TurbuStruk: Reduction of cooling times through turbulent flow in structured cooling channels of injection moulds

Cooling time accounts for about 50% of the cycle time in the injection moulding process. For this reason, it is of great interest, especially for economic efficiency, to reduce the time required for cooling.

In future, cooling channel structures are to ensure more efficient moulds and more precise and faster process control in injection moulding.

Within the framework of the "Central Innovation Programme for SMEs" (ZIM-Richtlinie), Konstruktionsbüro Hein GmbH (KB Hein), the IfW - Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Machine Tools and the IKK - Institute for Plastics and Closed-Loop Technology, both institutes of Leibniz University, are working together on this development.

Within the two-year project entitled "Structuring of the temperature control channels of injection moulds to generate steady turbulent flows with improved heat transfer" (TurbuStruk), the cooling channel structures are developed in the first step. In the second step, they are analysed on a test model for their effectiveness with regard to heat transfer, in order to then transfer the most efficient structures to real injection moulding processes with different plastics in the third step. The focus here is on the internal mould temperatures, the minimum cycle times and the resulting component qualities.

The test rig to be developed and constructed by KB Hein in collaboration with the IFW and IKK will test the possibility of connecting the half-channels to a temperature control system.