114 Analysis of Plastics Solidworks Simulation

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks
The COSMOS Companion

Analyzing Plastic Parts in
COSMOSWorks
Sponsored by:
Volume 114
Unit #114
Image courtesy of National Optical Astronomy

Observatory, operated by the Association of Universities
for Research in Astronomy, under cooperative
agreement with the National Science Foundation.
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The COSMOS Companion is a series of short subjects to
help design engineers build better products with SolidWorks
Analysis
Video presentations and accompanying exercises
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We highly recommend you take a course with your local reseller to
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2006 SolidWorks Corp. Confidential.
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equivalent experience. We will try not to repeat what was taught in those classes or can be found in the online help but to augment that information.
Unit #114
Topics to be Covered
Solid modeling considerations for plastic parts & assemblies
Loads, restraints, and contact
Properties of plastic materials
Other nonlinearities
Interpreting results
In this edition, well be reviewing tips and tricks for building your solid models so that the
analysis can proceed more quickly. More thoughtful CAD can really facilitate conceptual
analysis and product innovation.
Well discuss some things to keep in mind when choosing loads and restraints for plastic
components. As we discussed in the previous session on loads and restraints, this must
also include considering modeling additional components with contact conditions to get a
more natural and reasonable final response.
Well spend a good portion of time talking about how the material properties for plastics
differ from engineering metals and then discuss the various material model options in
COSMOSWorks and the Pros & Cons of each.
Next, well review other nonlinearities that must be considered when analyzing plastic parts
and assemblies. Well reference, but not repeat, information discussed in the COSMOS
Companion unit on Nonlinearities in COSMOSWorks, #110, and introduce a few other
options based on the analysis of an actual part.
Finally, well talk about the variability that is unavoidable when analyzing plastic
components and how this affects your interpretation of the results or correlation to test.
Unit #114
Solid Modeling of Plastic Parts

Primary manufacturing methods for plastic parts
Machine from bar stock

Thermoforming
Roto or Blow Molding
Injection or Compression Molding
Machined parts tend to be blocky and no special solid

modeling techniques apply. Solid elements are usually
applicable.
Remember that when complex parts are not tooled off of the
solid model, significant variations between plan and
product may exist
You only need to consider alternate SolidWorks modeling techniques for plastic
components when their geometries differ from your typical parts. The geometry of plastic
components is very dependent upon the manufacturing method used. Parts machined
from stock are typically very similar to metal parts fabricated in the same manner and lend
themselves well to traditional solid modeling and analysis techniques. Thermoformed,
Rotomolded, Blow Molded, and Injection molded parts can take on much more complex
forms and may need to be handled differently.
Keep in mind for any of these scenarios that there always exists the possibility that the
manufactured part may not match up well to the CAD model you build. When you consider
shrinkage and tooling complexities, this is even more of a concern for plastic parts. Ive
been involved in a number of analyses involving plastic parts where adjusting the CAD
model to better represent the as-manufactured, failed part, was a major part of the project.
Unit #114
Using Outer or Offset Surfaces

Blow Molded, Rotomolded, and
Thermoformed parts involve
wrapping around or otherwise
forming plastic onto a mold or
die.
These processes create
geometries that lend themselves
well to modeling with a
continuous surface
Shell elements are usually
applicable
Watch out for wall thickness
variations at radii or transitions
Blow Molded, Rotational Molded, or Thermoformed parts tend to take on the geometries of
continuous surfaces, either wrapped around a form or pushed up into one. They tend to
be thin compared to their overall size although there may be features that are similar in
size to the wall thickness. These parts rarely have standoffs or ribs that form a t-like
intersection with the main surface. For these reasons, a shell mesh is often appropriate
and most efficient.
One thing to keep in mind when considering shells is that most parts manufactured in
these ways do not have a true uniform and constant wall thickness. Thickness tends to
vary at bend radii and in features where the material has been pulled to cover a larger
area. Rotationally and Blow Molded parts tend to be thicker at outside radii and thinner at
inside radii due to the fact that they are formed from the inside of the tool. The opposite is
true for thermoformed parts as they are wrapped around the outside of a pattern. If the
areas of concern dont fall directly on these radii, or if you are focusing solely on trend
data, it may suffice to assume a uniform wall or assign a different shell property to these
radii. If the response at these areas is important, you may need to consider solids.
Unit #114
Injection Molded Parts

