Numerical simulation method for weld line development in micro injection molding process

In order to reduce the "trial-mold" risk and cost,numerical simulation method was applied to micro injection molding weld line development investigation. The micro tensile specimen which has the size of 0.1 mm(depth) ×0.4 mm(width) ×12 mm(length) in test area was selected as the objective part,and polypropylene(PP) as the experimental material. Respectively with specific commercial software(Mold Flow) and general computational fluid dynamic(CFD) software(Comsol Multiphysics) ,the simulation experiments for development of weld line in micro injection molding process were executed and the real comparison experiments were also carried out. The results show that during micro injection molding process,the specific commercial software for normal injection molding process is not valid to describe the micro flow process,the shape of flow front in micro cavity flowing which is important in weld line developing study and the contact angle due to surface tension are not able to be simulated. In order to improve the simulation results for micro weld line development,the general CFD software,which is more flexible in user defining function,is applied. The results show better effects in describing micro fluid flow behavior. As a conclusion,as for weld line forming process,the numerical simulation method can give a characteristic analysis results for processing parameters optimizing in micro injection molding process;but for both kinds of softwares quantitative analysis cannot be obtained unless the boundary condition and micro fluid mathematic model are improved in the future.

Experiment and simulation of foaming injection molding of polypropylene/nano-calcium carbonate composites by supercritical carbon dioxide

Microcellular injection molding of neat isotactic polypropylene(iPP) and isotactic polypropylene/nano-calcium carbonate composites(i PP/nano-CaCO_3) was performed using supercritical carbon dioxide as the physical blowing agent. The influences of filler content and operating conditions on microstructure morphology of i PP and i PP/nano-CaCO_3 microcellular samples were studied systematically. The results showed the bubble size of the microcellular samples could be effectively decreased while the cell density increased for i PP/nano-CaCO_3 composites, especially at high CO_2 concentration and back pressure, low mold temperature and injection speed, and high filler content. Then Moldex 3D was applied to simulate the microcellular injection molding process, with the application of the measured ScCO_2 solubility and diffusion data for i PP and i PP/nano-Ca CO_3 composites respectively. For neat i PP, the simulated bubble size and density distribution in the center section of tensile bars showed a good agreement with the experimental values. However, for i PP/nano-CaCO_3 composites, the correction factor for nucleation activation energy F and the pre-exponential factor of nucleation rate f_0 were obtained by nonlinear regression on the experimental bubble size and density distribution. The parameters F and f_0 can be used to predict the microcellular injection molding process for i PP/nano-CaCO_3 composites by Moldex 3D.

Phase Behaviors in Bi-phase Simulation of Powder Segregation in Metal Injection Molding

Powder segregation induced by mold filling is an important phenomenon that affects the final quality of metal injection molding （MIM）. The prediction of segregation in MIM requires a bi-phase flow model to describe distinctly the flows of metallic powder and polymer binder. Viscous behaviors for the flows of each phase should hence be determined. The coefficient of interaction between the flows of two phases should also be evaluated. However, only viscosity of the mixed feedstock is measurable by capillary tests. Wall sticking is supposed in the traditional model for capillary tests, while the wall slip is important to be taken into account in MIM injection. Objective of the present paper is to introduce the slip effect in bi-phase simulation, and search the suitable way to determine the viscous behaviors for each phase with the consideration of wall slip in capillary tests. Analytical and numerical methods were proposed to realize such a specific purpose. The proposed method is based on the mass conservation between the capillary flows in mono-phase model for the mixed feedstock and in bi-phase model for the flows of two phases. Examples of the bi-phase simulation in MIM were realized with the software developed by research team. The results show evident segregation, which is valuable for improving the mould designs.

