A simulation study of conformal cooling channels in plastic injection molding

In injection molding process, the cooling channel performance is one of the most crucial factors because it has significant effect on both production rate and the quality of the plastic part. In order to reduce the cycle time, and control the uniform distribution of temperature, it is necessary to create conformal cooling channels, which conform to the shape of the mold cavity and core. This paper presents a simulation study of different types of cooling channels in an injection molded plastic part and compares the performance in terms of time to ejection temperature, shrinkage, temperature profile, and part warpage to determine which configuration is more appropriate to provide uniform cooling with minimum cycle time. Autodesk Moldflow Insight (AMI) simulation software is used to examine the results of the cooling channels performance.