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Home >> Learning Center >> Basics of Injection Molding Design QuickQuote Rapid Prototyping Injection Molding Investment Casting Patterns Newsroom Learning Center About Quickparts
Learning Center Custom Manufacturing Blogs Shore Scale General Tolerance Calculator Quickparts Videos Basics of Injection Molding Design Quickparts Machining Options Injection Molding Glossary Design for Manufacturing Analysis What Is An STL File? CAD Tips & Tricks QuickCUBE Solution
Table of Contents (a) Applications (b) Polymers Best Suited for Injection Molding (c) Injection Molding Equipment (d) Injection Molding Process (e) Injection Molding Cycle (f) Different Types of Injection Molding Processes (g) Stress (h) Gates (i) Common Gates (j) Gate Location (k) Wall Thickness (l) Draft (m) Sink Marks (n) Textures (o) Parting Lines (p) Common Molding Defects
Applications (^ Back to Top) Plastic injection molding is the preferred process for manufacturing plastic parts. Injection molding is used to create many things such as electronic housings, containers, bottle caps, automotive interiors, combs, and most other plastic products available today. It is ideal for producing high volumes of plastic parts due to the fact that several parts can be produced in each cycle by using multi-cavity injection molds. Some advantages of injection molding are high tolerance precision, repeatability, large material selection, low labor cost, minimal scrap losses, and little need to finish parts after molding. Some disadvantages of this process are expensive upfront tooling investment and process limitations. Polymers Best Suited for Injection Molding (^ Back to Top) Most polymers may be used, including all thermoplastics, some thermosets, and some elastomers. There are tens of thousands of different materials available for injection molding. The available materials mixed with alloys or blends of previously developed materials means that product designers can choose from a vast selection of materials to find the one that has exactly the right properties. Materials are chosen based on the strength and function required for the final part; but also each material has different parameters for molding that must be considered. Common polymers like Epoxy and phenolic are examples of thermosetting plastics while nylon, polyethylene, and polystyrene are thermoplastic.
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Injection Molding Process (^ Back to Top) With injection molding, granular plastic is fed by gravity from a hopper into a heated barrel. As the granules are slowly pushed forward by a screw-type plunger, the plastic is forced into a heated chamber called the barrel where it is melted. As the plunger advances, the melted plastic is forced through a nozzle that seats against the mold sprue bushing, allowing it to enter the mold cavity through a gate and runner system. The mold remains at a set temperature so the plastic can solidify almost as soon as the mold is filled. Injection Molding Cycle (^ Back to Top) The sequence of events during the injection molding of a plastic part is called the injection molding cycle. The cycle begins when the mold closes, followed by the injection of the polymer into the mold cavity. Once the cavity is filled, a holding pressure is maintained to compensate for material shrinkage. In the next step, the screw turns, feeding the next shot to the front screw. This causes the screw to retract as the next shot is prepared. Once the part is sufficiently cool, the mold opens and the part is ejected. Different Types of Injection Molding Processes (^ Back to Top) Although most injection molding processes are covered by the conventional process description above, there are several important molding variations including: Co-injection(sandwich)molding Fusible(lost, soluble)core injection molding Gas-assisted injection molding In-mold decoration and in mold lamination Injection-compression molding Injection molding of liquid silicone rubber Insert and outsert molding Lamellar (microlayer) injection molding Low-pressure injection molding Microinjection molding Microcellular molding Multicomponent injection molding(overmolding) Multiple live-feed injection molding Powder injection molding Push-Pull injection molding Reaction injection molding Resin transfer molding Rheomolding Structural foam injection molding Structural reaction injection molding Thin-wall molding Vibration gas injection molding Water assisted injection molding Rubber injection
Stress (^ Back to Top) The main enemy of any injection molded plastic part is stress. When a plastic resin (which contains long strains of molecules) is melted in preparation for molding, the molecular bonds are temporarily broken due to the heat and shear force of the extruder, allowing the molecules to flow into the mold. Using pressure, the resin is forced into the mold filling in every feature, crack and crevice of the mold. As the molecules are pushed through each feature, they are forced to bend, turn and distort to form the shape of the part. Turning hard or sharp corners exerts more stress on the molecule than taking gentle turns with generous radii. Abrupt transitions from one feature to another are also difficult for the molecules to fill and form to. As the material cools and the molecular bonds re-link the resin into its rigid form, these stresses are in effect locked into the part. Part stresses can cause warpage, sink marks, cracking, premature failure and other problems.