Numerical Simulation of Injection Molding Cooling Process Based on 3D Surface Model

The design of the cooling system of injection molds directly affects both productivity and the quality of the final part. Using the cooling process CAE system to instruct the mold design, the efficiency and quality of design can be improved greatly. At the same time, it is helpful to confirm the cooling system structure and optimize the process conditions. In this paper, the 3D surface model of mold cavity is used to replace the middle-plane model in the simulation by Boundary Element Method, which break the bottleneck of the application of the injection molding simulation softwares base on the middle-plane model. With the improvements of this paper, a practical and commercial simulation software of injection molding cooling process named as HsCAE3D6.0 is developed.

Development of Integrated Simulation System for Plastic Injection Molding

Numerical simulation of injection molding have had success in predicting the behavior of polymer melt in extremely complicated geometries. Most of the current numerical solutions are based on finite-element/finite-difference/boundary-element/volume-control methods and the surface model. This paper discusses the development of an integrated CAE system for injection molding in detail, and presents the mathematics for numerical simulation of filling, packing, cooling, stress and warpage in injection molding. The developed system named as HsCAE3D is introduced at the end.

OPTIMIZATION OF INJECTION MOLDING PROCESS BASED ON NUMERICAL SIMULATION AND BP NEURAL NETWORKS

Plastic injection molding is a very complex process and its process planning has a direct influence on product quality and production efficiency. This paper studied the optimization of injection molding process by combining the numerical simulation with back-propagation(BP) networks. The BP networks are trained by the results of numerical simulation. The trained BP networks may:(1) shorten time for process planning;(2) optimize process parameters;(3) be employed in on-line quality control;(4) be integrated with knowledge-based system(KBS) and case-based reasoning(CBR) to make intelligent process planning of injection molding.

Numerical Simulation of Residual Stress in Injection Molding

Distribution and history of residual stress in plaque-like geometry are simulated based on linear thermoviscoelastic model, to explore the mechanics and evolution of residual stress in injection molding process. Results show that the residual stress distribution through thickness is almost the same along flowpath and the stress value near the end is a litter higher than that near the gate.

Numerical Simulation of Injection Molding of three-Dimensional Thin Parts

This paper is concerned with the numerical simulation of the injection mold filling process. A mathematical model based on generalized Hele-Shaw flow for an inelastic non-Newtonian fluid under nonisothermal conditions is used.A hybrid numerical scheme is employed.The numerical simulating re- sults,pressure and temperature profile,location of the melt fronts,are in a good agreement with the ex- perimental ones.

Numerical Filling Simulation of Injection Molding Using Three-Dimensional Model

Most injection molded parts are three-dimensional, with complex geometrical configurations and thick/thin wall sections. A 3D simulation model will predict more accurately the filling process than a 2.5D model. This paper gives a mathematical model and numeric method based on 3D model, in which an equal-order velocity-pressure interpolation method is employed successfully. The relation between velocity and pressure is obtained from the discretized momentum equations in order to derive the pressure equation. A 3D control volume scheme is employed to track the flow front. Th e validity of the model has been tested through the analysis of the flow in cavity.

Numerical Simulation of Powder Injection Molding Filling Process Based on ANSYS

A mathematical model of two-dimensional flows of PIM derived from the momentum, continuity equations and theheat transfer equation is obtained. The formula of calculating the flow conductance and the pressure equation arededuced when the no slip boundary condition is employed at the wall, and the pressure equation is a non-linearelliptic partial differential equation. The flow front locations, distribution of velocities, temperature and pressure aresimulated by the finite element analysis software ANSYS. Simulation results indicate that it is in the final filled partthat defects appear easily. The region in which the defects may occur during the PIM process can be predicted.

