High-Efficiency Surface-Cooled Rapid Tooling Development for Injection Molding of Low-Density Polyethylene

Area of Science:

• Polymer Science and Engineering
• Materials Science
• Manufacturing Technology

Background:

• Polymer composite materials, specifically aluminum-filled epoxy resin, are crucial for rapid tooling in product design.
• Enhancing cooling efficiency in molds is vital for optimizing injection molding processes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate aluminum-filled epoxy resin molds with surface-cooled cooling channels (SCCCs).
• To assess the impact of SCCCs on cooling performance, production efficiency, and defect rates in low-density polyethylene (LDPE) injection molding.

Main Methods:

• Utilized Moldex3D simulation with a 1 mm mesh size for mold filling analysis.
• Conducted experimental analysis to validate simulation results and determine optimal molding parameters.
• Proposed a cooling mechanism for SCCCs in LDPE injection molding.

Main Results:

• Simulations confirmed complete mold filling within 5 seconds.
• Identified optimal parameters: 160 °C melt temperature, 30 °C mold temperature, 10 MPa injection pressure, and 20 s heat dissipation time.
• SCCCs enhanced cooling efficiency by 58.7% compared to conventional conformal cooling channels.

Conclusions:

• SCCCs offer superior cooling performance, reducing cycle times and increasing production capacity.
• The developed SCCC technology minimizes energy consumption, carbon emissions, and product defects in large-scale manufacturing.
• This advancement provides a more efficient and sustainable approach to rapid tooling in injection molding.