Comparison of Conventional and Conformal Cooling Channels in the Production of a Commercial Injection-Moulded Component

Cooling channels are critical in injection mould tooling as cooling performance influences component quality, cycle time, and overall process efficiency. Additively Manufactured moulds allow the incorporation of cooling channels conforming to the shape of the cavity and core to improve heat removal. These conformal channels can reduce the cycle time, reduce mould temperature, and enhance the temperature uniformity on the mould's surface, leading to improved quality of the moulded components and reduced wastage in the production. The design of such channels is more challenging than conventional channels; thus, Computer-Aided Engineering (CAE) has a significant role within the design process. In this paper, a novel design for conformal cooling channels for the production of a commercial component from an industrial partner is investigated. This component had issues of high cycle time and a high defect rate due to residual stresses, resulting in component shrinkage. First, the existing conventional drilled cooling channels in the mould were simulated in Autodesk Moldflow Insight to evaluate temperature distribution and cycle time. Based on the temperature distribution, conformal cooling channels were designed in Solidworks, addressing the problem areas. Next, a simulation of fluid flow in the conformal channels was conducted in ANSYSFluent to ensure equal flow distribution in the entire circuit, iteratively arriving at an optimal configuration. Finally, the results of the new conformal channels, including mould temperature and cycle time, were compared with conventional cooling channels in simulation. The results showed a significant reduction in cycle time and improvement in the temperature distribution, thereby minimising residual stresses and shrinkage.