Torch and plasma heating method for placing composite rovings

A system to place one or more rovings of a composite material on a substrate, comprising:

• a roving laying head configured to lay at least one roving;
• an electric generator;
• at least one plasma torch mounted on the roving laying head and supplied with power by the electric generator;
• and
• said at least one plasma torch being further supplied with at least one plasma forming fluid to generate at least one plasma jet to heat said at least one roving to be laid on the substrate;
• wherein said at least one plasma torch is configured to generate at least one gaseous cooling and protecting jet directed towards a periphery of a desired heat laying zone, in a direction parallel to said at least one plasma jet, said at least one gaseous cooling and protecting jet being operated in a laminar regime, and said at least one gaseous cooling and protecting jet being generated either by a dedicated nozzle or a plasma nozzle operating at zero or less than 10% of a nominal heating power,
• wherein said at least one plasma jet and said at least one gaseous cooling and protecting jet are distinct outputs of the plasma torch.