In the injection molding process, nonuniform heat transfer between the polymer and the mold caused by flow during the cavity filling stage can lead to spatial variations in the cavity surface temperature. This can result in an increase in cycle time or poor part quality. An investigation of the flow-induced, nonuniform, cavity surface temperature is reported here. A flow model for a thin, rectangular, end-gated cavity and a model for the steady-state temperature distribution in a simple mold are developed. These are applied to some thermosetting and thermoplastic systems. For both filled and unfilled thermosets, it is found that a simple plug flow model gives a good approximation for the heat transfer during flow. For thermoplastics, however, the full flow solution must be used. For the cases considered in this study, the steady-state temperature variation along the cavity surface is less for the thermoplastics than for the thermosets.
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