Mold Core Research Articles

Parametric appraisal of collapsibility and core shrinkage of phenol binded unbaked casting moulds using Taguchi-Sunflower optimization algorithm

When compared to green sand moulds, resin bound sand moulds and cores have higher mechanical characteristics and create more dimensionally exact castings, and are thus increasingly preferred for near net form metal components. The effect of catalyst %, sand particle size and no. of strokes for compression on collapsibility and core shrinkage of no-bake resin bonded mould core was studied in this study using lab testing. Their collapsibility were discovered to decrease and core shrinkage increase with the addition of catalyst amount and bigger grain size. Microscopic study of cross-linked resin bridges between sand grains also supports this. To get the best blend of mould characteristics, the results were optimized using the Taguchi technique and Sunflower optimization algorithm. Tests were used to successfully validate the model and its findings. It was reported that the Sunflower optimization algorithm made more precise prediction than Taguchi method in maximization of collapsibility and minimization of core shrinkage. This study lays the groundwork for optimizing the moulding parameters of resin reinforced sand mould cores in order to achieve the best quality.

Simulation and Experimental Study of the Preheating Mould Temperature Distribution in Semi-Solid Diecasting

The mould temperature distribution has a great influence on the semi-solid diecasting. In the present study the temperature distribution of a plane-shaped mould was investigated by using the method of numerical simulation and experiment. The results showed that the preheating mould temperature field was affected by three important simulation parameters, the heat transfer coefficient hoil between the heat transfer oil and the mould, the heat transfer coefficient hair between the mould and the air, and the heat transfer coefficient hcontact between the mould core and the mould frame. The simulation results showed that (1) with the increase of hoil, the overall mould temperature imcreased; (2) with the increase of hair, the overall mould temperature decreased, while the surface temperature gradient of mould frame grad T-f and the temperature difference between the mould core and the mould frame ∆T increased; (3) With the increase of hcontact, ∆T decreased and the temperature of mould frame increased. When the heat oil temperature Toil=290°C, the heat transfer coefficients were optimized as hoil=500Wm-2K-1, hair=7Wm-2K-1, and hcontact=1000Wm-2K-1 according to the experimental results. The average temperature difference between the simulation result and the experimental result was 3.45°C, and the average relative error was 1.73%.

Optimization of CNC Milling Parameters for Complex 3D Surfaces of SIMOLD 2083 Alloy Mold Core Utilizing Multiobjective Water Cycle Algorithm

In this article, an effective multiobjective optimization approach is exploited to search for the best milling parameters for CNC for complex 3d surfaces of SIMOLD 2083 alloy mold core. To improve the quality responses, the cutting factors are optimized by a combination of Taguchi method (TM), response surface method (RSM), and multiobjective water cycle algorithm (MWCA). Firstly, the design for initial series experiments of the cutting factors was generated via the TM. Thereafter, the regression models between the cutting factors and the surface roughness of the machined workpiece surface as well as milling time are formed via applying the RSM. Moreover, analysis of variance and sensitivity analysis are also executed to define the influences and crucial contributions of cutting parameters on the surface roughness and milling time. The results of analysis of variance showed that the factors which have main effects on surface roughness were spindle speed (42.42%), feed rate (29.40%), and cutting depth (6.59%), respectively. Meanwhile, the feed rate with the influence of 92.6% was the most significant factor in controlling the milling time. Ultimately, based on mathematical models, the MWCA is performed to define the optimal factors. The optimal results indicated that the optimized surface roughness was about 0.260 μm and the milling time was roughly 1012.767 (s). In addition, the errors between forecasted results and experimental verifications for the surface roughness and milling time are 2.04% and 5.39%, respectively. Therefore, the results of experimental verifications are suitable with the forecasted results from the proposed optimization method. These results depicted that the proposed integration approach can define effectively the optimal cutting factors for CNC milling and expand to apply for complex multiobjective optimization problems.

Ultrasonic injection molding of glass fiber reinforced polypropylene parts using tungsten carbide-cobalt mold core

A hybrid process combining ultrasonic injection molding and electrical discharge machining was proposed to realize the economic, high-precision, and environmental-friendliness production of glass fiber reinforced polypropylene microstructured parts. First, the prism array microstructures were processed on tungsten carbide-cobalt (WC-8 wt% Co) substrate by low-speed wire electrical discharge machining and used as the mold core. Then, the glass fiber reinforced polypropylene composite (GF/PP) was melted under ultrasonic vibration, and the surface microstructure of the mold core was replicated. The experimental results show that this method can efficiently and accurately manufacture microstructured parts, and the microstructure has a high replication rate up to 95.5%. By replicating the microstructure, the surface contact angle of GF/PP parts increased from 57.1° to 134.9°, and the wettability changed from hydrophilicity to hydrophobicity. The mechanical properties test results show that the GF/PP parts fabricated by ultrasonic injection molding had excellent mechanical properties, and the 30% GF/PP parts show the highest tensile strength of 56.9 MPa. This work provides a new option for fabricating fiber reinforced composite parts.