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These type of gates incorporate features in the tool to break or shear the gates when the tool opens to eject the part. Automatically trimmed gates are used for several reasons: Avoiding gate removal as a secondary operation, reducing cost Maintaining consistent cycle times for all parts Minimizing gate scars on parts
Common Gate Designs (^ Back to Top) The largest factor to consider when choosing the proper gate type for your application is the gate design. There are many different gate designs available based on the size and shape of your part. Below are four of the most popular gate designs used by Quickparts customers: The Edge Gate is the most common gate design. As the name indicates, this gate is located on the edge of the part and is best suited for flat parts. Edge gates are ideal for medium and thick sections and can be used on multicavity two plate tools. This gate will leave a scar at the parting line. The Sub Gate is the only automatically trimmed gate on the list. Ejector pins will be necessary for automatic trimming of this gate. Sub gates are quite common and have several variations such as banana gate, tunnel gate and smiley gate to name a few. The sub gate allows you to gate away from the parting line, giving more flexibility to place the gate at an optimum location on the part. This gate leaves a pin sized scar on the part.
The Hot Tip Gate is the most common of all hot runner gates. Hot tip gates are typically located at the top of the part rather than on the parting line and are ideal for round or conical shapes where uniform flow is necessary. This gate leaves a small raised nub on the surface of the part. Hot tip gates are only used with hot runner molding systems. This means that, unlike cold runner systems, the plastic is ejected into the mold through a heated nozzle and then cooled to the proper thickness and shape in the mold. The Direct or Sprue Gate is a manually trimmed gate that is used for single cavity molds of large cylindrical parts that require symmetrical filling. Direct gates are the easiest to design and have low cost and maintenance requirements. Direct gated parts are typically lower stressed and provide high strength. This gate leaves a large scar on the part at the point of contact. Gate Location (^ Back to Top) To avoid problems from your gate location, below are some guidelines for choosing the proper gate location(s): Place gates at the heaviest cross section to allow for part packing and minimize voids & sink. Minimize obstructions in the flow path by placing gates away from cores & pins. Be sure that stress from the gate is in an area that will not affect part function or aesthetics. If you are using a plastic with a high shrink grade, the part may shrink near the gate causing gate pucker if there is high molded-in stress at the gate Be sure to allow for easy manual or automatic degating. Gate should minimize flow path length to avoid cosmetic flow marks. In some cases, it may be necessary to add a second gate to properly fill the parts. If filling problems occur with thin walled parts, add flow channels or make wall thickness adjustments to correct the flow. Gates vary in size and shape depending upon the type of plastic being molded and the size of the part. Large parts will require larger gates to provide a bigger flow of resin to shorten the mold time. Small gates have a better appearance but take longer time to mold or may need to have higher pressure to fill correctly. Wall Thickness (^ Back to Top) Prior to ejection from the mold, injection molded parts are cooled down from manufacturing temperatures so that they hold their shape
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Prior to ejection from the mold, injection molded parts are cooled down from manufacturing temperatures so that they hold their shape when ejected. During the part cooling step of the molding process, changes in pressure, velocity and plastic viscosity should be minimized to avoid defects. Few aspects are more crucial during this period than wall thickness. This feature can have major effects on the cost, production speed and quality of the final parts.
Choosing the proper wall thickness for your part can have drastic effects on the cost and production speed of manufacturing. While there are no wall thickness restrictions, the goal is usually to choose the thinnest wall possible. Thinner walls use less material which reduces cost and take less time to cool, reducing cycle time. The minimum wall thickness that can be used depends on the size and geometry of the part, structural requirements, and flow behavior of the resin. The wall thicknesses of an injection molded part generally range from 2mm 4mm (0.080 0.160). Thin wall injection molding can produce walls as thin as 0.5mm (0.020). The chart below shows recommended wall thicknesses for common injection molding resins.
