Autodesk Moldflow Research Articles

Optimization of the VARTM Process for Prototyping a Bumper Using Hybrid Composite Materials

To provide an alternative for manufacturing auto parts using composite materials, the Vacuum Assisted Resin Transfer Molding (VARTM) process was utilized to prototype the bumper for the Chevrolet Aveo vehicle. This technique emerges as an alternative for composite material manufacturing, allowing for rapid and high-quality production of advanced composites. In this study, a hybrid composite material reinforced with fiberglass, cabuya fiber, IN2 epoxy resin, an infusion mesh, peel ply, and a vacuum bag was employed. To optimize the VARTM process in bumper prototyping, several simulations of resin flow were conducted with different locations of resin injection and vacuum entry points. Autodesk Moldflow Insight software facilitated the modification and addition of resin injection points to observe the flow evolution, thus determining the filling time for each proposed design. Six different designs were applied for the bumper mold filling. The proposed linear flow design reduced the total filling time of the bumper mold by 81.56% compared to the other five designs analyzed. The result of the numerical simulation was validated through the experimental process, where a high degree of concordance in the mold filling time was achieved between both methods.

Optimization Design of Injection Mold Conformal Cooling Channel for Improving Cooling Rate

Optimizing the design of the conformal cooling channel can increase the cooling rate of injection mold. The aim of this study was the problem of low cooling efficiency of injection mold for deep-cavity plastic parts under the conventional cooling channel. Based on the analysis of the heat transfer principle of the injection mold, a mathematical description of the cooling time of the conformal cooling channel was made. By designing orthogonal experiments and using simulation methods in the Autodesk Moldflow 2019 software, with the minimum cooling time of the mold as the optimization goal, experimental optimization was carried out for the three design variables of the channel, thereby obtaining the optimal combination of design variables for the conformal cooling channel. The conformal cooling channel layout was innovatively designed, and through computer simulation experiments, it was concluded that the conformal cooling channel adopted a series flat-head layout, which has the shortest cooling time and the fastest cooling rate. Metal additive manufacturing technology was used to complete the manufacturing of the mold insert with the conformal cooling channel. After the trial production of the conformal cooling injection mold, the molding cycle was obviously shortened, and the injection molding production efficiency was significantly improved.

EFFECTS OF COOLING CHANNEL DIAMETER, DISTANCE, AND PITCH IN PLASTIC INJECTION MOLDING

A straight drilled or conventional cooling channel is a linear cooling pathway that circulates around the mold cavity to regulate temperature during the plastic injection molding process. The cooling phase accounts for 70% of the plastic injection molding process, making it crucial to design the cooling channel for reducing cycle time while upholding part quality. This study aims to analyze the effects of cooling channel parameters on the product cavity. The parameters under consideration are the cooling channel's diameter, pitch, and distance. Various designs of cooling channels were examined. This study employed a food container lid made from polypropylene (PP) as a product case study. A 3D model of the food container lid and Straight Drilled Cooling Channel (SDCC) was created using CATIA V5, and these models were subsequently imported into Autodesk Moldflow Insight for simulation analysis. Four results were obtained from the simulation analysis, namely time to reach ejection temperature, average temperature, volumetric shrinkage, and deflection. The results indicate that increasing the diameter and pitch of cooling channels leads to a decrease in the average part temperature and the time required to reach ejection temperature. Conversely, increasing the distance between cooling channels results in an increase in the average part temperature and the time required to reach ejection temperature.

Design and Analysis of Plastic Injection Mold for Hexagon Socket Head Cap Screw

Plastic is a majorly used material for making customer goods. It is appealing to customers as well as manufacturers. Properties like durability, light weight and moldability make it a suitable choice for consumer goods which are made by mass production. Plastic materials are soft, but they possess adequate strength to be utilized for different engineering applications. After the development of various grades of plastic, it has replaced metals from different engineering applications in the recent past. This article aims at analyzing the suitability of making Hexagon Socket Head Cap Screws (HSHCS) out of a plastic material by injection molding processes. These screws are widely used as threaded fasteners at different places. They are preferably made of ferrous metals and possess semi complex design. They are mass produced by following a series of manufacturing operations. This article will observe the manufacturability of HSHCS by injection molding process. Based on the observation a model mold will be prepared to make HSHCS. The software used for modeling the parts is Autodesk Fusion 360 and that for the simulation of process parameters is Autodesk Moldflow Adviser 2023. Index Terms: Hexagon Socket Head Cap Screws, plastic mold, manufacturability, threaded fasteners, injection molding, simulation.

