Evaluation of healing models to predict the weld line strength of the amorphous thermoplastic polystyrene by injection molding simulation

In many injection molded parts weld lines are often unavoidable. These cause optical defects and a reduction of the mechanical properties of the part. Therefore, the predictability of the weld line strength at an early stage of development would provide a significant advantage by avoiding costly iterations of the mold and increases the understanding of the correlation between process history of the melt and weld line strength. For this purpose, a calculation routine has been developed to predict the weld line strength based on injection molding simulation. Different models to calculate the healing of a weld line are compared and analyzed. By adding a factor to consider the shear rate in addition to the temperature and the pressure and after calibration to one design of experiment setting of the experimental data, the prediction of the weld line strength shows good agreement for all examined process setpoints of the experimental data for polystyrene.     

Integrated simulation to predict warpage of injection molded parts

Injection molding analysis programs were developed for CAE (Computer Aided Engineering) in injection molding of thermoplastics. The programs consist of mold cooling, polymer filling-packing-cooling, fiber orientation, material properties and stress analyses. These programs are integrated to predict warpage of molded parts by using a common geometric model of three dimensional thinwalled molded parts. The warpage is predicted from temperature difference between upper and lower surfaces, temperature distribution, flow induced shear stress, shrinkage, and anisotropic mechanical properties caused by fiber orientation in the integrated simulation. The integrated simulation was applied to predicting warpage of a 4-ribbed square plate of glass fiber reinforced polypropylene for examination of its validity. Predicted saddle-like warpage was in good agreement with experimental one.     

Recycling plastics by two-shot molding

In response to increasing ecological and economic pressures, a two-shot molding process has been developed to recycle molding plastics. This process buries scrap plastic under a skin of virgin plastic in the molded part, resulting in a laminate that has the appearance of and similar mechanical properties to the skin material only. Two injection units and a special nozzle design are used to achieve the desired lamination. Theoretical and experimental studies have been conducted to determine the effects of parameters on the amount of scrap material that can be buried and its effect on impact strength. With conventional production molding dies, scrap plastic comprising approximately 40 percent of the total shot has been molded beneath virgin plastic in parts having stringent appearance requirements.     

Morphological zones and orientation in injection-molded polyethylene

The properties of injection-molded plastics parts are affected by resin properties, molding geometry, and molding conditions. The thermomechanical history, which results from the interactions between resin properties and molding conditions, controls the development of microstructure within the article. In turn, the microstructure controls the ultimate behavior of injection-molded parts. Morphology and orientation and their distributions are among the most important microstructural characteristics affecting the ultimate mechanical and physical behavior of molded articles. This work summarizes some of the results of an extensive experimental and theoretical program to study the factors affecting the development of morphology and orientation in injection-molded polyethylene. In particular, various experimental techniques are employed to study the distribution of morphology and orientation in simple moldings and to relate these characteristics to resin properties and molding variables. Furthermore, an attempt is made to employ mathematical models to explain and predict some of the observed phenomena especially in relation to the distribution of morphological zones in the molding. It appears that model predictions are in good agreement with experimental results.     

Performance prediction of weldline structure in amorphous polymers

The presence of a weldline generally reduces the mechanical strength of injection molded parts. A typical remedy to eliminate the problem of weak weldline structure has been to increase the melt temperature. This, however, is not an acceptable solution in some situations. A general solution to the weak weldline problem requires an in-depth understanding of the thermomechanical history of the injection molding process. A theoretical model for the strength of weldlines is presented that provides a comprehensive physical insight of the bonding process at the weldline interface. The model is based on the self-diffusion of molecular chains across the polymer-polymer interface and the frozen-in orientation that remains parallel to the interface. Both factors are analyzed separately and then superimposed to predict the strength of weldlines from known processing conditions and geometry. Experimental results show good correlation with predictions.     

