperature right on the plate TG

and local heat transfer coefficient a during spot heating tests. Figure 10. Steel plate specimen used in cutting tests.
510 N. Osawa et al.

Table 4. Chemical composites of the material used in cutting

tests.

Chemical composition (%)

C 0.16 Mo 0.01
Si 0.15 Ti ,0.001
Mn 0.69 V ,0.01
P 0.022 Nb ,0.001
S 0.005 Sol. Al 0.013
Cu 0.01 O 0.0013
Ni 0.02 N 0.0037
Cr 0.04 SS400

back surface, up to V ¼ 300 mm/min. In the case of LPG

preheating as shown in Table 1, Vmax ¼ 400 mm/min, and it
was possible to achieve good-quality cutting, with no dross
adhering to the back surface, also up to V ¼ 300 mm/min.
On the basis of the results of the preheating tests, the
groove shape and temperature were measured and the
HAZ size measured by macroscopy, under the conditions
of V ¼ 550 and 300 mm/min for H2/LP gas preheating and
V ¼ 400 and 300 mm/min for LPG preheating.

3.2.2 Measurement results

An example of the thermographic measurement results for
the heating face temperature during cutting at the
maximum cutting speed Vmax ¼ 550 mm/min with H2/LP
gas is shown in Figure 11. In the figure, it is clear that the
highest point of the heating face temperature is slightly to
the rear of the torch position.
The time history of the thermocouple temperature
measurements at a torch speed lower than the maximum
cutting speed (300 mm/min for both H2/LP gas and LPG)
are shown in Figure 12 and at their respective maximum
cutting speeds (V ¼ 550 mm/min for H2/LP gas and
V ¼ 400 mm/min for LPG) are shown in Figure 13. The
following are shown in the figure.
(1) Under the conditions of the present study, when the
cutting speeds are the same, the thermal cycles are
almost identical at distances at least 20 mm from the
centre of the heating line, whatever the preheating gas.
(2) When thermal cycles at maximum cutting speed
are compared, the maximum temperature reached
with H2/LP gas, with which the cutting speed is
large, is much lower than with LPG gas. This
Figure 11. The plate heating face temperature measured by the
infrared thermography (H2/LP gas, V ¼ 550 mm/min).
Figure 12. Steel plate temperature histories measured by using
K thermocouples during gas cutting tests (slow speed cases:
V ¼ 300 mm/min for both H2/LP gas and LPG).
difference is maximal at the position y ¼ 20 mm,
where it reaches 70 K or higher.
The results of measuring the shape and dimensions of
the groove by photography, in a direction perpendicular to
the plate surface after a cutting test, at the maximum
cutting speeds of the gases (V ¼ 550 mm/min for H2/LP
gas and V ¼ 400 mm/min for LPG) were that under the
experimental conditions, the groove width was constant at
, 3.0 mm whatever the preheating gas and cutting speed,
and the leading edge can be approximated as semi-circular.
The results of cross-sectional macroscopy when the
torch speed is slower than the maximum cutting speed
(V ¼ 300 mm/min for both H2/LP gas and LPG) are shown
in Figure 14, and those at the maximum cutting speed for
each of the gases (V ¼ 550 mm/min for H2/LP gas and
V ¼ 400 mm/min for LPG) are shown in Figure 15. Below,
the distance from the groove surface to the HAZ periphery,
found from the results of cross-sectional macroscopy, is
referred to as the HAZ size. The HAZ sizes at the heating
face and plate thickness mid-plane are shown in Table 5.
It is clear from the table that there is a significant difference
in HAZ sizes at the low cutting speed (V ¼ 300 mm/min)
where approximately the same thermal cycle is measured at
20 mm or farther from the heating line for both preheating
 Welding International 511

(a)

H2/LP gas.

(b)

LPG

Figure 14. Macroscopic observation of the cut specimens for

slow speed cases: V ¼ 300 mm/min for both H2/LP gas and LPG
(the enlarged view at the mid-plane and the global view).

convection heat transfer into account. For the analysis of

Figure 13. Steel plate temperature histories measured by using
K thermocouples during gas cutting tests (the maximum speed
cases: V ¼ 550 mm/min for H2/LP gas and V ¼ 400 mm/min for
LPG).
heat transfer from the gas flame, as previously proposed by
the present authors [5], a calculation method was
implemented in which gas temperature right on the plate
and local heat transfer distribution around the gas torch did
not change with time and were approximated.
(a)

gases, as shown in Figures 12 and 13. When V is the same,

the HAZ size at the heating face is larger with H2/LP gas
than with LPG, but this size relationship is reversed at the
mid-plane. A comparison of HAZ sizes for maximum
cutting speeds (V ¼ 550 mm/min for H2/LP gas and
V ¼ 400 mm/min for LPG) shows that the HAZ size at
both the plate surface and mid-plane tends to be larger with
LPG than with H2/LP gas. From these results, it is clear that, H2/LP gas.
at distances from the cutting groove approximately the (b)
same as the HAZ size, differences in pre-heating gas heat
conduction characteristics produced significant differences
in the temperature history of the material being cut.

