Waterjet Material Selection Guide

Mild & Carbon Steel

The workhorse material for waterjet. Cuts cleanly at predictable speeds. 0.250" plate at Q3: approximately 15–20 ipm. 1" plate: 3–5 ipm. 2" plate: 1–2 ipm. Clean edges, no heat-affected zone, no scale. Parts come off ready for welding or powder coat. AR400/AR500 wear plate cuts identically to mild steel — waterjet doesn't care about hardness.

Stainless Steel

Cuts 10–15% slower than mild steel at equivalent thickness. 304 and 316 produce excellent edge quality. Duplex and super-duplex stainless cut well but consume more abrasive. Waterjet is preferred over laser for stainless above 0.500" because laser produces significant HAZ and edge oxidation on thick stainless.

Aluminum

Cuts 40–60% faster than steel at equivalent thickness. Excellent edge quality with minimal burr. 6061-T6 is the most common waterjet aluminum. 2024, 7075, and other aerospace aluminums cut identically — waterjet doesn't differentiate between tempers because there's no heat. Stack cutting multiple thin sheets is common for production efficiency.

Titanium

Cuts well but slowly — approximately 60–70% of steel cutting speed. The key advantage is zero alpha case formation. Laser and plasma cutting titanium creates a brittle alpha case layer that must be machined off. Waterjet leaves the metallurgy untouched. This is why aerospace titanium skins are almost exclusively waterjet-cut.

Composites & Carbon Fiber

Waterjet is the preferred process for cutting cured composites. No delamination, no fiber pullout, no thermal damage to the resin matrix. Abrasive waterjet at moderate pressure cuts cleanly through CFRP, GFRP, Kevlar, and hybrid layups. The alternative — routing — generates harmful dust. Waterjet captures all waste in the tank.

Glass, Stone & Ceramics

Waterjet cuts tempered glass (which shatters under thermal processes), granite, marble, porcelain tile, and advanced ceramics like alumina and zirconia. Speed varies dramatically — porous stone cuts fast, dense ceramics cut slowly. Intricate inlay work in mixed stone materials is a waterjet specialty that no other process can match.