Typical Analysis Procedure & Key Results for Flow, Cool & Warp Analysis

For a new product design, before the mould is designed the normal sequence of analysis
would be :

Fill analysis  Pack analysis  Shrinkage & Warpage analysis

This sequence is interactive so that changes to gate position, packing conditions, etc can affect
the shrink and warp results. Thus, gate position may be selected not only on the best fill
pattern but on minimum distortion. These analyses will assume uniform mould temperature.
Information on gate position, gate size, runner dimensions layout, part wall thickness and
estimated cavity size can be given to the mould maker for them to begin their mould design.

At this stage a cooling circuit design will be proposed and this can be analysed to assess it’s
efficiency and ability to produce uniform mould cooling rates and temperature. The new
sequence would then be :

Cool analysis  Fill analysis  Pack analysis  Shrinkage & Warpage analysis

The mould cooling analysis will provide mould surface temperature variation information to
the subsequent filling and packing analysis to provide more accurate results. The cooling
results are also used as an input for shrinkage and warpage analysis and this will provide
bending strains due to temperature differences top and bottom of each surface. Any problems
with the proposed cooling circuit design can then be brought to the attention of the mould
maker and possible modifications can then be discussed and analysed before the cooling lines
are drilled.

Key Analysis Results :

Filling Analysis :

Time : shows fill pattern. Aim for balanced filling with part extremeties filling at the same
time.

Pressure : shows pressure to fill and distribution. Pressure to fill should be within limit of
moulding machine. Avoid overpacking the cavity during the first 95% of filling. Record a 95%
intermediate result. Is the pressure gradient from the feed point to the part extremeties
uniform ? Local regions at high pressure indicate overpack and this will promote high clamp
forces, high stresses, low shrinkage, shrinkage variation and distortion.

Shear Stress : scale the results to show shear stresses above the recommended for the
material. Regions above this limit could be suject due to stress cracking during ejection or in
service.

Shear Rate : scale the result to show shear rates above the recommended for the material.
Regions above the limit could be subject to material degradation, embrittlement and poor
surface finish.

Temperature : best to view average temperature against time using time series results and
animate contours with time. This shows change in average melt temperature through the
thickness as the flow front progresses. Is the material shear heating or cooling excessively ?
Weld Line and Air Trap : can the air trap predictions be vented on the mould. At what angle,
temperature and pressure will the weld line meet ? Can the weld line be packed out
adequately to improve it’s strength ? Are the shear stresses at the weld line high ? Can the air
traps and weld lines be moved to more acceptable regions using gate position and or wall
thickness changes ?

Cooling Time : which regions are dominating the predicted time to reach ejection
temperature from the end of filling ? Can these be changed to reduce cycle time ?

Packing Analysis :

Hold Pressure : shows the maximum pressure seen in the cavity during the packing phase. Is
the distribution even ? Are all regions being packed out adequately ? Pressure variation will
produce shrinkage variation which will promote high stresses and/or distortion.

Volumetric Shrinkage : is the variation uniform to minimise distortion ? Are the values in
the expected range for the material (approx 3 x linear shrinkage as a rough guide)? Are there
negative values indicating expansion instead of shrinkage? Avoid these on ribs as this can
cause sticking in the wrong mould half and subsequent ejection problems. Are there high
values ? These can result in sink marks or internal voids when the part cools ?

% Frozen : is the part sufficiently frozen at the end of the packing and cycle time ? Best to use
% frozen versus time from time series results and animate with contours. Shows when
different regions freeze off with time. Is the gate freezing off too early before the cavity can be
adequately packed out ? Are there thinner regions freezing off before more extreme thicker
regions thus preventing the thicker regions from being adequately packed out ?

Sink Mark Depth : Shows sink mark depth at rib and boss intersections. Effect on surface
finish will depend on surface texture of part. Best to use as a comparative plot with other
packing results or when trying to troubleshoot existing sink mark problems.

Cooling Analysis (Results on Part) :

Top and Bottom Temperature : shows average mould temperature in contact with the fixed
and moving mould halves. Is this within +/- 5 deg C of the target mould temperature ? Is the
variation over each mould face within 10 deg C ? Are hot spots being indicated ? Will these
effect cycle time and part warpage ? Can the hot spots be eliminated by changes to cooling
parameters or circuit design ?

Temperature Difference : shows temperature difference between fixed and moving mould
halves. Is this within 5 deg C average ? Higher differences will promoting bending strains and
distortion.

Average Part Temperature : shows average temperature of the part at the end of the cycle
time. Is this below the ejection temperature of the material ?

Cooling Summary : confirms inputs and summarises average cavity temperature and
temperature difference.
Cooling Analysis (Results on Circuits) :

Reynolds Number : is a minimum of 10000 being achieved ? Below this the coolant flow can
be laminar and this will be less effective at removing heat from the cavity.

Flow Rate : confirms the flow rate in each circuit. Use in conjunction with Reynolds number
display. Can the flow rate required to achieve turbulent coolant flow be achieved ?

Top Temperature : shows the circuit wall temperature. This should not be 5 deg C more than
the inlet temperature.

Coolant Temperature : shows temperature rise of coolant in each circuit. Inlet to outlet rise
should be no more than 3 –5 deg C (ideally 2-3).

Cooling Summary : confirms inputs and summarises reynolds number, flow rate,
temperature rise and pressure drop for each circuit.

Warpage Analysis :

X, Y and Z Deflections : shows part deflections due to shrinkage and warpage. Zero
deflection will be at first node constrained or at a newly defined reference point . Are the
deflections within the distortion tolerance for the part ? Uniformly spaced colour bands
indicate deflections due to natural shrinkage only.

Deflection : summarises total deflection and shows which areas are moving the most. Useful
as a comparative plot.

Distorted Mesh : use a deflection factor to highlight the shape the distorted mesh is taking
up. A deflection factor of 1 shows actual shape. Animate movement of distorted mesh on
original surface positions to highlight change in shape.

Actual Shrinkage : show distance between any two points to see actual shrinkage between
them. Alternatively, use MPI/SHRINK to obtain average and individual x, y and z shrinkages of
part.

Isolate Cause of Warpage : for small deflection problem compare deflections of each single
variate of differential cooling, differential orientation and differential area shrinkage to
determine main contributor in the direction of interest. For a bucking problem compare
sensitivity values at end of warp summary file (highest positive value is the main
contributor).