Morphology and mechanical properties of injection‐molded ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene/polypropylene blends and comparison with compression molding

The mechanical properties and morphology of UHMWPE/PP(80/20) blend molded by injection and compression‐molding were investigated comparatively. The results showed that the injection‐molded part had obviously higher Young's modulus and yield strength, and much lower elongation at break and impact strength, than compression‐molded one. A skin‐core structure was formed during injection molding in which UHMWPE particles elongated highly in the skin and the orientation was much weakened in the core. In the compression‐molded part, the phase morphology was isotropic from the skin to the core section. The difference in consolidation degree between two molded parts that the compression molded part consolidated better than the injection one was also clearly shown. In addition, compositional analysis revealed that there was more PP in the skin than core for the injection‐molded part, whereas opposite case occurred to the compression‐molded one. All these factors together accounted for the different behavior in mechanical properties for two molded parts. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009     

The influence of gas‐assisted injection molding parameters on the structure and thermomechanical properties of hollow parts

The purpose of the work was to estimate an influence of gas‐assisted injection conditions (the temperature of plastic material, switch time‐delay time, gas injection time) of shape, position and dimension of gas channel, and structure of injection molded parts. The change in the value of the dynamic Young modulus and the mechanical loss tangent in function of temperature and oscillation frequency by the dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA) method was determined. It was found that injection molding parameters: injection molding temperature, switching time and gas injection time influenced significantly mass, wall thickness, and thermomechanical properties of parts. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2013. © 2012 Society of Plastics Engineers     

聚己内酯3D打印成型工艺研究及力学性能分析

以聚己内酯（PCL）为材料,采用实验方法,研究了成型温度和打印层高对PCL制品翘曲变形的影响。通过三维（3D）打印制备PCL样条,表征了3D打印PCL的力学性能,并与注射成型进行对比。结果表明,随着成型温度的升高和打印层高的增加,PCL制品的翘曲变形量呈现出先增加后减小的趋势;PCL 的3D打印制品的拉伸强度、弯曲强度和断裂伸长率均高于传统注射成型工艺。     

Applications of a fiber orientation prediction algorithm for compression molded parts with multiple charges

An application of a finite element simulation of mold filling and predication of fiber orientation in fiber filled compression molded parts is presented. Three-dimensional thin-walled geometries are considered. Following a simulation of the filling process, a set of transort equations are solved to predict the locally planar orientation of short fiber composites. The final orientation states throughout the part provide the necessary information to obtain a locally orthotropic mechanical model of the composite. A sheet molding compound part with a multiple charge pattern is used to illustrate the generality of the algorithms developed for compression flow, fiber orientation, and property predications. Derivations of the orthotropic mechanical properties obtained from the fiber orientation results are outlined.     

Modeling material property heterogeneity in fiber‐reinforced injection molded plastic parts

Fiber reinforced plastic parts manufactured by injection molding have heterogeneous stiffness and strength behavior due to the molding process influence on the fiber orientations. This paper presents a methodology for determining the process‐dependent anisotropic and inhomogeneous mechanical properties of injection‐molded parts using a thickness‐wise layered homogenization technique. This technique produces an equivalent laminated meso‐scale representation at any location in the part and enables point‐wise application of the existing laminated plate and shell theories. The methodology is demonstrated by illustrating property variations in edge‐gated and center‐gated plaques. Spatial variations of elastic moduli, shear modulus, and Poisson's ratio are modeled. The model can be conveniently embedded within finite element structural analyses accounting for the process‐dependent material heterogeneities within the structure. POLYM. COMPOS., 26:98–113, 2005. © 2004 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Water‐assisted injection molding of thermoplastic materials: Effects of processing parameters

The objective of this study was to experimentally investigate the effects of various processing parameters on the water‐assisted injection molding of thermoplastic materials. Experiments were carried out on a lab‐developed water‐assisted injection molding system, which included a water pump, a water injection pin, a water tank equipped with a temperature regulator, and a control circuit. Two types of water injection pins designs were proposed to mold the parts. After molding, the lengths of water penetration in molded parts were measured. The effects of different processing parameters on the lengths of water penetration were determined. It was found that the shrinkage rate and the viscosity of the polymeric materials, and the void shapes of the hollowed cores mainly determined the water‐penetration lengths in molded products. In addition, a comparison has been made between the parts molded by water assisted injection molding and gas‐assisted injection molding. It was found that water‐assisted injection molded parts exhibit less uniform void sizes along the water channel. The cycle time for water‐assisted injection molded parts was shorter than that of conventional injection molded parts and gas‐assisted injection molded parts.     