Fabrication of high-precision freeform surface on die steel by ultrasonic-assisted slow tool servo.

The mold core fabrication of a freeform surface on die steel by ultra-precision machining can make the optical elements of freeform be mass-produced by plastic injection and glass mold pressing. However, because steel is a typical difficult-to-cut material, the technical limitations of existing machining methods hardly meet the current requirements of design. In this paper, a novel machining method, one-dimension ultrasonic-assisted slow tool servo (UASTS) turning, is proposed to manufacture the freeform surface with high-precision and large-steepness on the die steel. Aiming at the characteristics of UASTS turning, the tool trajectory is generated by analyzing the compensation of tool radius and confirming the position of ultrasonic displacement. The 2D surface model contours of residual tool marks are established for predicting the 3D surface topography based on considering the effects of kinematics, material elastic recovery and plastic side flow. In the experiments, the large-amplitude bidirectional sinusoidal wave grid (BSWG) surface is successfully fabricated by UASTS technology on the material, Polmax steel, for which the value Rt of surface roughness is less than 70nm and the value Ra of surface roughness can achieve to 3.298nm. The results show that the freeform surface with high-precision and large-steepness can be machined by UASTS turning technology on mold steel.

Fabrication of Micro-Structured LED Diffusion Plate Using Efficient Micro Injection Molding and Micro-Ground Mold Core.

In this paper, a new style of micro-structured LED (light-emitting diode) diffusion plate was developed using a highly efficient and precise hybrid processing method combined with micro injection molding and micro-grinding technology to realize mass production and low-cost manufacturing of LED lamps with excellent lighting performance. Firstly, the micro-structured mold core with controllable shape accuracy and surface quality was machined by the precision trued V-tip grinding wheel. Then, the micro-structured LED diffusion plate was rapidly fabricated by the micro injection molding technology. Finally, the influences of micro injection molding process parameters on the illumination of the micro-structured diffusion plate were investigated. The simulated optical results show that the illumination of the micro-structured diffusion plate can achieve a maximum value when the V-groove depth and V-groove angle are designed to be 300 μm and 60°, respectively. The experimental results indicate that the developed micro-structured diffusion plate may improve the illumination by about 40.82% compared with the traditional diffusion plate. The prediction accuracy of the designed light efficiency simulation method was about 90.33%.

Research on automatic generation technology of ejector pin for injection mold

When having narrow slot features in the mold core, the molded products cannot be smoothly removed from the mold core. Through ejector pin design, during the ejection process, the ejector pin can eject products to successfully leave the mold core. Under the framework of CAD software, this study developed the narrow slot feature recognition, integrated the mold design, and automated ejector pin production. Based on the geometric relationship of the surfaces, edges of the core’s narrow slot, this study summarized an algorithm to automatically recognize the narrow slot feature by programming an algorithm. Through computer programming calculation and judgment, the proposed method can automatically recognize narrow slot features to reduce the time at the recognition stage and record the diameters of the ejector pin and its coordinate position in feature parameters. At the mold design stage, through the acquisition of its parameters, it can automatically produce a suitable ejector pin. Through standardized design process, it can greatly shorten the design time to guide users to quickly complete the design, while reducing design errors to improve working efficiency by the automatic integration function.

분리형 코어를 적용한 내부가열형 사출 금형의 열전달 및 유동 특성 연구

The purpose of this study was to develop an efficient mold heating technology by an embedded heating unit. To localize the heating effect in the mold core and prevent heat transfer to surrounding mold plates, the core module with embedded heating unit was assembled to a mold plate in a detachable manner. The detachable core module was then separated from the mold plate when the mold was opened, and thus could be rapidly heated by the embedded heater. The heated core contacted with the mold plate when the mold was closed, and could be cooled by heat conduction to the mold plate of which thermal inertia was much larger than that of the core module. To verify thermal efficiency of the proposed structure, heat transfer simulation was performed with an experimental validation. Mold filling simulation was also performed to investigate the effect of mold heating on improving flow characteristics through a thin and narrow channel. Injection molding experiments were also conducted by adopting the proposed embedded heating module.