4. Numerical calculation results

4.1 Implementation of moving coordinate system
analysis
The analytical theory has been described in Section 2.3.
A three-dimensional thermal conduction analytical code LPG
MOVEFLUX was prepared to implement the analytical
Figure 15. Macroscopic observation of the cut specimens for
method using moving coordinates. MOVEFLUV has a the maximum speed cases: V ¼ 550 mm/min for H2/LP gas, and
function of evaluating heat transience from the preheating V ¼ 400 mm/min for LPG (the enlarged view at the mid-plane
gas flame and a function of taking radiant heat and and the global view).
512 N. Osawa et al.

Table 5. HAZ sizes measured by macroscopic observation of to the heating plate is 0.120 mm. There are 30,624 nodes
cut specimens. and 26,620 elements in the entire model.
As moving coordinate analysis parameters, the
Cutting Heating
Preheating spped Mid-plane face temperature rise area boundary coordinate to the front of
ID gas (mm/min) (mm) (mm) the heat source (fore) was set to 2 75 mm, and the initial
value of the model effective area boundary coordinate at
test5 LPG 400 0.63 3.19
test6 LPG 400 0.67 3.23
the rear of the heat source (aft0) was set to the distance
test7 LPG 300 0.84 4.24 from the torch centre at the start of cutting to the plate end
test8 LPG 300 0.83 4.35 to the rear of the torch (425 mm).
test9 H2/LP 300 0.87 4.52
test10 H2/LP 300 0.72 4.18
test11 H2/LP 550 0.72 2.26 4.2.2 Identification of undefined boundary temperature
test12 H2/LP 550 0.78 2.52 The result of measurements of the groove shape and size by
the gas cutting tests described in Section 3.2 were that the
leading edge was semi-circular and the groove width was
3.0 mm. For these conditions, the two-dimensional tempera-
4.2 Analysis of gas cutting tests ture field near the groove was calculated with the temperature
4.2.1 Analysis subjects and calculation model gradient in the plate thickness direction ignored, by the
The heat conduction field around the cutting groove method described in Section 2.5.2. The initial temperature
leading edge was calculated during gas cutting tests, as in was room temperature 300 K, and the S1 boundary
Section 3.2, using the heat conduction finite element temperature was the melting point of steel (1800 K). The
analytical code with the moving coordinate system, as number of terms in the analysis solution, the groove shape, the
developed in Section 4.1. ranges of domains S1 –S3 and the number and positions of
As shown in Figure 10, the analysis subject was a 500- select points on the groove were set as follows.
mm-long, 300-mm-wide, 12-mm-thick oblong steel plate
(SS400 surface as forged), and this was modelled using a (1) The groove leading edge was approximated as a semi-
1/2 symmetrical three-dimensional finite element mesh, as circle with r ¼ 3.0 mm and y ¼ f as in Figure 1.
shown in Figure 16. This model is structured from six- (2) The number of terms m in the series in Equation (2) was
face, eight-node isoparametric elements. The calculation m ¼ 10.
mesh is prepared by extruding a calculation mesh in the (3) Domain S1 was from the centre point of the groove
plate surface produced in the heating face, in the plate leading edge (Point F in Figure 1) to a point directly
thickness direction. The mesh in the plate surface is horizontal to the torch centre (Point M in Figure 1). The
prepared by positioning fine elements along the curved length of domain S2 and domain S3 (l1 and l2 in Figure 1)
line of the groove leading edge, and the mesh becomes were 0.5-fold and 1.1-fold r.
more sparse as the distance from the groove leading edge (4) S1 was divided into 15 equal sections, S2 into 7 equal
increases. The minimum element side length of the groove sections and S3 into 15 equal sections and select points
leading edge was 0.236 mm in the direction along the were located at the division points.
groove and 0.243 mm in the normal vector direction of the The value of m, the lengths of domains S2 and S3 and
groove. There is an element separation in the plate the number and locations of select points were determined
thickness direction, such that the element side length with reference to Matsuyama et al. [4]. As if these
reduces as the distance to the heating face decreases. The parameters are varied from the above values, the
side length in the plate thickness direction of elements next unsuitability of the Moore –Penrose generalized inverse
of Equation (10) becomes worse and the instability of the
temperature on the groove and thermal flux distribution
increases, it was possible to confirm that the parameters
selected were appropriate.
Figure 17 shows the relationship between the arc
length from the groove leading edge identified by the
above method and the normalized groove temperature
~ and Figure 18 shows the relationship between the arc
T,
length and normalized groove flux~qn . As, under the
experimental conditions of the present study, the groove
shape and groove width were the same in all cases, T~ and
q~ n were common, but different physical quantities were
obtained when different torch speeds V were set in
different cases. In Figure 17, in domain S1 T~ ¼ 1:0,
meaning the melting point, was established approximately
and a situation was calculated in which the temperature
was gradually reduced from the melting point in domains
Figure 16. One-half FE model for gas cutting analyses. S2 and S3. In Figure 18, the insulation condition q~ n ¼ 0
 Welding International
Figure 17. Change of the normalized groove temperature along
the solidification line.
was approximately established in domain S3, and in
domain S2, the thermal flux towards domain S1 gradually
increases so that the value becomes generally constant at
domain S1. These results generally agree with the
assumptions about the thermal conduction field of the
groove leading edge and thus the spatial instability of
T~ and q~ n are adequately inhibited.
In the three-dimensional analysis below, the groove
temperature distribution converted from the results in
Figure 17 is used as initial data for the three-dimensional
temperature field estimation described in Section 2.5.
4.2.3 Analysis of temperature fields during cutting
The three-dimensional temperature distribution on the S2
and S3 border when the two-dimensional temperature
distribution converted from the normalized temperature in
Figure 17 is given to all evaluation surfaces is shown in
Figure 19. In the figure, the unmarked line is a two-
dimensional solution, the marked line is the three-
dimensional finite element solution when the temperature
of the two-dimensional solution is applied consistently in
the plate thickness direction in domains S1 and S2. It is
clear from the figure that the two-dimensional analysis
solution and the three-dimensional analysis solution do not
agree in domain S3 and that a large temperature
discontinuity is created at the S2 and S3 domain boundary.
This temperature discontinuity can be resolved if the
S2 domain temperature at each evaluation surface is
modified by Equation (8) and, under the calculation
conditions used in this study, if this modification is carried
out, once the temperature discontinuity is generally
Figure 18. Change of the normalized groove flux along the
solidification line.
513
Figure 19. Comparisons of groove temperatures on the heating
face and mid-plane during oxygen gas cutting obtained by
Matsuyama’s two-dimensional solutions and three-dimensional
FE analyses.
resolved at all evaluation surfaces. The S2 domain groove
temperature modified by the above procedures is obtained
as a boundary condition. Figure 20 shows the modified
S2 and S3 boundary temperature distributions at the heating
face and mid-plane. The following is clear from this figure.
(1) The groove temperature calculated at the heating
plane is considerably higher than the two-dimen-
sional analysis solution at the S2 boundary. This
means that there has been a marked temperature
increase at the heating face due to heat transferred
from the preheating gas flame.
(2) The groove temperature calculated at the mid-plane is
considerably lower than the two-dimensional analysis
solution at the S2 boundary. This is thought to be that
the entire edge of the groove is maintained in a
molten state at a temperature lower than the two-
dimensional solution due to heat transfer from the
heating face in the plate thickness direction.
It is clear from these findings that, under the analytical
conditions of the present study, there is conformity with
the temperature gradient in the plate thickness direction
due to heat transferred from the preheating gas flame, the
melting conditions of the whole groove edge are met and a
temperature field with which no unnatural temperature
discontinuity occurs on the groove can be calculated.
In order to study the modified groove temperature in
Figure 20 and the effectiveness of the analytical method
514 N. Osawa et al.