Numerical simulation of tungsten alloy in powder injection molding process

The flow behavior of feedstock for the tungsten alloy powder in the mold cavity was approximately described using Hele-Shaw flow model. The math model consisting of momentum equation, consecutive equation and thermo-conduction equation for describing the injection process was established. The equations are solved by the finite element/finite difference hybrid method that means dispersing the feedstock model with finite element method, resolving the model along the depth with finite difference method, and tracking the movable boundary with control volume method, then the pressure equation and energy equation can be resolved in turn. The numerical simulation of the injection process and the identification of the process parameters were realized by the Moldflow software. The results indicate that there is low temperature gradient in the cavity while the pressure and shear rate gradient are high at high flow rate. The selection of the flow rate is affected by the structure of the gate. The shear rate and the pressure near the gate can be decreased by properly widening the dimension of the gate. There is a good agreement between the process parameters obtained by the numerical simulation and the actual ones.

Simulation and Experiment Research on the Proportional Pressure Control of Water-assisted Injection Molding

Water-assisted injection molding（WAIM）,a newly developed fluid-assisted injection molding technology has drawn more and more attentions for the energy saving,short cooling circle time and high quality of products.Existing research for the process of WAIM has shown that the pressure control of the injecting water is mostly important for the WAIM.However,the proportional pressure control for the WAIM system is quite complex due to the existence of nonlinearities in the water hydraulic system.In order to achieve better pressure control performance of the injecting water to meet the requirements of the WAIM,the proportional pressure control of the WAIM system is investigated both numerically and experimentally.A newly designed water hydraulic system for WAIM is first modeled in AMEsim environment,the load characteristics and the nonlinearities of water hydraulic system are both considered,then the main factors affecting the injecting pressure and load flow rate are extensively studied.Meanwhile,an open-loop model-based compensation control strategy is employed to regulate the water injection pressure and a feedback proportional integrator controller is further adopted to achieve better control performance.In order to verify the AMEsim simulation results WAIM experiment for particular Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene（ABS） parts is implemented and the measured experimental data including injecting pressure and flow rate results are compared with the simulation.The good coincidence between experiment and simulation shows that the AMEsim model is accurate,and the tracking performance of the load pressure indicates that the proposed control strategy is effective for the proportional pressure control of the nonlinear WAIM system.The proposed proportional pressure control strategy and the conclusions drawn from simulation and experiment contribute to the application of water hydraulic proportional control and WAIM technology.

Evolution of stresses in metal injection molding parts during sintering

The evolution of stresses due to inhomogeneity in metal injection molding （MIM） parts during sintering was investigated. The sintering model of porous materials during densification process was developed based on the continuum mechanics and thermal elasto-viseoplastic constitutive law. Model parameters were identified from the dilatometer sintering experiment. The real density distribution of green body was measured by X-ray computed tomography （CT）, which was regarded as the initial condition of sintering model. Numerical calculation of the above sintering model was carried out with the finite element soRware Abaqus, through the user-defined material mechanical behavior （UMAT）. The calculation results showed that shrinkages of low density regions were faster than those of high density regions during sintering, which led to internal stresses. Compressive stresses existed in high density regions and tensile stresses existed in low density regions. The densification of local regions depended on not only the initial density, but also the evolution of stresses during the sintering stage.

NUMERICAL SIMULATION OF FEEDSTOCK MELT FILLING IN A CYLINDRICAL CAVITY WITH SOLIDIFICATION IN POWDER INJECTION MOLDING

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Numerical simulation of the filling stage in injection molding based on a 3D model

Most injection molded parts are three-dimensional, with complex geometrical configurations and thick/thin wall sections. The change of the thickness of parts has significant influence on flow during injection molding. This paper presents a 3D finite element model to deal with the three-dimensional flow, which can more accurately predict the filling process than a 2.5D model. In this model, equal-order velocity-pressure interpolation method is successfully employed and the relation between velocity and pressure is obtained from the discretized momentum equation in order to derive the pressure equation. A 3D control volume scheme is employed to track the flow front. The validity of the model has been tested through the analysis of the flow in a cavity.