Injection molded parts can be thin, thick, large, small
They can be as simple as a flat washer and as complex as
ones imagination permits
General modeling guidelines:
Attempt to determine if shells or solids are appropriate up front
Shells
If geometry is similar to a blow molded part, consider the outer or offset
surface technique just described
Otherwise, modeling surfaces at midsurface may be best solution
Solids
Consider starting with conceptual geometry
Dont automatically include small details until macro-level performance is
validated
Add in small features and fillets in stress risers to validate performance
and optimize as reqd
Injection molded parts are the toughest to categorize because their geometry is only
limited by the imagination of the designer. Many are truly thin walled and can be captured
well with shell elements. Many have such varying walls and feature size that solids are the
only option.
Regardless of geometry, it is in your best interests to make some determination up front as
to whether solids or shells are appropriate. Consider conceptual geometry as shells to
develop the macro level features and then a more detailed solid model for final validation
as an option. Once you know which way you are going, you can choose the best
SolidWorks methods for the project.
If you decide on shells and the part is otherwise similar to a rotomolded part, the offset or
outside surface options might work well. If there are a number of free-standing ribs or
bosses, you may want to consider building an initial surface model at the midsurface of the
part and use that to drive your shell models.
If solids are the best, or most efficient option, again consider using conceptual geometry
until youve validated the design direction. As you build complexity into the model, keep in
mind the trade off between CAD detail and mesh/solution baggage. If you dont think
details are likely to affect your results of interest, leave them out until the analysis results
tell you to put them back in. Otherwise, use the analysis data to drive your optimization.
Unit #114
Loads & Restraints

Relative flexibility of most plastic materials invalidates many
rigid restraints that are valid for steel
Solution validity breaks down at large changes in stiffness
Contact behavior may not be as predictable as steel

Flexibility of mating plastic components may require more of
assy to be modeled in study
In general, L/Rs must be thought out more carefully in the
analysis of plastic components
Choosing loads and restraints for plastic parts and assemblies requires more care than
with typical engineering metals. This is not to say that these should be taken lightly with
stiffer materials. However, you must keep in mind that when a finite element model
encounters gross changes in stiffness, there will be error introduced into the model. If
steel parts are restrained with a fixed restraint, the stiffness differential is not as great as
with plastic parts. Also, where plastic parts in an assembly interact with metal parts, a
stiffness difference is inevitable.
Another consideration is that the actual deflection of plastic parts under load is often hard
to predict. Choosing loads and restraints to represent interactions is your way of telling
COSMOS that you know whats going to happen at that interaction. If you cant honestly
say that, dont jump head first into a restraint.
For these reasons, it is important to consider assembly modeling with contact conditions at
the beginning of the study. This means you may need to model all or portions of the
interacting parts before starting the analysis.
Unit #114
Meshing Considerations
Presence of many local stress concentrators makes
convergence critical
If you felt feature was important to include, it is important to get right
Adaptive techniques can help with this
Many plastic parts lend themselves to shell modeling but

effects at fillets drafted walls, and parting lines may be lost
Consider wall thickness vs. typical feature size
Plan for assy modeling and contact

Consider element distortion in large displacement problems
From a meshing standpoint, once the issue of shells vs. solids has been resolved, the
biggest concern is making sure that there is enough mesh and mesh control in all the
features you have included in the model to ensure the results on them are meaningful.
Using h or p-adaptive meshing techniques will help on problems that allow this technique.
Make sure you plan for assemblies and any contact that might occur in your meshing
decisions by placing split lines and mesh control where appropriate.
As a final thought, if large strain or excessive bending is seen or expected, solution failure
or local error might occur because good elements in the undeformed state of the model
become overly distorted as the model reaches equilibrium. A more refined mesh can
alleviate these problems as the distortion is shared by more elements.
Unit #114
Material Properties of Plastics