Thick sections take longer to cool than thin ones. During the cooling process, if walls are an inconsistent thickness, the thinner walls will cool first while the thick walls are still solidifying. As the thick section cools, it shrinks around the already solid thinner section. This causes warping, twisting or cracking to occur where the two sections meet. To avoid this problem, try to design with completely uniform walls throughout the part. When uniform walls are not possible, then the change in thickness should be as gradual as possible. Wall thickness variations should not exceed 10% in high mold shrinkage plastics. Thickness transitions should be made gradually, on the order of 3 to 1. This gradual transition avoids stress concentrations and abrupt cooling differences.
Alternatives:
If your part is so complex that you need variations on your wall thickness, look for an alternative. You may want to use design features such as coring or using ribs. At the very least, try not to make the transitions between thicker and thinner sections too abrupt. Try using a gradual transition or chamfered corners to minimize the dramatic change in pressures inside the mold.
Draft (^ Back to Top) Most injection molded plastic parts include features such as outside walls and internal ribs that are formed by opposing surfaces of tool metal inside a closed mold. To properly release the part when the mold opens, the side walls of the mold are tapered in the direction that the mold opens. This tapering is referred to as draft in the line of draw. This draft allows the part to break free of the mold as soon as the mold opens. The amount of draft required can depend on the surface finish of the mold. A smooth, polished tool surface will allow the part to eject with less draft than a standard tool surface. Consider the fabrication of the hollow plastic box seen to the right. Once the plastic has hardened around the mold, the mold must be removed. As the plastic hardens, it will contract slightly. By tapering the sides of the mold by an appropriate "draft angle", the mold will be easier to remove. The amount of draft required (in degrees) will vary with geometry and surface texture requirements of the part. Below are several rules for using draft properly:
Be sure to add draft to your 3D CAD model before creating radii Use at least 1 degree of draft on all "vertical" faces 1 degrees of draft is required for light texture 2 degrees of draft works very well in most situations 3 degrees of draft is a minimum for a shutoff (metal sliding on metal) 3 degrees of draft is required for medium texture
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Descriptions Raised or layered zone on surface of the Plastic part Black or brown burnt areas on the plastic part located at furthest points from gate Localized change of color Thin mica like layers formed in part wall Excess material in thin
Causes Tool or material is too hot, often caused by a lack of cooling around the tool or a faulty heater
Plastic material and colorant isn't mixing properly, or the material has run out and it's starting to come through as natural only Contamination of the material e.g. PP mixed with ABS, very dangerous if the part is being used for a safety critical application as the material has very little strength when delaminated as the materials cannot bond Tool damage, too much injection speed/material injected, clamping force too low. Can also be caused by dirt and contaminants around tooling surfaces. Particles on the tool surface, contaminated material or foreign debris in the barrel, or too much shear heat burning the material prior to injection Injection speeds too slow (the plastic has cooled down too much during injection, injection speeds must be set as fast as you can get away with at all times)
Flash
Burrs
layer exceeding normal part geometry Foreign particle (burnt material or other) embedded in the part Directionally "off tone" wavy lines or patterns Deformed part by turbulent
Embedded contaminates
Embedded particulates
Flow marks
Flow lines
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Excess water in the granules, excessive temperatures in barrel Holding time/pressure too low, cooling time too short, with sprueless hot runners this can also be caused by the gate temperature being set too high
Lack of holding pressure (holding pressure is used to pack out the part Voids Empty space within part (Air pocket) Knit Weld line Line/Meld Line Twisting Warping Part Distorted part during the holding time). Also mold may be out of registration (when the two halves don't center properly and part walls are not the same thickness). Discolored line where two flow fronts meet Mold/material temperatures set too low (the material is cold when they meet, so they don't bond) Cooling is too short, material is too hot, lack of cooling around the tool, incorrect water temperatures (the parts bow inwards towards the hot side of the tool)
Keep these factors in mind when designing your injection molded part, and remember that it is easier to avoid problems in the beginning than change your design down the line.
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