Chapter 1 BASIC MOULD CONSTRUCTION

Basic Mould Construction 1

INTRODUCTION
tooling. to form plastic material to the desired product. producing large numbers of plastic parts.

Basic Mould Construction

Moving & Fixed Half

MOVING HALF

MOULDED PART
Basic Mould Construction

FIXED HALF
3

INTRODUCTION

FIXED HALF MOVING HALF

MOULDED

Multi impressions
Basic Mould Construction 4

Fixed half & Moving half

Basic Mould Construction

MAIN COMPONENTS
Impression
Cavity insert Core insert

Feed sys. Guidance components Cooling channel Ejection components Mould plate fastening system
Basic Mould Construction 6

Injection Molding Injection molding is the most important process used to manufacture

plastic products. It is ideally suited to manufacture mass produced parts of complex shapes requiring precise dimensions. It is used for numerous products, ranging from boat hulls and lawn chairs, to bottle cups. Car parts, TV and computer housings are injection molded.

Injection Molding

Chee 490

26.7

The Injection Molding Machine

The injection molding machine is comprised of: The plasticating and injection unit: The major tasks of the plasticating unit are to melt the polymer, to accumulate the melt in the screw chamber, to inject the melt into the cavity and to maintain the holding pressure during cooling.
The clamping unit: Its role is to open and close the mold, and hold the mold tightly to avoid flash during the filling and holding. Clamping can be mechanical and hydraulic The mold cavity: The mold is the central point in an injection molding machine. Each mold can contain multiple cavities. It distributes polymer melt into and throughout the the cavities, shapes the part, cools the melt and ejects the finished product.

Injection Molding

Chee 490

26.8

The Injection Molding Machine

Injection molding machines are classified by an international convention: Manufacturer T/P where T is the clamping force in metric tons, and P is defined as:

maxpmax P 1000
Where max is the maximum injection volume (cm3) and pmax is the maximum injection pressure (bar).
Injection Molding Chee 490 26.9

The Injection Molding Machine

There are quite a few things to consider when developing an injection molding process:
A. Machine parameters Shot size (cm3) Injection pressure and temperature Clamping pressure Mold temperature Hold time

B. Polymer compound properties Viscosity - temperature and shear rate Thermal diffusivity and heat of fusion (if semi-crystalline) Density versus temperature profile C. Mold design Cavity, gate and runner dimensions and layouts
Injection Molding Chee 490 26.10

The Plasticating Unit

The plasticating unit is designed to
melt the polymer pellets, accumulate the melt in the screw chamber, inject the melt into the cavity, and maintain the holding pressure during cooling.

Injection Molding

Chee 490

26.11

The Clamping Unit

The clamping unit is designed to
open and close the mold, generate enough pressure to prevent flash during mold filling and holding.

Injection Molding

Chee 490

26.12

The Injection Mold The mold is designed to

Distribute the polymer melt into and throughout the cavities Shape the part Solidify the part by cooling / reaction Eject the finished product

Injection Molding

Chee 490

26.13

The Injection Mold

Whereas extrusion shapes the material prior to stabilization through crystallization and/or vitrification, injection molding performs these two processes simultaneously. Contact between the hot polymer melt and mold surfaces cools the material throughout the injection process. Viscosities increase with temperature, creating unusual velocity gradients at cooled surfaces. Chain mobility is completely lost at Tg+25oC, and once the crystallization temperature is crossed. You dont have forever to get the mold filled inject too slowly and your material may not get past the sprue!
The fundamental principles of polymer flow through channels are applicable to injection molding, except one should recognize that the flows are not well-developed (non-steady state), nor are they isothermal.
Injection Molding Chee 490 26.14