Figure 21. Calculated heating face temperature for the case

with H2/LP gas (550 mm/min).

differs from that in the disk heating tests. It is conceivable,

however, that as the gas combustion flow field of the outer
side of the stagnation point to the front and side of the
groove is such that the stagnation point is on the plate
surface, this is the same as during heating of a disk. Most
of the heat transfer from the preheating gas flame occurs to
the front and sides of the groove. Accordingly, even if the
difference between the combustive flow field during
cutting and during disk heating is ignored, it is probably
possible to evaluate the heat transfer from the preheating

Figure 20. Groove temperatures on the heating face and mid-

plane during oxygen gas cutting obtained by three-dimensional
FE analyses with modified groove temperatures.

developed in this study, a comparison was made between

the calculation results and the experimental results for the
thermal cycle and HAZ size of the metal to be cut. Figure 21
shows the contour image of the calculated heating face
temperature with H2/LP gas at V ¼ 550 mm/min. It is clear
from the figure that the temperature distribution obtained is
similar to the measured results shown in Figure 11.
Figures 12 and 13 show the comparative results in the gas
cutting tests for the steel thermal cycle at positions 2 mm
below the heating face and at positions y ¼ 20 and 40 mm
from the heating central line. It is clear from the figure that
the calculation results and experimental results broadly
matched at y ¼ 20 and 40 mm.
The groove width during gas cutting almost com-
pletely matches the aperture diameter of the cutting
oxygen nozzle of the torch. The preheating gas nozzle is
located outside and concentric with the cutting oxygen
nozzle. Accordingly, it is thought that there is a stagnation
point of the preheating gas collision jet on the metal to be
cut, in front of and to the side of the groove. As, during
cutting, the preheating gas flame in the groove blows
through to the back surface of the plate, strictly speaking, Figure 22. The relation between the maximum temperature and
the preheating gas combustive flow field during cutting the transversal distance from the centreline.
 Welding International 515

Table 6. HAZ sizes calculated by three-dimensional finite

element analyses.