The most important difference between prediction and failure
analysis of plastics vs. steel (classical engineering) is in
material properties
Most plastics have significant elastic and/or plastic nonlinear
material behavior in normal operating strains
Matl properties, both elastic/plastic & failure are very
sensitive to temperature, strain rate, humidity, flow direction,
skinning, regrind, fillers, notching, environment and glass
orientation & length
Test data more accurate than datasheet properties
What Test Data to use
A colleague of mine once said, The 3 most important things when analyzing plastic
components are (1) Know the properties, (2) Know the properties, and (3) Know the
properties. Not only do the properties for a given polymer vary from manufacturer to
manufacturer, they vary due changes in temperature, strain rate, orientation and a host of
other things. This applies to the input properties as well as the failure quantities.
Additionally, most plastics have a significant nonlinear elastic response before yield is
reached which may require a nonlinear analysis. Contrast this with steel which as linear as
it gets until the yield strength.
At a very minimum, you should try to get your hands on representative stress-strain curves
for the materials you design with. Even better, have a lab test material samples cut from
similar parts to the one you are designing or analyzing at the temperatures and strain rates
you expect for your system. Your testing lab can help you determine the appropriate tests
for your application.
Unit #114
Modulus of Elasticity
The Youngs Modulus for plastics is the slope in the first few data points
reported by a tensile test. It is a Tensile Modulus.
Flexural Modulus is often reported in datasheets for plastic materials
Flex Mod is calculated using a 3 point bending test defined in ASTM D790.
Since bending involves compression and tension, Flex Mod only equals
tensile mod if the material is symmetric, or the compressive and tensile
stiffnesses are the same.
Furthermore, Flex Mod is calculated using linear equations from measured
Force-Displacement data. Once displacement approaches specimen
thickness, this calculation becomes unreliable due to nonlinearity in the
system.
COSMOSWorks is looking for a tensile data for both linear and nonlinear
analyses.
10
One common point of confusion with designers who are trying to analyze plastic parts is
the difference between Tensile, or Youngs Modulus and Flexural Modulus. It is important
to remember that COSMOS is looking for the Youngs Modulus in the material input
tables. This is determined in an ASTM D638 tensile test. Flex Mod is calculated from the
force-displacement measurements in an ASTM D790 3 Point bending test. As you know,
when a beam is placed in bending, one side of the beam is in tension and one is in
compression. Consequently, the response measured will be impacted by both the tensile
and compressive properties of the sample, not just tensile. When the tensile and
compressive properties of a material are identical, the Flex Mod should match the Youngs
Mod for small strains. Beyond small strains, (& it is difficult to know always how small
small is,) the linear calculations used in D790 to estimate modulus fall apart as
geometric, or large displacement, nonlinearities enter into the flex response.
If you only have access to Flex Mod data, be sure you are focusing on comparative data
from one run to the next. Again, you should try to get your hands on a tensile stress-strain
curve for your material.
Unit #114
10
Modulus of Elasticity
One other elastic modulus, sometimes referred to for plastic
materials due to the difficulty of isolating the linear portion of
the curve, is the Tangent Modulus. This is used in a
COSMOSWorks bi-linear plasticity model.
Tangent Modulus of elasticity is the slope of the stress-strain diagram
at any point.
Tangent and Youngs modulii are equal up to the Proportional Limit of
Youngs Modulus
a material.
engr
Tangent Modulus
Bi-linear Material Model

Proportional Limit
engr
11
The tangent modulus of a material is typically only important when estimating a bi-linear
plasticity material model. The tangent modulus is a representative stiffness in the
plasticity range of the stress-strain curve. Well discuss where this is used in
COSMOSWorks later in the unit.
Unit #114
11