Evaluation of plastic injection molding for PA6/ABS/CaCO3 nanocomposites using Taguchi method and Moldflow simulation approach

Nowadays, nanocomposites are widely used in the industry. Polymer nanocomposites are widely used in the automotive industry because they have very favorable properties. These properties, including mechanical, electrical, and thermal characteristics, change depending on the combination of materials used in composite synthesis. In this paper, the injection molding of an automobile part called a control arm protector is investigated. Since warpage and shrinkage are general and important challenges in injection molded parts, Taguchi test design and Autodesk Moldflow® simulation approach are used to find the best injection condition for the mentioned part. To perform this, PA6/ABS polymer composite combined with nano CaCO3 is used. Three main injection molding process parameters, including melt temperature, mold temperature, and injection pressure, as well as nano CaCO3 amount, are evaluated. Moreover, analysis of the gate location is investigated. In the following, an analysis of variance is conducted to identify the significant parameters. Regression correlations were also established. Finally, optimization of the process is carried out by the desirability method.

Investigation of microstructural and mechanical properties of weld lines in injection‐molded short glass fiber‐reinforced polyamide 6

AbstractThis research investigates the impact of weld lines on the mechanical properties and fracture behavior of injection‐molded unfilled and glass fiber‐reinforced polyamide 6 (PA6). The study aims to predict the weld line strength by analyzing the composite's microstructure at the weld line and investigating the influence of injection molding parameters. While weld lines had minimal effects in unfilled PA6 thanks to the matrix's high healing capability, composite samples showed reduced mechanical properties due to unfavorable fiber orientation at the weld line. Fracture surfaces revealed a bell‐shaped structure linked to the ‘underflow’ process caused by flow imbalances during injection molding. This phenomenon impacts fiber orientation at the weld line, affecting mechanical properties. The ‘underflow’ is simulated using Autodesk Moldflow®, predicting enhanced fiber alignment along the flow direction. Regarding processing parameters, both melt and mold temperatures showed negligible impacts, while enhanced mechanical properties were observed at elevated packing pressures. The analysis of fracture surfaces showed intensified “underflow” with increased packing pressure. A relationship is established between weld line strength and fiber orientation at the weld line, potentially serving as a predictive tool for estimating weld line strength.Highlights Weld lines in unfilled PA6:Negligible impact on the mechanical properties. In the PA6 composite: significant drop due to unfavorable fiber orientation. Fracture behavior of the composite: Bell‐shaped weld line linked to “underflow.” Melt and mold temperature: minor effect; packing pressure enhances properties. Correlation established between the weld line strength and fiber orientation.

A Study on the Temperature Optimization of Mold and Melt Using Design of Experiments for Children's Chair

The quality of the finished product is affected by a number of factors during the plastic injection molding process. Two crucial process variables in the creation of products are melted and mold temperature. The study uses the Design of Experiments tool in Autodesk Moldflow to look at the impact of melt and mold temperatures on injection molding technology. Analytical items are specifically made of polypropylene (PP) using kids' chair mold. According to simulation analysis results, there is a remarkable effect of the melt temperature on both time at end of packing as well as deflection in the range of the analytical temperature at tmold of [40, 80]°C and tmelt of [180, 220]°C. Melt temperature also shows a notable influence not only on deflection but also on sink mark depth and volumetric shrinkage, along with the criteria to evaluate the expense of a product (time at end of packing, total part weight).

Injection Flow Rate Threshold Preventing Atypical In-Cavity Pressure during Low-Pressure Powder Injection Molding

Controlling injection parameters is paramount when it comes to producing high-quality green parts using powder injection molding. This work combines experimental and numerical approaches to study the impact of injection parameters on mold in-cavity pressure and on the overall quality of green parts produced by low-pressure powder injection molding. The properties of two low-viscosity feedstocks (formulated from a water-atomized stainless-steel powder and wax-based binder system) were measured and implemented in an Autodesk Moldflow numerical model to quantify the molding pressures, which were finally validated using experimental real-scale injections. The results confirmed that an increase in mold temperature, an increase in feedstock temperature, and a decrease in solid loading decrease the mold in-cavity pressure, which was correlated with the feedstock viscosity. As a key result, real-scale injections confirmed that a minimum flow rate was required to avoid atypical high in-cavity pressure leading to several visual defects such as weld lines, flow marks, cracks, sinks, and incomplete filling. Due to differences in its thermal transfer properties, this flow rate threshold value decreases as the feedstock solid loading increases. For injection speeds higher than this value, the injection pressure measured experimentally was linearly correlated with the injection flow rate.