Cutting spped Mid-plane Heating face

Preheating gas (mm/min) (mm) (mm)
LPG 300 1.37 4.23
LPG 400 1.06 3.10
H2/LP 300 1.40 5.08
H2/LP 550 0.87 2.86

Figure 23. Comparisons of calculated and measured HAZ sizes

flame to the metal to be cut with adequate accuracy.
The fact that the temperature calculation results and
temperature measurement results in Figures 12 and 13
match well shows the validity of the approximation method.
The maximum temperature reached at the HAZ
boundary is estimated to be the Al transformation point
of steel (, 1000 K). The relationship between the
transversal distance y and temperature was studied with
the distance y transversal to the centre of the heating line
being in a range greater than the groove half-width
b/2 ¼ 1.5 mm. The HAZ size under various cutting
conditions can be estimated by calculating the difference
between the value of y when the maximum temperature
reached was 1000 K and b/2. Figure 21 shows the
relationship between the maximum temperature reached
Tmax and the distance y transversal to the central line of the
metal to be cut, found from three-dimensional
analysis results under various cutting conditions. It is
clear from the figure that the greater the cutting speed, the
smaller is the value of Tmax, at the same distance y and for
the same cutting speed at the mid-plane of the plate, the
relationship between Tmax and y is approximately
the same, but it indicates that for the same cutting speed,
the temperature at the heating face during H2/LP gas
preheating is higher than during LPG preheating
(Figure 22).
Table 6 shows the calculated HAZ size evaluated as
the value obtained by subtracting b/2 ¼ 1.5 mm from the
value of y when Tmax ¼ 100 K for the heating face and
mid-plane under the various cutting conditions. The results
of comparisons between the calculated HAZ size shown in
Table 6 and the measured HAZ size shown in Table 5 are
shown in Figure 23 for the mid-plate and in Figure 24 for
the heating face. The measured values in Figures 23 and 24
are average values of two measurements for each of the
conditions. These show that there was a large variation in
HAZ size measurements and that the calculated HAZ size
values broadly match the measured values.
From these findings, it seems evident that, under
the analytical conditions of this study, when the analytical
method proposed in Section 2 is used, the thermal
cycle, including the temperature gradient in the plate
thickness, in high temperature domains more than 20 mm
from the cutting line and also within 2 mm from the groove
side surface, can be evaluated with good accuracy.
of mid-plate.
5. Relationship between the heat conduction
characteristics of the preheating gas flame and cutting
performance
5.1 Relationship between preheating gas type and
cutting speed
In this section, there is a discussion of the effect of
differences in pre-heating gas flame heat conduction
characteristics on cutting performance, using the calcu-
lation results in Section 4.
In a previous report [5], the present authors have
shown that a short piercing time, when a cutting torch is
halted and pre-heating carried out, almost perfectly
matches the time up to the formation of a domain of a
temperature exceeding the ignition temperature (1200 K)
in excess of the specified area in the heating face of the
metal to be cut. As a H2/LP gas flame has a greater local
heat transfer rate than a LPG flame, the time taken for the
domain of a temperature higher than the ignition point to
outgrow the specified area is shorter and the piercing
performance of H2/LP gas considerably exceeds that of
LPG gas. These results indicate the possibility that
the differences between the maximum cutting speed with
H2/LP gas and LPG observed in the gas heating tests of
the present study can be explained by the differences in the
surface temperature distributions on the surface of the
metal to be cut at the front of the cutting groove.
Figure 25 shows the results of the investigation of the
relationship between the surface temperature of the metal
to be cut and the distance from the centre point of the groove
leading edge (Point F in Figure 1) at the maximum cutting
speed (550 mm/min for H2/LP gas and 400 mm/min for
LPG) and a low cutting speed (300 mm/min for both H2/LP
Figure 24. Comparisons of calculated and measured HAZ sizes
of heating face.
516 N. Osawa et al.
Figure 25. Changes in the plate heating face temperature with
the distance from the midpoint of the groove.
gas and LPG). It is clear from this figure that a comparison
of the temperatures at the groove front at a low cutting
speed, at which the cutting speeds with H2/LP gas and LPG
are the same, shows the high-temperature area extends
further with H2/LP gas than with LPG. On the other hand, if
the same comparison is made for the maximum cutting
speeds, the dimensions of the maximum temperature areas
at the groove front are approximately the same with both of
the preheating gases and the measurement along the cutting
line for the area of a temperature higher than the ignition
point (1200 K) is , 0.6 mm.
These results lead to the supposition that, under the
cutting conditions of this study, the growth of the area in
front of the groove in which the surface temperature is
higher than the ignition temperature (hereafter: the
ignition area) to exceed its limit size is a condition for
cutting continuation. Immediately after melting has started
on the surface of the metal to be cut, due to combustion of
the metal and heat conduction in the metal to be cut a heat
flow is fed to the groove leading edge. When the ignition
area is small, both the quantity of the metal combusted and
the heat flux in the plate thickness direction decrease and it
becomes impossible for the groove to continue to melt.
The above limit size can be thought of as a necessary
condition for an assured continuation of a heat flow density
sufficient to melt the groove leading edge. Under the
analytical conditions of this study, this limit size is a
measurement of 0.6 mm in the cutting line direction, and
Table 7. Heat input from the preheating gas flame qG and that from the material combustion qB.
Heat flux per
unit time
Cutting speed (mm/min) qB qG Total (J/s)
H2/LP 550 1568 2260
LPG 400 1302 2009
H2/LP 300 1075 2127
LPG 300 1096 1955
this numerical value is dependent on the calculation
specifications (finite element size, etc.) of the heat
conduction analysis.
In this supposition, the reason that the maximum
cutting speed with H2/LP gas is greater than with LPG gas
is that the local heat transfer rate of the H2/LP gas flame is
greater than that of the LPG and that the area of the high
temperature domain at the front of the groove can be
maintained as greater than that required for the
continuance of cutting.
Based on these findings, it was possible to propose a
method of estimating the maximum cutting speed from the
heat transfer characteristics of the preheating gas. This
means that, for the first time, there is a possibility of
making a quantitative estimate of the effect of the heat
transfer characteristics of a preheating gas on cutting
performance.
5.2 The relationship between the preheating gas type
and the preheating/material combustion heat input ratio
When the analytical method proposed in this study is used,
it is possible to make an accurate evaluation of the
temporospatial changes in thermal flux due to preheating
heat input. On the other hand, the thermal flux at the S1/S2
boundary can be evaluated by measuring the temperature
gradient in the groove surface normal vector direction in
the groove domain within which the temperature specified
by the three-dimensional finite element analysis of this
study is given (the S1/S2 domain in Figure 1). The material
combustion heat input can also be evaluated if this
(thermal flux) is integrated at the S1/S2 boundary. Below
this preheating heat input is expressed as qG, the material
combustion heat input as qB and the total of pre-heating
heat input and combustion heat input as qtotal.
The values for qG and qB evaluated in this way, for the
cutting conditions analysed in this study, are shown in
Table 7 and Figure 26. qG and qB are shown as converted
values, per unit time (1 s) and per unit length of cutting line
(mm). The following is clear from the table and figure.
(1) Under the analytical conditions of the present study,
at least 60% of the heat input into the metal to be cut
during gas cutting is from qG, at the most 40% more
than the qB proportion.
(2) A comparison using the same preheating gas shows
the trend for the proportion of qB to decrease as the
Heat flux per
unit length Ratio (%)
qB qG Total (J/mm) qB qG
3828 171.05 246.55 417.60 40.96 59.04
3311 195.30 301.35 496.65 39.32 60.68
3202 215.00 425.40 640.40 33.57 66.43
3051 219.20 391.00 610.20 35.92 64.08
 Welding International 517