Reducing residual stresses in molded parts

Means of reducing the flow-induced residual stresses in injection molded parts through optimization of the thermal history of the process are presented. An approach through the use of a passive insulation layer with low thermal inertia on the cavity surface was investigated. The passive insulation layer prevents the polymer melt from freezing during mold filling and allows the flow-induced stresses to relax after the filling. The criteria for the optimal thermal properties and the required thickness of the layer are presented. A numerical simulation model of non-isothermal filling and cooling of viscoelastic materials was also used to understand the molding process and to evaluate this approach. This model predicts the stress development and relaxation in the molding cycle. Both simulation and experimental results show that the final stresses in the molded parts can be reduced significantly with the use of an insulation layer. This technique can also be applied to other molding or forming processes in order to decouple the material flow and cooling process for minimum residual stresses in the molded parts.     

Injection molding with an additive manufactured tool

This study examines the viability of using additively manufactured injection molding tools for short run proof‐of‐concept plastic parts by assessing the quantity and quality of molded parts. Prototyping injection molded parts traditionally can be very expensive, but with improved additive manufacturing materials and techniques such costs could be reduced. To prove this, plastic tools were made by using PolyJet and Fused Deposition Modeling out of Digital ABS, FullCure 720, and ULTEM 1010 materials in this study. The test tools were then compared to the standard P20 metal tool by molding acetal, polycarbonate (PC), and polypropylene (PP) in each tool type. The molded parts were analyzed for processing effects on part shrink, physical, and mechanical properties. Testing concluded that parts molded with additively manufactured tools performed comparably to parts made on a P20 tool. However, the quantity of satisfactory parts molded in acetal and PC were consistent with the literature at 10–100 parts. Conversely, molding in PP suggested that processing with additive manufactured tools could exceed 250 parts. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 59:1911–1918, 2019. © 2019 Society of Plastics Engineers     

A new microcellular injection molding process for polycarbonate using water as the physical blowing agent

This article presents a new process for producing microcellular injection molded plastic parts using water as the physical blowing agent and micro‐scaled particles as the cell nucleating agents. Distilled water with dissolved salt were fed through the hopper of an injection molding machine at a preset rate and mixed with polycarbonate (PC) in the machine barrel. Microcellular PC tensile bars were then injection molded with different shot volumes, water/salt solution feed rates, and salt concentrations. Tiny salt crystals of 10–20 μm recrystallized during molding acted as nucleating agents in the PC foamed parts. The surface roughness, mechanical properties, and microstructure of the solid and foamed parts were measured and compared with microcellular injection molded parts using supercritical fluid (SCF) nitrogen as the physical blowing agent. At a similar weight reduction of about 10%, the water foamed PC parts have a smooth surface comparable to that of solid injection molded parts. They also possess similar, if not better, mechanical properties compared to SCF nitrogen foamed PC parts. Without the nucleating agent, PC/water foamed parts exhibit much larger and fewer bubbles within the molded parts. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2012. © 2012 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Effect of molding conditions on crystallization kinetics and mechanical properties of poly(lactic acid)

Although Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) possesses many desirable properties, above all biodegradability, its heat deflection temperature is too low for many desirable applications. Similarly, to any other polymers, also for PLA the physical and mechanical properties in the solid state depend on the morphology and crystallinity degree, which in their turn are determined by the thermomechanical history experienced during solidification. A large crystallinity degree is highly desirable to increase the heat resistance of PLA but is rather difficult to reach during injection molding due to the very slow crystallization kinetics of this material. In this work, the crystallization kinetics of an injection molded PLA grade was assessed in function of the thermal history by using calorimetric analysis. The cold crystallization kinetics (starting from the amorphous glassy sample) turned out to be faster than melt crystallization kinetics. Following the indications gained from crystallization kinetics, some samples were injection molded imposing different thermal histories. The effect of molding conditions on crystallinity was determined. This finding was adopted to develop a post‐molding stage which allows obtaining crystalline samples in times much shorter (of a factor about two) with respect to samples injection molded in a hot mold kept at temperatures close to the maximum crystallization rate. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 57:306–311, 2017. © 2016 Society of Plastics Engineers     

The influence of injection molding parameters and blowing agent addition on selected properties,surface state,and structure of HDPE parts

The investigation of the influence of injection molding parameters (injection velocity, mold temperature and injection temperature, and additionally, as a result of these three parameters change, injection time, hold time, and cooling time) and blowing agent percentage on selected properties of HDPE molded parts such as weight, density, mechanical properties (tensile strength and elongation at maximum force), surface state (gloss and color), and structure was the aim of this work. The examination showed, that the mold temperature has the main influence on properties and surface state of molded parts from solid and foam HDPE. The weight, density, mechanical properties and gloss of molded parts increased with the increase in mold temperature. The mold temperature also influences significantly the number and size of pores in molded parts. The addition of blowing agent in a quantity of 2% is sufficient to obtain parts with favorable mechanical properties and good surface quality. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2013. © 2012 Society of Plastics Engineers.     