Ductile vs. Brittle Behavior
Most plastics are ductile at room temperature
They deform and yield significantly before failure
Some ductile materials never rupture in a tensile test

Ductile fracture is rare in practice unless planned or part grossly underdesigned
Ductile materials generally behave similarly in tension and compression

(Symmetric)
Brittle materials fail with little or no plastic deformation; Low elongation
Tensile failure typically result of flaws or micro-cracks in test; in theory, cause
is at molecular level
Since compression tends to close cracks, brittle materials often show up to
4x increase in compressive vs. tensile strength
Stiffness DOES NOT indicate ductility

Ductility varies with temperature, strain rate, and material composition
12
The difference between ductile and brittle material behavior was discussed in depth in the
COSMOS Companion units on Material Properties (#104) and Static Failure Analysis
(#106). For plastic materials, it is important to also note that the ductility of a plastic is
sensitive to temperature, strain rate, and material composition as shown in the following
examples.
Unit #114
12

9233G
7000
30000
6000
25000
5000
20000
Stress (psi)
Stress (psi)
BU50I
4000
3000
15000
10000
2000
5000
1000
0
0
0.01
0.02
0.03
0.04
0.05
Strain
Unfilled Nylon
Extremely Ductile
0.06
0.07
0.005
0.01
0.015
0.02
0.025
0.03
0.035
Strain
33% GF Nylon
Relatively Brittle
13
Unfilled Nylon is typically very ductile. It can be pulled & twisted in knots without any
fracture or rupture. The stress-strain curve for unfilled Nylon is shown on the left. The S-S
curve shows a response up to more than 6% strain although it is likely the sample could
have been pulled farther without failure. Contrast this with a 33% glass filled Nylon, shown
in the rightmost S-S curve. This material failed in a tensile test at 3% strain. However, it is
a much stronger, stiffer material so a designer has to decide between these trade offs
when choosing a material.
Unit #114
13

Room Temperature
Low Temperature
14
In this example, identical polyethylene (PE) samples were pulled at room temperature and
at a reduced temperature. At room temperature, the sample stretched and necked to the
limits of the tensile tester. The sample was manually cut to fit into the picture alongside an
untested dogbone. When the temperature was reduced, the sample fracture with no
discernible yielding at a very low strain level. This is indicative of brittle fracture. If the
sample was pulled quickly, or at a high strain rate, the results might have been the same.
If you have access to Silly Putty, you can reproduce this strain rate dependent ductility
experiment.
Unit #114
14

Orientation
Flow
Cross-Flow
15
The material properties of a plastic part may also vary with orientation. The primary cause
of orientation in an injection molded part is flow direction and this can occur with or without
any filler. In this PPO example from GE Plastics, you can see that the strength in the flow
direction is much greater although apparently less ductile than the properties in the crossflow direction indicate.
Although the few examples shown in this unit might lead you to this conclusion, dont
assume that stiffer stronger materials are less ductile by default. The two characteristics
are not necessarily related.
Unit #114
15
Nonlinear Materials in COSMOSWorks

Stress-Strain Curve for Polyethylene (PE)
Strain
Stress
0.0125
12 MPa
0.025
19 MPa
0.0375
23 MPa
0.05
25 MPa
0.0625
26 MPa
0.075
27 MPa
27 MPa
16
The image above shows representative stress-strain curves for polyethylene (PE). The
different curves in the plot represent tensile tests at different strain rates. Using the
bottom-most curve, generated by the slowest test, the data was reduced to a tabular
format which is how it needs to be entered in COSMOSWorks. Well use this data to
explore the options for material model definition.
Unit #114
16