Simulation of the Interphase of Insert Injection Moldings

In this work, the generalizing of the finite element method (FEM) of thermoplastic prepreg insert injection molding composites was investigated. The specimens were prepared using glass fiber/polyamidc 6 (GF/PA6) inserted prepreg, and their characteristics were investigated and compared under ANSYS workbench program. The prediction of the bending initial fracture point under analytical tensile testing with interlayer on prepreg insert moldings was focused. It was found that the bending initial fracture point was applied to predict by matching the shear stress. There was obtained from analytical tensile testing and bending analysis. Therefore, it can be obtained the optimum of the clastic modulus ratio on the injection part/interlayer/insert part by using FEM via ANSYS workbench.

Simulation and Injection Molding of Ring-Shaped Polymer Bonded Nickel Braze Metal Composite Preforms Based on Rheological and Thermal Analyses

Rheological and thermal properties of LD-PE and LD-PE + 65 vol% Ni composite were examined by viscosity, pvt and thermal conductivity measurements at a wide range of shear rate, temperature and pressure. The typical shear-thinning viscosity of LD-PE polymer melt was enhanced up to four times by adding 65 vol% Ni braze metal particles. LD-PE show increasing specific volume versus temperature, decreasing with pressure and braze particle filler content. Variation of specific volume of LD-PE was reduced to 5% by admixing 65 vol% rigid Ni braze metal particles. Thermal conductivity of LD-PE was increased up to 15 times in the composite, reduced by decreasing pressure at temperature exceeding 80℃. Furthermore, thermal analysis was performed in modulated DSC to determine the specific heat capacity in wide temperature range. Viscosity and pvt-data were fitted using Cross-WLF equation and 2-domain Tait-pvt model, respectively. Simulation of LD-PE and LD-PE + 65 vol% Ni composite was performed based on rheological and thermal properties to define processing parameters. Simulation and injection molding of ring-shaped LD-PE + 65 vol% Ni composite braze metal preforms were performed successfully.

Relationship between Microcellular Foaming Injection Molding Process Parameters and Cell Size

In order to study the relationship between the main process parameters and the cell size, the mathematical model of cell growth of microcellular foaming injection process is built. Then numeric simulation is employed as experimental method, and the Taguchi method is used to analyze significance of effect of process parameters on the cell size. At last the process parameters are focused on melt temperature, injection time, mold temperature and pretidied volume. The significance order from big to small of the effect of each process parameters on cell size is melt temperature, pre-filled volume, injection time, and mold temperature. On the basis of above research, the effect of each process parameter on cell size is further researched. Appropriate reduction of the melt temperature and increase of the pre-filled volume can optimize the cell size effectively, while the effects of injection time and mold temperature on cell size are less significant.

Cycle Time Reduction in Injection Molding by Using Milled Groove Conformal Cooling

This paper presents simulation study on Milled Grooved conformal cooling channels(MGCCC)in injection molding.MGCCC has a more effective cooling surface area which helps to provide efficient cooling as compared to conventional cooling.A case study of Encloser part is investigated for cycle time reduction and quality improvement.The performance designs of straight drilled are compared with MGCCC by using Autodesk Moldflow Insight(AMI)2016.The results show total 32.1% reduction of cooling time and 9.86% reduction of warpage in case of MGCCC as compared to conventional cooling.

Effect of Different Shapes of Conformal Cooling Channel on the Parameters of Injection Molding

Cooling system improvement is important in injection molding to get betterquality and productivity. The aim of this paper was to compare the different shapes of theconformal cooling channels (CCC) with constant surface area and CCC with constantvolume in injection molding using Mold-flow Insight 2016 software. Also the CCC resultswere compared with conventional cooling channels. Four different shapes of the CCC suchas circular, elliptical, rectangular and semi-circular were proposed. The locations of thecooling channels were also kept constant. The results in terms of cooling time, cycle timereduction and improvement in quality of the product shows that no significant effect ofCCC’s shapes when surface area of CCC kept constant. On the other hand, the rectangularCCC shows better result as compared to other shapes of CCC when volume of CCC werekept constant.