A comparative study of the interactions of the millisecond–nanosecond combined-pulse laser and millisecond pulse laser with aluminum alloy is presented. During the interaction between the laser and aluminum alloy, the coupling effect of the nanosecond pulse laser on the molten pool formed by the millisecond laser is analyzed. During the nanosecond laser irradiation in the combined approach, the expansion velocity of the plasma plume reaches 600 m/s, while the laser ablation depth increased by approximately 9 times. Based on experiments, the high-speed shadow imaging method, correlation of the temperature evolution characteristics, and ablation morphology are considered for a comprehensive analysis. The coupling effect between the millisecond–nanosecond combined-pulse laser and aluminum-alloy molten pool phase is explained.

Ablation morphology affects the quality of laser processing. Therefore, the control of ablation morphology is very important. The influence of spot size combination mode on the ablation morphology of aluminum alloy is studied for the first time. Experimental results show that when the nanosecond laser spot is larger, the ablation morphology looks like a bowl-shape, and there is little solidification near the edge. When the nanosecond laser spot is smaller, the shape of the ablation morphology is similar to a hole, and the protuberance is formed near the edge of the cavity. Through the analysis and simulation of the physical model, the physical mechanism, which describes the influence of the spot size combination mode on the molten pool, is discussed. The research results of this paper have important guiding significance for the control of laser processing effect.

The application of laser fabrication of fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) has an irreplaceable advantage. However, the effect of the plasma generated in laser fabrication on the damage process is rarely mentioned. In order to further study the law and mechanism of laser processing, the laser process was measured. CFRP and GFRP materials were damaged by a 1064 nm millisecond pulsed laser. Moreover, the propagation velocity and breakdown time of plasma plume were compared. The results show that GFRP is more vulnerable to breakdown than CFRP under the same conditions. In addition, the variation of plasma plume and material surface temperature with the number of pulses was also studied. The results show that the variation trend is correlated, that is, the singularities occur at the second pulse. Based on the analysis of experimental phenomena, this paper provides guidance for plasma phenomena in laser processing of composite materials.

Laser paint removal is a new cleaning technology that mainly removes paint through thermal ablation and mechanical stripping mechanisms. This paper established a thermal-mechanical coupling laser removal model of paint based on the heat conduction equation, Newton’s second law, and Fabbro’s theory. The removal process of epoxy resin paint film on an aluminum alloy surface via a nanosecond pulsed laser was studied using finite element simulations and experimental measurements. The simulation and experimental results show that the nanosecond pulse laser’s primary paint removal mechanism is the mechanical stripping caused by thermal stress and plasma shock. The laser paint removal threshold is 1.4 J/cm². In addition, due to the different generation times of plasma shock and thermal stress, the mutual superposition of stress waves occurs in the material. This results in a discrepancy between the actual and thermal stress differences. Moreover, the thermal stress difference causes the maximum actual stress difference to fluctuate. The simulation model established in this paper can provide a reference for studying the thermal-mechanical coupling process of laser paint removal.