Advances in Aluminum Mold Block for Plastic Injection Molding Operations

Mold performance with high strength aluminum alloy QC-10® in injection molding was investigated and compared with NAK 80 steel mold. Two different shapes of molds were tooled and tested. Interfacial heat fluxes between cooling mold and solidifying polymer melt were measured using the IHCP (Inverse Heat Conduction Method) technique during the injection molding cycles. The influence of thermo-physical properties of mold materials and polymer resins on molding cycle time and internal residual stress were also investigated by injection molding control optimization and birefringence analyzer. Evaluation of the thermal energy absorbed and uniform heat extraction during injection molding revealed that aluminum mold QC-10® resulted in significant cycle time reduction and produced the part with less distortion. In addition to the benefit of reduced tooling time, it was proven that aluminum mold is a promising mold material for increasing the productivity in plastic injection molding operations.