Linear Elastic
Nonlinear Elastic
Plasticity-Von
Mises
Viscoelastic
17
COSMOSWorks provides three more commonly used material models for plastic part
analysis, Linear Elastic, Nonlinear Elastic, and Von Mises Plasticity. The Viscoelastic
model is noted as important for designers since these effects, such as creep and
relaxation, are important aspects of plastic product response. However, the material
properties to take advantage of this model in COSMOSWorks or any FEA package require
specialized testing and this is usually left to specialists. For this discussion, well focus on
the previous three.
Unit #114
17
0,0 assumed
No yielding will be calculated
Yield Strength in table for
Factor of Safety plots and
reference only
0,0 assumed
Final point should be at strain
far beyond expected strain
No yielding will be calculated
0,0 assumed
First point must be Yield
Strength
Only post-yield nonlinearity
allowed in S-S curve
Youngs Mod and Yield
Strength entered in table is
ignored
18
The Linear Elastic material model should be familiar to most design engineers. It assumes that the stiffness of the
material is constant for all possible stresses and strains. No yielding will be calculated and it is as nearly straightforward
as a linear spring equation. In many cases, the stress-strain curve is linear or nearly linear for the response range of
interest so a linear material model provides perfectly valid results. Unfortunately, you wont know if this is the case
without reviewing the stress-strain curve itself.
The Nonlinear elastic model in COSMOSWorks requires tabular stress-strain input. COSMOSWorks assumes a zero
initial stress state so the 0,0 point doesnt need to be entered. You dont need to enter a Youngs Modulus since the
material stiffness is extrapolated from the S-S curve for all strain levels. If the strain exceeds the data in the table, the
final stiffness, defined by the slope between the last 2 points it the curve, is extrapolated to infinity. Remember that no
yielding will ever be calculated by a nonlinear elastic material model.
Finally, the Von Mises Plasticity model is most appropriate when the plastic response, or the accumulation of permanent
strain, is required. Von Mises is the only plasticity model currently available for shell models. Solid models allow a
Tresca and a Drucker-Prager plasticity models. Users are encouraged to read thru the on-line help discussion of these
models to determine their applicability. Focusing on the more general Von Mises model, a zero strain state is again
assumed. You have the option of choosing a bi-linear material model by entering a Tangent Modulus into the table on
the Properties tab. If you choose this route, no stress-strain curve is reqd.
If you instead choose to use a stress-strain curve, the first point in the data table must be the elastic limit of the material,
or the point where the plasticity begins to accumulate. The model assumes a linear elastic response until plasticity
occurs and then will follow the curve as input if an element goes plastic. The linear Youngs Modulus is calculated from
the first data point, the elastic limit, so any value entered in the table on the Properties tab will be ignored. In most
plastics, the S-S curve is pretty simple post-yield and since you cant account for the nonlinear elastic response that is
likely to occur, a bi-linear model with a carefully chosen Tangent Modulus may be your simplest solution.
Unit #114
18

Linear
Stress
Yield
Strength
Nonlinear
Elastic
Actual
Plasticity
Strain
19
In this plot, the different material models are overlaid on each other. The red curve is the
actual stress-strain curve from the D638 tensile test. The blue curve, the linear elastic
model, will clearly over-predict stress for moderate strain levels. The nonlinear elastic
curve clearly captures the bulk of the material response until plasticity occurs but will not
ever calculate any plasticity. Conversely, the plasticity model essentially trivializes the
elastic response and provides only valid data in the post-yield response range.
The most logical conclusion, as with many things in FEA, there are trade offs to all the
methods and you are responsible for understanding these trade-offs when choosing a
material model.
Unit #114
19

Most plastic materials have a significant nonlinear elastic
portion of their stress-strain curve
Do you need to consider plasticity?
Plasticity models are the most resource intensive