Processing parameters Optimization of Injection Moulding in DN20 Vent of Water Meter Manufacturing

The conventional optimization process in Injection Moulding includes actual shop floor trials in which melt temperature, mould temperature, injection time, injection pressure, pattern, feeder size, shape and location cores, mould layout, gating etc. are changed in each iteration which involves high machining cost, tooling cost, modification cost, melting cost, and transportation cost as well as, materials, energy, time are wasted in each trial until and unless the required results are obtained. Water meter component (DN20 Vent) is designed in CREO 5.0, and then components are 3D printed to cross check the dimensions and also to confirm whether all the other components can be accommodated or not. Then the mould flow analysis will be performed on a water meter components using different materials and changing the processing parameters. The input processing parameters considered are melt temperature, mould temperature and injection time, whereas the responses are warpage, volumetric shrinkage, cycle time and quality prediction. Grey relational analysis is carried out to determine the optimum injection moulding processing parameters.. The effort has been made to minimize the warpage, volumetric shrinkage, cycle time and maximize the quality prediction mould cavity and core for the components are designed in CREO 5.0 and manufactured using P20 tool steel. Then the water meter components are manufactured by inputting the optimal processing parameters in injection moulding machine to achieve high productivity and quality.

Influence of Initial Value of Transient Time Step on Numerical Simulation of Blow Molding Balloon

The correlation between the initial time value of transient iterative parameters and the blowing pressure in the numerical simulation process of blowing balloon is investigated by POLYFLOW. The results show that: 1) As the blow molding pressure increases, the boundary value of the iterative time step decreases rapidly at first and then slowly. At the end of the first step of iterative calculation for each boundary value, the balloon parison is in the mold core cavity. 2) If the initial time value of transient iterative parameters is smaller than the boundary value of the iterative time step, the balloon parison is still in the mold core cavity at the end of the first iteration. However, if the iterative calculation continues, the calculation process may be interrupted when the time step is smaller than the initial time value of the transient iterative parameters, which makes the blow molding simulation of balloon unable to continue. 3) It is suggested that the initial time value of transient iterative parameters is one order of magnitude smaller than the boundary value of the iterative time step to complete smoothly the simulation of blow molding balloon.

Investigation of processing parameters in micro-thermoforming of micro-structured polystyrene film

In this study, a thermoforming process for manufacturing micro-structured polystyrene (PS) films is investigated to characterize the effects of significant processing parameters. The present micro-thermoforming process utilizes a mold core with five concave rectangular grooves (each of width 0.4-1.2 mm and a depth of 1 mm). Two types of PS films (thicknesses of 50 and 190 μm) are employed to examine the effect of film thickness. Three main processing parameters namely heating temperature, heating time, and mold core temperature are analyzed. The results show that as the width of the groove in the mold core decreases, the forming ratio (depth-to-width ratio of the thermoformed micro-feature) slightly reduces, consequently indicating poor thermoforming. Both thin and thick PS films exhibit similar forming results under favorable conditions. However, when the processing conditions are not suitably applied, the thick film shows the worst result. From the design of experiment analysis using a normalized forming ratio, the mold core temperature is found to be the most influential factor in the thermoforming process of manufacturing micro-structured PS films.

Development of Direct Metal Tooling (DMT) Process for Injection Mold Core with Curved Conformal Cooling Channel

Development of Direct Metal Tooling (DMT) Process for Injection Mold Core with Curved Conformal Cooling Channel

Integrated Optimum Layout of Conformal Cooling Channels and Optimal Injection Molding Process Parameters for Optical Lenses

Plastic lenses are light and can be mass-produced. Large-diameter aspheric plastic lenses play a substantial role in the optical industry. Injection molding is a popular technology for plastic optical manufacturing because it can achieve a high production rate. Highly efficient cooling channels are required for obtaining a uniform temperature distribution in mold cavities. With the recent advent of laser additive manufacturing, highly efficient three-dimensional spiral channels can be realized for conformal cooling technique. However, the design of conformal cooling channels is very complex and requires optimization analyses. In this study, finite element analysis is combined with a gradient-based algorithm and robust genetic algorithm to determine the optimum layout of cooling channels. According to the simulation results, the use of conformal cooling channels can reduce the surface temperature difference of the melt, ejection time, and warpage. Moreover, the optimal process parameters (such as melt temperature, mold temperature, filling time, and packing time) obtained from the design of experiments improved the fringe pattern and eliminated the local variation of birefringence. Thus, this study indicates how the optical properties of plastic lenses can be improved. The major contribution of present proposed methods can be applied to a mold core containing the conformal cooling channels by metal additive manufacturing.