Effect of packing pressure on fiber orientation in injection molding of fiber‐reinforced thermoplastics

Injection molding of fiber‐reinforced polymeric composites is increasing with demands of geometrically complex products possessing superior mechanical properties of high specific strength, high specific stiffness, and high impact resistance. Complex state of fiber orientation exists in injection molding of short fiber reinforced polymers. The orientation of fibers vary significantly across the thickness of injection‐molded part and can become a key feature of the finished product. Improving the mechanical properties of molded parts by managing the orientation of fibers during the process of injection molding is the basic motivation of this study. As a first step in this direction, the present results reveal the importance of packing pressure in orienting the fibers. In this study, the effects of pressure distribution and viscosity of a compressible polymeric composite melt on the state of fiber orientation after complete filling of a cavity is considered experimentally and compared with the simulation results of Moldflow analysis. POLYM. COMPOS. 28:214–223, 2007. © 2007 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Simulation of foaming in reaction injection molding

Blowing agents are often used in the reaction injection molding process to compensate for the shrinkage that occurs upon polymerization, thereby creating a structural foam part. Controlling the thickness of the solid skin and foamed core is essential to achieve the intended mechanical properties of the molded part. A numerical model was developed to predict the foaming behavior in reaction injection molding. This algorithm employs a novel primitive cell construction to enable it to analyze complex rectangular geometries, including inserts, with a two-dimensional, finite difference solution method. The analysis was applied to foaming of polyurethane in a rectangular cavity. The predicted skin thickness was found to be in good agreement with actual structural foam parts. Foaming as a function of cavity thickness was also treated. The algorithm Is useful for understanding and interpreting nonlinear phenomena of rapid, exothermic polymerizations such as foam formation adjacent to the mold wall or around a metal insert. The results can be used to formulate design guidelines for achieving desired skin/core thicknesses as a function of design, material, and process parameters.     

Establishing a rapid cooling complex mold design for the quality improvement of microcellular injection molding

Injection molding is one of the most widely-used processes for the production of plastic parts, due to the utilization of diverse materials, the complex product-shape moldability, and the rapid mass production. In relation to the environmental issues, light-weight technology and green molding solutions are becoming more important. Microcellular injection molding technology is one of the green molding solutions for saving materials, as well as reducing the weight of molded parts. However, the molding process brings about some defects, including a sliver flow mark on the surface and uneven mechanical properties that are caused by the uneven cell size and their distribution within the part. Dynamic molding temperature control technology seems to be an effective way of improving the product quality. Until recently, there has been very little discussion about high-efficiency cooling methods. A new complex mold for a cooling system has been designed. The basis cooling ability of different materials was investigated. The complex mold design has a faster cooling rate, and it has a greater surface temperature uniformity. This cooling technology was used to improve the quality of microcellular injection molded parts, which improves the glossy finish by about 73%. The results show that the faster cooling rate brings about the more uniform cell size with higher cell density from 9.43E+11 to 1.92E+12 cells/cm³. Otherwise, the cell size reduced from 192.92 to 84.97 μm.     

Crystallization phenomena in the injection molding of poly ether ether ketone and its influence on mechanical properties

A basic experimental investigation of structure development in the injection molding of poly ether ether ketone (PEEK) is presented. It is shown that, dependent upon processing conditions, especially mold temperature, PEEK may be injection molded to form glassy or crystalline parts or parts consisting of intermediate structures such as a glassy surface and one with an internal crystalline link. In general, cold molds produce glassy parts and hot molds crystalline parts. This behavior is carefully characterized using optical microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, and wide angle X-ray diffraction techniques. The mechanical properties of these injection molded parts is characterized as a function of the crystalline and glassy contents and types of structural gradients developed in the parts.