Table 8. Relationship between the heat input due to preheating,

total heat input and the residual energy estimated by Wells’ and
modified Wells’ equations.

Cutting
speed qB qtotal qW qMW
Gas (mm/min) (J/mm) (J/mm) (J/mm) (J/mm)
H2/LP 300 215.0 640.4 440.0 379.7
H2/LP 550 171.1 417.6 320.0 254.8
LPG 300 219.2 610.2 440.0 379.7
LPG 400 195.3 496.7 374.5 311.9

Notes: Specific heat coefficient, 0.473 J/g 8C; degree of density, 0.0078 g/
mm3; melting temperature, 15238C; Initial temperature, 238C; thermal
diffusivity, 10 mm2/s.

with qW and qMW, which are shown in Table 8 and

Figures 27 and 28, are as follows.

(1) Under the experimental conditions of the present

Figure 26. Heat input from the preheating gas flame and that
from the material combustion.
value of V decreases. Under conditions where V is the
same, there is no significant difference between
the proportion of qB in H2/LP gas and LPG.
(3) Comparisons made with the same preheating gas
show that, when the value of V is high, qB per unit
length of time increases as the cutting speed increases
but qB per unit time decreases.
(4) Comparisons made with the same preheating gas
show that qG per unit time remains approximately the
same whatever the value of V, whereas qG per unit
length is in inverse proportion to V.
(5) At all cutting speeds, qG per unit time with H2/LP
gas is approximately 10% higher than with LPG.
study, qB per unit length is smaller than qW, qMW; at
maximum qB is only 54% of qW and 67% of qMW.
There is a tendency for larger qB values to be reflected
in larger differences between qB, qW and qMW.
(2) Under the experimental conditions of the present
study, qtotal per unit length is larger than qW, qMW; at
maximum qtotal is 145% of qW and 168% of qMW.
There is a tendency as qtotal values become larger for
larger differences between qB, qW and qMW.
(3) The differences between qB and qW, qMW decrease as
V increases and if V is the same the difference caused
by preheating gas is small.
The above results can be summed up as follows.
(1) Under the experimental conditions of the present
study, cutting cannot be continued solely by material
combustion heat input, and preheating input is
required to meet the shortfall.
(2) The quicker the cutting speed, the less heat is
supplied by preheating for the continuation of
cutting.

