Water Quality Page

Waterjet Environmental And Installation Requirements

Installation And Operation Requirements

When evaluating the purchase of a waterjet system, the buyer needs to consider the following items prior to the purchase:

Power Requirements: Waterjet systems require 3 phase electricity (typically 480VAC) with enough amperage to power the high pressure pump.

Water Supply: The high pressure pump will require a high quality water source to ensure the longest lifetimes for it's internal components.

Compressed Air: The cutting head will require a clean source of 80 PSI air for it's operation

Cutting Room Environment: The waterjet cutting process will produce a fine abrasive dust that will coat the surrounding area. Care must be taken to ensure that any surrounding equipment is not negatively affected by this dust.

Debris Disposal: The waterjet cutting process can generate a fair amount of mud/debris, which will require the cutting tank being emptied from time to time. EPA and local disposal regulations may need to be addressed if the waterjet system will be cutting materials that may appear on an environmental watch list.

Overflow Water Drainage: Depending on the size of the pump, the waterjet cutting process can generate over 2 GPM of overflow water from the cutting tank. Local regulations may require this overflow water to be processed before being released into the drainage system. The buyer should check the local water regulations in regards to the anticipated materials being cut. One option to this issue is to purchase a closed loop water system for the waterjet installation.

Waterjet Water Quality Requirements

In a waterjet system, the high pressure pump represents a large capital investment. Considering this cost, it is in the system owner's best interest to extend the life of the pump's internal components for as long as possible. Even under the best of circumstances, the pump will require routine maintenance which includes the replacement of seals, check valves, valve points, filters and other components. As parts kits for this routine maintenance can cost in the range of several hundred dollars, it is desirable to maximize the time between servicing in order to minimize the operating costs associated with routine maintenance. The quality of the water being supplied to the pump is the single most important factor for extending the life of the pump and in maximizing the time between servicing.

Desired Levels For Water Purity

PH Value

Suspended Particles

Total Dissolved Solids (TDS)*

Iron

Calcium

Chloride

Sodium

Sulfate

Silica Content

Hardness (CaCO₃)

From 6.5 to 8.5

Filtration To 0.5 Microns

< 50 PPM

< 0.2 Mg/L

< 25 Mg/L

< 100 Mg/L

< 50 Mg/L

< 25 Mg/L

< 15 Mg/L

< 25Mg/L

Methods Of Water Treatment

Ion Exchange (softening)

Reverse Osmosis (RO)

De-Ionization (DI)

Particle Filtration

* Water treatment producing TDS content of less than 0.5 ppm is NOT recommended since the aggressiveness of the purified water may damage pump components.

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