Efficient and Precise Micro-Injection Molding of Micro-Structured Polymer Parts Using Micro-Machined Mold Core by WEDM.

In this paper, micro-structured polymer parts were efficiently and accurately fabricated by micro-injection molding using a micro-structured mold core machined by wire electrical discharge machining (WEDM). The objective was to realize low-cost mass production and manufacturing of micro-structured polymer products. The regular micro-structured mold core was manufactured by precise WEDM. The micro-structured polymer workpieces were rapidly fabricated by micro-injection molding and the effects of the micro-injection molding process parameters on replication rate and surface roughness of micro-structured polymers were systematically investigated and analyzed. It is shown that the micro-structured polymer can be rapidly and precisely fabricated by the proposed method. The experimental results show the minimum size machining error of the micro-structured mold core and the maximum replication rate of micro-formed polymer were 0.394% and 99.12%, respectively. Meanwhile, the optimal micro-injection molding parameters, namely, jet temperature, melt temperature, injection velocity, holding pressure and holding time were 195 °C, 210 °C, 40 mm/min, 7 Mpa and 5 s, respectively. The surface roughness Ra at the groove bottom and top of the micro-structured polymer workpieces achieved minimum values of 0.805 µm and 0.972 µm, respectively.

PIV Analysis of Stented Haemodynamics in the Descending Aorta.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the leading cause of death in the developed world and aortic aneurysm is a key contributor. Aortic aneurysms typically occur in the thoracic aorta and can extend into the descending aorta. The Frozen Elephant Trunk stent (FET) is one of the leading treatments for the aneurysms extending into the descending aorta. This study focuses on the in-vitro experimentation of a stented descending aorta, investigating the haemodynamics in a compliant phantom. A silicone phantom of the descending aorta was manufactured using a lost core casting method. A PVC stent was manufactured using the same mould core. Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) was used for pulsatile studies, focusing specifically on the passive fixation at the distal end of the FET. The results showed an apparent expansion in the diastolic period that was identified to be a collapse in the lateral plane. Flow recirculation regions were identified during the collapse. The collapse was attributed to low upstream and high downstream pressures causing a vacuum effect. The findings may imply a potential risk introduced by the FET stent that requires further investigation.

Fabrication of Micro-Structured Polymer by Micro Injection Molding Based on Precise Micro-Ground Mold Core.

Precise micro-grinding machining was proposed to fabricate regular and controllable micro-grooved array structures on the surface of mold cores to realize the mass production and manufacturing of micro-structured polymer components by micro injection molding in this paper. First, the 3D topographies and section profiles of micro-ground mold cores and micro-formed polymers with different micro-structure parameters were presented. Then, the surface roughness of mold cores and polymers were compared. Next, the relationships between machining accuracy of mold core ground by micro-grinding and filling rates of micro-structured polymer formed by micro injection molding were investigated. Finally, the influences of micro injection molding parameters on the filling rate of micro-structures polymer were investigated. It is shown that the micro-structured polymer can be effectively and rapidly fabricated using the proposed method. The experimental results indicate the highest form accuracy of the micro-grooved mold core and the filling rate of micro-structured polymer can reach to 4.05 µm and 99.30%, respectively. It is found that the filling rate of the micro-structured polymer roughly increased with increasing machining accuracy of the mold core. The injection pressure had the greatest influence on the filling rate of the injection formed polymer, while the melt temperature had the least influence.

Optimization of injection molding process parameters and axial surface compensation for producing an aspheric plastic lens with large diameter and center thickness.

Form accuracy is an important parameter to measure whether a plastic lens can be used in imaging optics. Form accuracy exhibited by an aspheric plastic lens produced by injection molding is affected by process parameters and mold core. This paper proposes to optimize the process parameters through two stages. Stage one: An initial selection of process parameters was conducted in a wide range of the Taguchi method, and the process parameters were determined based on the signal-to-noise ratio, which significantly affected the axial deformation. Then the initial process parameters were obtained. Stage two: The regression model of process parameters was established according to the response surface methodology, with the optimal process parameters finally determined. For reducing the form accuracy error of aspheric plastic lens caused by material shrinkage and machining error of the mold core, an axial deformation compensation model was established. The aspheric plastic lens with form accuracy of 1.013μm was experimentally verified, which met the requirements of imaging optics.