With techniques such as plasma cutting, where there is

no associated gas preheating and solid combustion of the
metal to be cut, the cutting heat input can be estimated
using Wells’ equation [16] or Wells’ modified equation
[17]. Below, the cutting heat input per unit length
estimated using Wells’ equation or Wells’ modified
equation are expressed as, respectively, qW and qMW.
qW and qMW may be thought of as approximate values for
the heat input required for the cutting process to continue Figure 27. Relationship between the heat input due to
under specified cutting conditions (groove width and preheating, total heat input and the residual energy estimated
cutting speed). The results of comparisons of qB and qtotal by Wells’ equation.
518 N. Osawa et al.
Figure 28. Relationships between the heat input due to
preheating, total heat input and the residual energy estimated
by modified Wells’ equation.
Terasaki et al. [1] experimentally found qG and qB per
unit length of the cutting line, from the thermal flux
distribution of the preheating gas flame for the various
LPG cutting conditions, where the distribution is
approximated as unchanged over time identified in linear
heating tests and the average temperature rise measured in
cutting tests. They also reported that, unlike in the results
of the present study, qB and qMW broadly matched under
all cutting conditions.
Terasaki et al. approximated and identified thermal
flux distribution of preheating heat input by approximating
this using Gaussian distribution, which has an extremely
large value at the torch centre. Therefore, the preheating
heat input was evaluated without the contribution made by
the gas thermal flux within the cutting groove. However, as
described in Section 3.1, both the heat transfer coefficient
and gas temperature of the actual cutting preheating flame
show an extremely high value immediately below the
preheating gas nozzle, located at the groove end and the
thermal flux in the cutting groove is relatively small. If this
is approximated to Gaussian distribution, in which the
values at the centre of the groove are extremely high, the
quantity of heat input, with the preheating heat input
removed from the calculation, is found to be much higher
than it actually is. As a result, calculations are performed
with the preheating heat input too small and heat from
material combustion too great. The fact that the estimated
relationship with qG and qMW in the present study shows a
tendency to be greatly different from those of Terasaki
et al. [1] is probably caused by the difference in the method
of evaluation the preheating heat input.
5.3 Relationship between pre-heating gas type and
degree of cutting deformation
Cutting strain (thermal deformation) has a positive
correlation with qtotal per unit length. When the maximum
cutting speeds were compared under the experimental
conditions of this study, the qtotal per unit length with
H2/LP gas was , 20% smaller than with LPG. Terasaki
et al. [16] [sic ] have reported that cutting strain due to
H2/LP gas cutting was greatly smaller at preheating
than when coal gas is used. This is thought to due to the
establishment of a size relationship of qtotal similar to the
results obtained in the present study.
According to result (2) in the previous section, the
difference in qB per unit length due to gas type was small
and differences in qtotal were mainly caused by qG.
According to result (5) in the previous section, when the
speed is the same, qG with H2/LP gas is approximately
10% greater than with LPG. On the other hand, as the local
heat transfer rate directly below the torch with H2/LP gas
is greater than with LPG, a high-temperature area
sufficient to allow the continuation of cutting is created
at the front of the groove even at a speed 38% faster than
the maximum LPG cutting speed. Due to this, the effect of
the maximum cutting speed being large is greater than the
effect of qG per unit time being large and qG per unit length
at the maximum cutting speed was , 20% smaller with H2/
LP gas than with LPG.
As previously reported by Terasaki et al. [16] [sic ], the
chemical calorific value of H2/LP gas is smaller than that of
coal gas and therefore the qG per unit time is small, and, as a
consequence, cutting deformation is less. However, the
findings made in this study indicated that the qG per unit
time with H2/LP gas is actually larger and the main reason
that the cutting deformation is less is that the local heat
transfer rate is greater than with LPG. The result of this is
that, as described in our previous report [5] of piercing, it is
not possible to assess the size of cutting strain solely by the
chemical calorific values of the fuel gas. It is also indicated
that the maximization of the local heat transfer rate of the
preheating flame through improvement of the cutting flame