Visco-elastic effects (Creep / Relaxation) must be
considered especially if unloading is of interest.
Difficult to develop material models
Consider Apparent Modulus to estimate creep
20
To sum up this portion of the discussion, most plastics do have a significant nonlinear
elastic response. In most designs, intended to actually be used, elastic behavior under
operating loads is preferred. If significant plasticity is not a valid operating condition, you
dont really need to know how plastic a problem got, just that it crossed the line. For these
cases, a linear or nonlinear elastic model is probably the best choice. When you truly need
to understand how much plastic strain has been accumulated, a plasticity model cant be
avoided but remember that these models are very resource intensive. In some cases,
youll have no option but to solve the problem using a nonlinear elastic and plastic model
to truly understand the entire response.
While it was mentioned only briefly, you do need to consider the visco-elastic effects in
your system. Creep, which time-dependent deflection under constant load, is very
common in plastic parts with structural requirements. While analyzing this in any FEA
code is very difficult, most major resin manufacturers publish an Apparent Modulus table
based on initial stress values. By running your model with this reduced modulus, based on
the stress values calculated in an initial study, you can get a feel for how much deflection
to expect as the part or assembly creeps.
Unit #114
20
Other Nonlinearities
COSMOSWorks supports other nonlinearities that might
come in handy for the analysis of plastic parts
Large Displacement effects (Designer & up)

Sliding contact with friction (Designer & up)
Advanced load control (Advanced Professional)
Advanced solution control options (Advanced Professional)
Nonlinear response animations and plots (Advanced Professional)
For a more complete description of

eachrefer to COSMOS Companion
Unit #110 Introduction to Nonlinear
Analysis in COSMOSWorks
21
There are many other nonlinearities that come into play when analyzing plastic parts in
COSMOSWorks which is why this area of study is so challenging. These were reviewed
in more detail in the COSMOS Companion unit #110 Intro to Nonlinear in
COSMOSWorks so that info wont be repeated here. However, you should understand
each of these effects and their impact on your model behavior. Some of these require the
Advanced Professional package so if they are important to gaining a full picture of your
product response, you may want to talk to your reseller about upgrading.
Unit #114
21
Other Nonlinearities
22
Some of the advanced nonlinear options available in Advanced Professional involve

advanced solution control. Due to the unpredictable nature of plastics and their tendency
to deform greatly, many times intentionally, the default Force Control solution algorithm
might not be sufficient. If you are running a static Large Displacement solution and it
keeps failing at about the same load factor, there might be buckling or other abrupt
stiffness change happening in the model. In these cases, switching to a Displacement or
Arc Length control might do the trick. The application of these features is discussed in
detail in the on-line help and in the COSMOSWorks Nonlinear course material.
Unit #114
22
Results Interpretation
Even nonlinear test data of S-S curve is representative of
small sample and single condition
Many other factors enter into plastic component failure
Residual stress from molding must be acctd for

Other effects such as weld lines, UV or chemical
degradation, notch sensitivity, nonlinearity, and other
operating conditions must be considered
Due to near perfectly plastic behavior of most ductile
plastics beyond yield, failure strain may be more indicative of
problems
Long Term Effects must be considered for many parts
Creep, Relaxation, Fatigue, Aging (Thermal, UV, Oxidizing,
Chemical)
23
A couple of thoughts on plastic part analysis results interpretation

Remember that no matter how diligent you are in researching properties or building CAD models,
your analysis represents, at best, a snapshot of a single possible condition. Since material
properties, operating environments, processing parameters, and many other things will alter the
performance of a plastic part, catching every combination of these variables in COSMOSWorks is
nearly impossible. Therefore, some variation can be expected. In a recent project, a client ran
some tests on a PVC piping component and documented a brittle failure at 75% of the desired
load. It was a dramatic failure with a loud bang and parts flying into the air! When I came in to
observe the test the following week, a sample of supposedly the same parts behaved in a ductile
manner and withstood the full operating force. The engineer was sure that while the parts came
from different manufacturing dates, they were all unused and relatively new. After speaking with
people in the test lab, we ascertained two significant differences. The first batch of parts that failed
had been stored outside on a pallet and exposed to sunlight whereas the second group had never
left the building. Additionally, when the first test was completed, it was warm enough outside that
the shipping door to the lab was closed and the air conditioning had cooled the place off nicely. In
the test I observed, the door was open & the lab was warm and humid. We didnt have an
opportunity to fully sort thru this problem as we werent able to repeat the brittle failure again but it
highlighted the unpredictability of plastic components. One thing Ive learned in my years of
supporting analysis is that you cant expect analysis results to match test results any more closely
than the variability in response from test to test. Keep this in mind when reviewing your results.
Unit #114
23
Why Test & FEA Dont Match