Predicting the volume shrinkage while manufacturing the GTE turbine blades

The process analysis of manufacturing the castings of turbine moving blades demonstrated that approximately 5% of the blade blanks from a lot are rejected to a considerable geometric distortion of the blade airfoil. The turbine moving blade casting manufactured by the casting method with directed crystallizing may differ in its geometric and dimensional-accuracy parameters from the design model. The casting geometry varies as a result of high temperature and structural shrinkage deformations which are manifested as the hindered volumetric shrinkage and contraction during crystallizing and upon the casting knockout from the ceramic mould. High-temperature deformations may result in contraction of the casting mould and ceramic core shaping the inner blade cooling channels. As a result, to obtain the blade of the geometric form as set by the designer, it becomes necessary to predict the stress-deformed state of the moving blade casting in order to consider the volumetric shrinkage and deformation in advance. Therefore, predicting and considering the total volumetric shrinkage during the manufacture of the moving blade castings ensuring the minimum contraction of the process system “ceramic mould – casting – ceramic core” is a relevant problem for the modern blank production.

Thermo-fluid Topology Optimization and Experimental Study of Conformal Cooling Channels for 3D Printed Plastic Injection Molds

Abstract With the advent of additive manufacturing, innovative design methods, such as network-based techniques, and structural topology optimization have been used to generate complex and highly efficient cooling systems in recent years. However, methods that incorporate coupled thermal and fluid analysis remain scarce. In this paper, a coupled thermal-fluid topology optimization algorithm is introduced for the design of conformal cooling channels. The problem is formulated based on a coupling of Navier- Stokes equations and convection-diffusion equation. The problem is solved by gradient-based optimization after analytical sensitivity derived using adjoint method. With this method, the channel position problem is replaced to a material distribution problem. The material distribution directly depends on the effect of flow resistance, heat conduction, natural and forced convection. The algorithm leads to a two-dimensional conceptual design having optimal heat transfer and balanced flow, which is further transformed into three-dimensional cooling channel design. Here, a comprehensive study is presented, starting from design, simulation, 3D printing process and experimental testing of an injection mold with conformal cooling channels in industrial production environment. A traditional mold model is provided by an industrial collaborator. To enhance the overall thermo-fluid performance of the mold and improve final product quality, a redesign of this mold core is done with conformal cooling channels inside. The final design is 3D printed in pre-alloyed tool-steel powder Maraging Steel using Truprint 3000 metal 3D printing machine. The printed core required some heat treatment and finishing processes and added features to be incorporated to make it production ready. Once all the preparation was complete, the core was tested experimentally in a multicavity injection molding machine in real industrial environment at our industrial partner’s production facility. This paper describes all the steps starting from design, analysis, die 3D printing and finally ending at final experimental testing, as well as recommendations for tool designer and injection molding industry to implement additive manufacturing for their benefit. This paper is not just focused on a specific aspect such as design, simulation or manufacturing, but rather a comprehensive paper presenting a case study on implementation of topology optimization and additive manufacturing in real life industrial production scenario.

Post-processing of FDM parts to improve surface and thermal properties

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to develop a novel post-processing technique of fused deposition modeling (FDM) parts to improve surface roughness and reduce heat absorption and for high-temperature application in thermoforming process.Design/methodology/approachThe current technique consists of chemical treatment, drying and aluminum coating. First, surface morphology was investigated using FDM specimens with a flat surface. The heat absorption characteristic was also analyzed by Taguchi-based design of experiment and modified lump-capacity model. In addition, dimensional accuracy and uniformity were investigated under high-temperature conditions, which were similar to a typical thermoforming process, with specimens having concave and convex grooves.FindingsIt was verified that the proposed post-processing technique could efficiently improve surface quality of FDM parts with the arithmetic average surface roughness of 2.06 µm. In addition, the coated aluminum layer was found to reflect the heat radiation, resulting into a sufficient reduction of heat absorption. From the investigation of dimensional accuracy and uniformity, it was found that the current technique produced maximum change of 0.11 mm and uniform thickness of an aluminum layer within 0.07 mm.Originality/valueThe present study establishes a novel post-processing technique, enabling to treat the surface of FDM parts for high-temperature applications. It provides a simple way of using typical FDM parts for a thermoforming process as the mold cores. Furthermore, it can be used in other rapid tooling technologies, consequently widening the application areas of FDM.