nozzle is effective in order to achieve a further improvement
in gas cutting performance.
6. Conclusions
With the aim of clarifying the relationship between
preheating flame characteristics and cutting performance,
a finite element heat conduction calculation code was
developed to make possible three-dimensional heat
conduction analysis with the heat source location and
groove shape unchanged and the temperature field moving
parallel and the preheating heat input and material
combustion heat input were separately assessed. In the
analysis, the heat transferred from preheating gas flame
was assessed using the method previously developed by
the present authors for piercing [5], and the material
combustion heat input was also treated using the numerical
analysis developed by Matsuyama et al. [4] expanded into
three dimensions. The effectiveness of the method
developed here was verified by comparing the results of
estimation by numerical calculation of the effects of
differing dimensions on the thermal cycle of the metal to
be cut during gas cutting tests and the HAZ size formed in
the cutting groove with experimental results. The
developed method was used to analyse gas cutting tests
using preheating gases hydrogen-LP mixed gas (H2/LP
 Welding International
gas) and LPG to calculate the heating face temperature
distribution at the front of the cutting groove and the
proportions of the contributions made by preheating heat
input/material combustion heat input and for discussion of
the relationship between the heat transfer characteristics
of the preheating gas flame and cutting performance.
The findings made in this study are summarized below.
(1) It was shown to be possible to obtain a thermal
conduction field coordinated with the temperature
gradient in the plate thickness direction due to
preheating heat conduction while approximately
satisfying the thermal conditions at the groove
leading edge and groove rear wall surface by
modifying the temperature distribution on the groove
estimated by the method based on the two-
dimensional analysis of Matsuyama et al. [4] using
the results of three-dimensional numerical analysis.
(2) The H2/LP gas and LPG preheating gas flame local
heat transfer rate and distribution of the gas
temperature right on the plate were identified by
performing spot heating tests with a thin steel disk.
The local heat transfer rate immediately below the
fuel gas nozzle was larger with H2/LP gas than with
LPG. The steel sheet thermal cycle during the spot
heating test calculated using the heat transfer
parameters thus identified agreed well with exper-
imental results.
(3) A comparison of the results of gas cutting tests
carried out using H2/LP gas and LPG preheating gas
at the same plate thickness showed that the maximum
cutting speed with H2/LP gas was greater than with
LPG. When the cutting speed was the same, there was
no significant difference between the thermal cycles
at a distance of 20 mm and more from the cutting line,
but the HAZ size on the heating face was somewhat
larger with LPG than with H2/LP gas.
(4) The results of calculations of the thermal cycle of the
metal to be cut and HAZ size in the cutting tests using
the preheating gas flame heat transfer parameters thus
identified showed a good correspondence with the
experimental results. These results showed the
effectiveness of the new method and the accuracy
of the heat transfer parameters that were identified.
(5) Under the analytic conditions of the study, the
maximum cutting speed with H2/LP gas and LPG
matched the limit cutting speed at which the
measurement along the cutting line of the area of
temperature higher than ignition point in front of the
groove is at least 0.6 mm. The reason that the
maximum cutting speed with H2/LP gas was faster
than with LPG was that, as the local heat transfer rate
was greater than with LPG, it was possible to
maintain a high temperature at the heating face in
front of the groove even when the cutting speed was
increased. These results show that it is possible to
estimate the maximum cutting speed from the heat
transfer characteristics of the pre-heating gas.
(6) As a result of an evaluation of the proportion of the
contributions made by preheating heat input and
519
material combustion heat input by the developed
method, it was found that the material combustion
heat input per unit length showed a small difference
according to gas type and that when the cutting speed
was the same, the preheating energy input was greater
with H2/LP gas than with LPG, but at the maximum
cutting speed, the heat input quantity per unit length
is smaller than with LPG. These results show that it is
not appropriate to evaluate the degree of cutting strain
of a fuel gas by chemical calorific value alone.
(7) It was found from a comparison of the results of
estimates of cutting heat input using the Wells’