Optimization of Melt and Coolant Temperature on Defects of Injection Molded Toothbrush Handle

The toothbrush handle is an injection molded product that rejects up to 10%. One of the factors that cause defects is the injection molding process settings, namely melting and cooling temperature. The purpose of this optimization is to obtain the optimum value of melt and cooling temperature parameters on product quality (minimum defects) of toothbrush handles using RSM. The methods used include simulation using ANSYS to obtain mold temperature, Autodesk Moldflow to obtain product defects and quality prediction based on input parameters of melt temperature (190o , 200o , and 210o C) and coolant temperature (22o , 24o , and 26o C), and Minitab 19 for RSM optimization. The simulation results that cooling temperature and melt temperature that are too low and high result in high defect values (weld line and shrinkage) in the product, resulting in low quality prediction values. Based on the results of the optimized simulation, the best injection molding setting is at a melt temperature of 200oC and a cooling temperature of 24oC which obtains a toothbrush handle product quality response variable of 78.04% with a minimum weld line value of 0.0277o and a minimum shrinkage depth of 0.009 mm.

Optimization of plastic injection molding process parameters for cowl B (L/R) sink mark defects by using Taguchi methods and ANOVA

The plastic injection molding process on Cowl B (L/R) products that have been carried out has sink mark defects. The defects that arise occur because the composition of injection molding parameter values is not optimal in the variables of melt temperature, mold temperature, packing time, packing pressure, and cooling time. The purpose of this study is to find the optimal composition of parameter values for each variable, to minimize sink mark defects in the product. The analysis process begins with the preparation of an orthogonal array matrix to determine the design parameters to be simulated on Autodesk mold flow. These results are evaluated with a signal-to-noise ratio to determine the effect of each parameter value composition on the results of the analysis process. The Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) method is used to estimate the contribution of each independent variable to all response measurements (the dependent variable). The optimization results for sink mark defects in the sink mark index value of 1.4494%, volumetric shrinkage of 0.5053%, and sink mark estimate of 0.0608 mm are found in the composition of the parameter values of melt temperature 200°C, mold temperature 80°C, packing time 30 seconds, packing pressure 80 MPa and a cooling time of 13,365 seconds. This data is used as a reference in determining parameters before production is carried out on plastic injection molding machines so that the time and cost of testing the injection molding process are optimal.

Feasibility of developing green water batteries based on poly-lactic acid and polybutylene succinate: A computational study on groasis waterboxx technology

Developing water-saving technologies such as Groasis Waterboxx (GW) based on environmentally friendly materials is a robust strategy to undermine the destructive effects of the agricultural industry on nature and society. Here, we simulated the injection molding process of green GWs made of poly-lactic acid (PLA) and polybutylene succinate (PBS) and analyzed the performance of the parts in heavy-duty conditions. The effects of different process parameters on cycle time, consumed energy, and final product qualities, including mechanical and visual aspects, were investigated by Autodesk Moldflow to compare biopolymers with polypropylene (PP). GW performance in the Sahara Desert was simulated with the help of Abaqus. The simulations results revealed that PLA exhibited shorter injection and cooling times compared to PP, with reduction of 44% and 56%, respectively, thus indicating faster production speed. However, PBS-based part demonstrated mechanical qualities similar to PP. PLA shows lower shrinkage and warpage than PP despite that environmental simulations illustrated that PLA is impractical for use in areas with high thermal stresses because of overlapping the glass transition and ground temperature, leading to failure near land surface regions. The results are in qualitative agreement with experimental results reported by the manufacturer. Despite its biodegradability, PBS could provide a high safety factor of about 82% of PP samples. Although the injection of PBS consumed more energy than PP because of the higher required injection pressure, replacing PP with PBS is justified considering its high efficiency and eco-friendliness.

