Laser ablation of contaminants from concrete and metal surfaces. Topical report, June--December 1994

Tests have demonstrated that it is possible to clean coatings off surfaces using high-power, pulsed, high-repetition-rate lasers. Purpose of this contract is to demonstrate (1) that pulsed-repetition lasers can be used to remove paint from concrete and metal surfaces, including cleaning out the surface pores, (2) that the cleaning process will result in negligible release of contaminated ablated material to the environment, and (3) that the process generates negligible additional waste compared to competing technologies. This report covers technical progress during Phase 1 of the contract and makes recommendations for technology development in Phase 2.