equation or modified Wells’ equation and estimated
values for material combustion heat input and
preheating heat input that, under the experimental
conditions of the study, it was not possible to continue
cutting with the combustion heat input alone, and the
shortfall must be supplied from the preheating heat
input and that the faster the cutting speed, the smaller
was the amount of heat supplied from preheating.
(8) The improvement in the properties of cutting with
H 2/LP gas (by raising the maximum cutting
temperature and reducing the degree of thermal
deformation) is thought to be caused by the large local
heat transfer rate of the preheating gas flame directly
under the combustion gas nozzle. In order to improve
gas cutting properties further, it may well be effective
to achieve increases in the preheating flame local heat
transfer rate by making further improvements to the
gas cutting nozzle.
Acknowledgements
This study was partially supported by a subvention from the
Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research (Fundamental Research
(B)), Topic Number 21360428. We are grateful for the assistance
with the spot heating tests and piercing tests by Takeshi
Yokoyama (General Research Laboratories, Air and Water K.K.)
and Naoya Okamoto (then in the first semester of the Doctoral
Programme of Osaka University Graduate School of Engineer-
ing). As this research project moves towards completion, we
would like to express our gratitude to all those who have offered
help and advice.
References
1. Terasaki T, Kitamura T, Miyamoto Y, Fujii T. Heat input
generated in plate by gas cutting process. J Jpn Soc Nav
Archit Ocean Eng.10:197– 204 (in Japanese).
2. Moshaiov A, Latorre R. Temperature distribution during
plate bending by Torch Flame Heating. J Ship Res.
1985;29(1):1– 11.
3. Tsuji I, Okumura Y. A study on line heating process for plate
bending of ship steels. Trans West Jpn Soc Nav Archit.
1988;76:149– 160.
4. Matsuyama K, Moriyasu M, Nishiguchi K. Estimation of
radial heat flux distribution in plasma arc cutting with a least
squares-collocation method on the boundary. Trans Jpn
Weld Soc. 1991;22(2):75 – 81.
5. Osawa N, Sawamura J, Ikegami Y, Okamoto N. Study
of heat transfer during preheating for piercing of oxyfuel gas
cutting. Q J Jpn Weld Soc. 2010;28(4):427 – 435
(in Japanese).
6. Osawa N, Hashimoto K, Sawamura J, Kikuchi J, Deguchi Y,
Yamaura T. Development of heat input estimation technique
520 N. Osawa et al.
for simulation of shell forming by line-heating. Comput
Model Eng Sci. 2007;20(1):43 – 53.
7. Osawa N, Hashimoto K, Sawamura J, Tanaka H. GA-based heat
input estimation technique for simulation of shell forming by
line-heating. Proceedings of the 18th International Offshore and
Polar Engineering Conference; 2008 p. 285–290.
8. Osawa N, Onoe M, Tani K, Nao S, Kaminaga H, Murakawa
H. Temperature history estimation for face repetitive heating
during twisting process of ship longitudinal frame. J Soc Nav
Archit Jpn. 2004;196:25 – 33 (in Japanese).
9. Osawa N, Tomita Y, Hashimoto K, Kikuchi J. Improvement
of the accuracy of heat input estimation during line heating
process by using regularization method. Proceedings of the
9th Symposium on Practical Design of Ships and Offshore
Floating Structures; 2004 p. 974– 981.
10. Tomita Y, Osawa N, Hashimoto K, Shinkai N, Sawamura J,
Tsubouchi D, Deguchi Y. Study on heat transfer phenomena
between the combustion flow field and the heating plate
during line heating process (2nd report). J Soc Nav Archit
Jpn. 2000;188:579– 587 (in Japanese).
11. Tomita Y, Osawa N, Hashimoto K, Shinkai N, Sawamura J,
Tsubouchi D, Deguchi Y, Yamaura T. Study on heat transfer
phenomena between the combustion flow field and the
heating plate during line heating process (3rd report). J Soc
Nav Archit Jpn. 2001;190:479 – 488 (in Japanese).
12. Sugihara K, Ogawa T, Nakamura Y, Muramatsu T.
Numerical simulation of laser cutting processes for thick
stainless steel plates. Proceedings of the 25th CFD
Symposium; 2011.
13. Murakawa H. Introduction to numerical methods in welding
mechanics. 1985.
14. Schwefel H-P. Numerical optimization of computer models.
Chicester, New York: Wiley; 1981.
15. Noesis Solutions. OPTIMUS 5.2 – users manual. 2006.
16. Wells AA. Heat flow in welding. Weld J. 1952;31:263– 267.
17. Matsuyama K, Terasaki T, Kitamura T, Kamikihara H.
Experiment and predictive equation of heat input generated
in plate by thermal cutting process. Trans Jpn Soc Mech Eng
C. 2000;66(641):326– 331.
18. Miyazaki T, Nakashima Y, Nakahigashi H. Flame cutting
utilizing hydrogen gas in shipbuilding. Univers Shipbuild
Tech Rev. 2009;3:1– 5 (in Japanese).
Copyright of Welding International is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content
may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright
holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for
individual use.