Mold filling behaviour of LPIM feedstocks using numerical simulations and real-scale injections

ABSTRACT This study aims to compare the flow patterns and in-cavity pressures obtained experimentally and numerically for different conditions. Four feedstocks based on 17-4PH stainless steel powder were fully characterised and implemented as material laws in an Autodesk Moldflow package before to obtain numerical simulations that were then validated using real-scale injections. The flow patterns obtained numerically for the different flat bar mold geometries were in good agreement with the experimental flow patterns, showing an almost perfect fit, whereas for the flow patterns of the complex mold geometry, there were some minor discrepancies. The simulated pressure profiles obtained for different mold geometries, feedstock temperatures, mold temperatures and solid loadings were in good agreement with the experimental pressure profiles in terms of trend and pressure values, with maximum relative differences varying from 30 to 64% depending on particular feedstocks and process parameters.

ANALISIS PENGARUH TEMPERATUR MOLD DAN TEMPERATUR MELT TERHADAP FILL TIME DAN QUALITY PREDICTION PRODUK PLASTIK DALAM PROSES INJECTION MOLDING MENGGUNAKAN SOFTWARE AUTODESK MOLDFLOW ADVISER

This study aims to determine the effect of mold temperature and melt temperature on fill time and quality prediction of tablespoon products. This product is made of plastic with Polystyrene (PS) product material and is produced by the injection molding method. This research was conducted using Autodesk Moldflow Advisor software. From the results of this study, it is known that the best parameter setting among the twelve data obtained is at a mold temperature of 55°C and melt temperature of 220°C with a fill time of 0.2169 s and a high quality prediction of 13.80%, a medium value of 86, 20%, and a low value of 0.00%, because the quality of the resulting product is better and the production time is smaller. So that it can make the production process more effective and efficient

Homogenisation of the Local Thermal Conductivity in Injection-Moulded Short Fibre Reinforced Composites.

This paper deals with predicting the effective thermal conductivity (ETC) of injection-moulded short fibre reinforced polymers (SFRPs) using two different homogenisation schemes: a scheme based on the dielectric theory for pseudo-oriented inclusions and a two-step homogenisation model based on the mean-field homogenisation approach. In both cases, the fibre orientation tensor (FOT) obtained from Autodesk Moldflow® simulation was used. The Moldflow FOT predictions were validated via structure tensor analysis of micro-computed X-ray tomography (micro-CT) scans of the part. In the dielectric-wise approach, the orientation of fibres was originally defined by a scalar parameter, which is related to the diagonal components of the FOT. In the two-step homogenisation approach, an interpolative model based on the Mori–Tanaka theory is used in the first step for calculating the ETC for the ideal case of unidirectional fibre alignment, followed by a second step in which orientation averaging based on the FOT inside each element is applied. The ETC was calculated using both schemes for the specific case of uniform fibre orientation distribution and at three different locations with non-identical FOTs of an injection-moulded SFRP part. The results are compared with each other and evaluated against the direct numerical simulation for the uniform fibre orientation and experimental measurements for the injection-moulded SFRP. This shows that while the two-step homogenisation can predict the ETC in the full range of orientations between the perfectly aligned and uniformly distributed fibres, the dielectric-wise approach is only capable of modelling the ETC when distributions are close to the two extreme ends of the orientation spectrum.

Reinforced Composite as a Feeder for 3D Printing Application

Kenaf fibre has a low environmental impact because it is recyclable, light density and strong to be used as a product. Natural fibres, especially kenaf fibre, are undertilised and understudied in 3D printing technology. 3D technology is gaining traction to replace traditional methods because it saves cost and production time. This study focuses on producing kenaf composite materials that can be used as a feeder for 3D printing. This study used different fibre compositions (20,25,30) % mixed with polypropylene set at 190 ˚C temperature, 45 rpm speed, and 25 minutes. The material was left to cool to form clot to go through for the rheology process, and injection analysis was performed using Autodesk Moldflow Insight 2014. This study showed that a mixing temperature of 190 ˚C was suitable for forming a high shear mechanism. Kenaf fibre was treated in an alkaline solution of NaOH to 3 hours to prevent damage to the surface of the filler fibre in composites. Kenaf fibre at 6% of NaOH solution reaches a higher value for mechanical strength and roughness, resulting in better mechanical interlocking between the fibres and the matrix. In addition, analysis from Autodesk Moldflow Insight 2014 reveals that at 200 ˚C injection temperature pretend, the shear rate is higher creating smoother melt flow characteristics.

Numerical Evaluation of Press Forming Parameters and Mould Geometry in Wood Plastic Composite (WPC) Products

The purpose of this paper is to investigate factors associated with press-forming of Wood Plastic Composite (WPC) products. The WPC material is a novel, feasible, and economic way to use recycled thermoplastics. Due to the complexity of the fiber-polymer interaction, numerical simulation and thus prediction of WPC behavior in forming have been challenging. Up to now, press moulds have had to be empirically validated. In this paper, we explore the possibility of predicting material behavior using Autodesk Moldflow.

