Warpage Optimisation on the Moulded Part with Straight Drilled and Conformal Cooling Channels Using Response Surface Methodology (RSM), Glowworm Swarm Optimisation (GSO) and Genetic Algorithm (GA) Optimisation Approaches.

Mohd Hazwan Mohd Hanid,Jerzy J Wysłocki,Marcin Nabiałek,Joanna Gondro,Safian Sharif,Mohd Nasir Mat Saad,Abdellah El-Hadj Abdellah,Shayfull Zamree Abd Rahim,Azlan Mohd Zain,Mohd Mustafa Al Bakri Abdullah

doi:10.3390/ma14061326

Abstract

It is quite challenging to control both quality and productivity of products produced using injection molding process. Although many previous researchers have used different types of optimisation approaches to obtain the best configuration of parameters setting to control the quality of the molded part, optimisation approaches in maximising the performance of cooling channels to enhance the process productivity by decreasing the mould cycle time remain lacking. In this study, optimisation approaches namely Response Surface Methodology (RSM), Genetic Algorithm (GA) and Glowworm Swarm Optimisation (GSO) were employed on front panel housing moulded using Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS). Each optimisation method was analysed for both straight drilled and Milled Groove Square Shape (MGSS) conformal cooling channel moulds. Results from experimental works showed that, the performance of MGSS conformal cooling channels could be enhanced by employing the optimisation approach. Therefore, this research provides useful scientific knowledge and an alternative solution for the plastic injection moulding industry to improve the quality of moulded parts in terms of deformation using the proposed optimisation approaches in the used of conformal cooling channels mould.

Highlights

Milled Groove Square Shape (MGSS) cooling channels contribute to faster heat transfer due to the cooling channels design which follows the shape of the moulded part
The algorithm was executed four selected parameters through through the mathematical model gained from the mathematical model gained from Response Surface Methodology (RSM) in both Glowworm Swarm Optimisation (GSO) and Genetic Algorithm (GA) approaches
The function of the mathematical model to forecast the warpage value with realistic accuracy for both cooling channels can be obtained via RSM

Summary

Introduction

It could occur due to an uneven temperature field which leads to the uneven rate of molecules that cool and shrink It may happen because of the complexity of product design and several other influencing factors during the moulding process, such as moulding temperature, melting temperature, type of plastic material used, injection and packing pressure, packing and cooling time and definitely ambient temperature [5]. This type of defect results in uneven clearance or malfunction during the assembly process [2]. Many researchers have proposed numerous optimisation proposals to enhance the quality of moulded parts [9,10,11,12,13]

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Conclusion