Wrong material properties entered
Wrong material model used
Plastic-specific issues not considered
Strain rate, Temperature, Viscoelastic effects, Moisture effects,
Thickness effects, Orientation effects, Residual stress, Local property
variation, (Weld lines, skinning), Processing effects
Wrong failure quantities examined

Loads & Restraints invalid
Poorly constructed mesh
One or more nonlinearities not considered
Absolute data (vs. Trend) relied upon too heavily
24
In general, the biggest reason Ive seen as to why test results dont match FEA results is
improperly specified material properties. If testing at temperature, strain rate, orientation,
and thickness wasnt performed, you should treat your analysis results as ball park and
focus on trend analysis. Many of the other reasons in this list were addressed previously
but the value of using trend analysis for plastic part design needs to be emphasized.
Since it is so hard to nail down exactly what conditions a plastic part will encounter in
actual use, it is safer to compare results from one iteration to another and assume that the
variability is constant, meaning that regardless of the features in your design, the issues
that are out of your control wont be affected and will remain out of your control.
Therefore, an improvement is likely to be valid even in you cant hang your hat on the
absolute value.
One common technique that I recommend is to test a part or system similar to the one you
are concerned about gradually to failure so a mean load to failure can be identified.
Analyze this part using that mean load to failure and your best estimate of properties, load
distribution & restraints, and other model parameters and call that solution your baseline.
Dont worry too much about correlating FEA stress to test stress, just note the stress
levels in the analysis. Subsequent studies at the desired operating load should focus on
getting stresses at or below the baseline. This will provide valuable insight using
COSMOSWorks without the risk associated with a single data point solution.
Unit #114
24
Presentation Summary
In this COSMOS Companion unit, we reviewed:
Tips for modeling your parts in SolidWorks to improve the efficiency
and accuracy of the analysis
Guidelines for selecting loads & restraints
Guidelines for modeling assemblies involving plastic parts
Important material property concerns for plastics
Nonlinear material models in COSMOSWorks
Other nonlinearities that might impact a plastic part analysis in
COSMOSWorks
Guidelines for comparing test results to analysis results
25
This wraps up out discussion of plastic part analysis in COSMOSWorks. This is a deep subject and you are
encouraged to research the topics introduced here in more detail. We spent some time talking about ways to
prep your analysis by building more efficient models in SolidWorks. This is especially important if you are
using conceptual elements such as shells for your plastic parts.
We discussed the importance of well thought out loads and restraints when using plastic parts due to the
danger of creating fictitious stiffness transitions at restraints. Assembly analysis using contact is often an
important task to get a more natural, reasonable response in your plastic parts.
We discussed the material properties of plastics including the difference between tensile, or Youngs
Modulus, and Flex Modulus. Remember that COSMOSWorks is looking for tensile properties and using flex
properties could invalidate your results. We also reviewed the nonlinear material models that you might need
for plastic part analysis and compared the relative pros & cons of each. Using nonlinear material properties
in COSMOSWorks isnt the difficult part. Obtaining and understanding these properties is.
Finally, we talked about interpreting your analysis results and why youll need to keep an open mind when
comparing analysis results for plastic parts to test. If you dont get good test correlation, it is more likely that
there was some aspect of the problem you didnt fully understand than that the analysis was wrong.
Remember COSMOSWorks only answers your questions and the answer can only be as complete as the
information provided. With plastic components, finding all the information you need to fully characterize a
response can be very difficult and thus, using analysis for trend studies vs. attempting to ascertain an exact
response is probably more effective.
Unit #114
25
Conclusion
For more information
Contact your local reseller for more in-depth training or support on using
COSMOSWorks to analyze plastic parts or assemblies or to discuss
modeling techniques
Review the on-line help for a more detailed description of the features
discussed
Attend, or better yet, present at a local COSMOS or SolidWorks user
group.
See http://www.swugn.org/ for a user group near you
Good resources for plastic part design and analysis:

Structural Analysis of Thermoplastic Components; Trantina & Nimmer;
McGraw Hill
Bayer Plastics
http://plastics.bayer.com
GE Plastics
http://www.geplastics.com
26
Id like to thank you for taking the time to join in this edition of the COSMOS Companion. I hope you will
approach analyses involving plastic parts from a different perspective. There is so much more to know
about this topic and I welcome your questions and feedback.
I encourage you to talk thru your problem, model setup and material model options with the support team at
your local reseller and take advantage of their experience in using COSMOSWorks. If you have time, you
should also read thru the on-line help topics on the nonlinear material models available to you in
COSMOSWorks Advanced Pro, even if you dont have access to these features, so you might have a better
understanding of what you can do or why your large displacement solution is having problems.
I encourage you to get involved in a local COSMOS user group. This is one of the best vehicles for sharing
and learning from the experience of others who face the same challenges as you. You can locate a local
COSMOS group on the SolidWorks User Group network website shown. If there arent any COSMOS
groups near you, get involved in your local SolidWorks groups and introduce some COSMOS related topics
to foster some discussion on design analysis and validation.
Finally, Ive listed a couple of references that have been helpful to me in my years of analyzing plastic
components. The inclusion of the Bayer and GE websites doesnt imply an endorsement of these suppliers
by SolidWorks or any relationship between the companies. These are just websites Ive found useful
information on, both for material properties and design tips. The book by Trantina and Nimmer, however, is
a must for any designer hoping to use FEA to better understand plastic part response. You can order this
on Amazon and Id suggest taking a few evenings and reading thru it. It is one of my most valuable
references.
With that, Id like to thank you again for your time and interest and I look forward to seeing you next time on
the COSMOS Companion.
Unit #114
26

114 Analysis of Plastics Solidworks Simulation

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114 Analysis of Plastics Solidworks Simulation

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Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

The COSMOS Companion

Image courtesy of National Optical Astronomy

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

What is the COSMOS Companion?

It is not an alternative to instructor-led introductory training

2006 SolidWorks Corp. Confidential.

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

2006 SolidWorks Corp. Confidential.

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

Solid Modeling of Plastic Parts

Machine from bar stock

Machined parts tend to be blocky and no special solid

2006 SolidWorks Corp. Confidential.

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

Using Outer or Offset Surfaces

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

Injection Molded Parts

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

Loads & Restraints

Contact behavior may not be as predictable as steel

2006 SolidWorks Corp. Confidential.

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

Many plastic parts lend themselves to shell modeling but

Plan for assy modeling and contact

2006 SolidWorks Corp. Confidential.

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

Material Properties of Plastics

2006 SolidWorks Corp. Confidential.

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

2006 SolidWorks Corp. Confidential.

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

Bi-linear Material Model

2006 SolidWorks Corp. Confidential.

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

Material Properties of Plastics

Some ductile materials never rupture in a tensile test

Ductile materials generally behave similarly in tension and compression

Stiffness DOES NOT indicate ductility

2006 SolidWorks Corp. Confidential.

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

Material Properties of Plastics

2006 SolidWorks Corp. Confidential.

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

Material Properties of Plastics

2006 SolidWorks Corp. Confidential.

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

Material Properties of Plastics

2006 SolidWorks Corp. Confidential.

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

Nonlinear Materials in COSMOSWorks

2006 SolidWorks Corp. Confidential.

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

Nonlinear Materials in COSMOSWorks

2006 SolidWorks Corp. Confidential.

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

Nonlinear Materials in COSMOSWorks

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

Nonlinear Materials in COSMOSWorks

2006 SolidWorks Corp. Confidential.

Analyzing Plastic Parts in COSMOSWorks

Nonlinear Materials in COSMOSWorks

Plasticity models are the most resource intensive

2006 SolidWorks Corp. Confidential.