Comparison of Conventional and Conformal Cooling Channels in the Production of a Commercial Injection-Moulded Component

Cooling channels are critical in injection mould tooling as cooling performance influences component quality, cycle time, and overall process efficiency. Additively Manufactured moulds allow the incorporation of cooling channels conforming to the shape of the cavity and core to improve heat removal. These conformal channels can reduce the cycle time, reduce mould temperature, and enhance the temperature uniformity on the mould's surface, leading to improved quality of the moulded components and reduced wastage in the production. The design of such channels is more challenging than conventional channels; thus, Computer-Aided Engineering (CAE) has a significant role within the design process. In this paper, a novel design for conformal cooling channels for the production of a commercial component from an industrial partner is investigated. This component had issues of high cycle time and a high defect rate due to residual stresses, resulting in component shrinkage. First, the existing conventional drilled cooling channels in the mould were simulated in Autodesk Moldflow Insight to evaluate temperature distribution and cycle time. Based on the temperature distribution, conformal cooling channels were designed in Solidworks, addressing the problem areas. Next, a simulation of fluid flow in the conformal channels was conducted in ANSYS-Fluent to ensure equal flow distribution in the entire circuit, iteratively arriving at an optimal configuration. Finally, the results of the new conformal channels, including mould temperature and cycle time, were compared with conventional cooling channels in simulation. The results showed a significant reduction in cycle time and improvement in the temperature distribution, thereby minimising residual stresses and shrinkage.

Optimization of Injection Molding Process by using different types of Conformal Cooling Channels

This paper objects to deliver a brief summary on different types of Conformal cooling channel designs available for injection molding process, Also, the conformal cooling channel plays very important role in plastic injection process of injection molding by improving its efficiency and quality thus, reducing the whole cycle time of production. A comparative study of different conformal cooling channels like Series and parallel Conformal cooling channel, square section conformal cooling channel (SSCCC), Spiral cooling channel, Scaffold conformal cooling channel, array of baffle conformal cooling channel, micro cooling channel and their effects on injection molding based manufacturing process are shown. Study related to the performance analysis of different conformal cooling channels is done by using “Autodesk moldflow Advisor”. This paper presents a succinct review of recent progress in Conformal cooling channels.

Injection Molding Simulation of Polyoxymethylene Using Crystallization Kinetics Data and Comparison with the Experimental Process

It is well known that the processing conditions in polymer processing have a high impact on the resulting material morphology and consequently the component’s mechanical behavior. However, especially for semicrystalline polymers, the tools available for predicting the final morphology of injection molding parts still have significant limitations. In order to investigate the potential of injection molding simulation for the prediction of the morphology, POM homopolymer specimens were injection molded. The crystallization kinetics data were measured, and simulations in 3D and 2.5D with and without crystallization analysis were conducted in Autodesk Moldflow. The simulations are found to be good accordance with the experiments. Predicted spherulite size and crystalline orientation factor reveal a good qualitative correlation with optical micrographs. Also, the evolution of these parameters along the flow path is plausible. The simulation is found to be a powerful tool for morphology prediction in polymeric parts. Its applicability, however, is still limited to 2.5D models in Autodesk Moldflow, which, of course, is insufficient for complex, thick-walled 3-dimensional parts.

COMPUTER ANALYSIS OF THE TECHNOLOGICAL PROCESS OF A SELECTED COMPONENT'S PLASTIC INJECTION

The article describes an optimization methods analysis in the technological process of plastic injection using the simulation tool Autodesk Moldflow Adviser. The Polyethylene 120J was the material used in production of the plastic part analyzed. Following the simulations, deficiencies affecting the quality of the final part were identified. Modifications were gradually made both in the cover's design and as changes in the process parameters so as to eliminate the deficiencies identified. In the first step, the value of the injection time was modified based on the results of the analysis of the determination of the ratio of solidified layers at the end of the process of filling the mold cavity. The second type of adjustment required a change in the molding's design. Based on the result of the simulation of forecasting cooling quality, we proposed a change in the wall thickness of selected model elements, specifically the adjustment of the wall thickness of the bolted joint column from 3 to 4 mm. The last adjustment consisted of adjusting the additional pressure profile.