Laser ablation expansion plume performance experiments with typical material of orbital debris

Several plans for orbital debris elimination with lasers have been carried out in the international world in recent years. Orbital debris is non-cooperative target when effected with lasers. Laser beam would irradiate the orbital debris at a random incidence angle. The surface of debris would vaporize rapidly when irradiated by high power laser. Steam plasma of high temperature and pressure would spray at high speed. An experimental facility was set up to observe and record the plasma plume expansion of 6061 aluminum target at different laser incident angle. Images got in the experiment were disposed and the results were fitted with numerical method. The region of plasma expansion plume is 5 mm5 mm outside of the target surface. The velocity of the plasma plume expansion is roughly axisymmetrically distributed with different laser incidence angle. Laser ablation impulse is along the normal direction relative to the target surface when the laser irradiates within the small angle to the normal direction. The plasma plume expansion velocity is 20-40 kms-1 along the normal direction. The plasma plume expansion velocity is greater when the laser irradiate at oblique incidence. Gaussian function is a good way to describe plasma plume expansion velocity distribution.