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Abstract
Thermoplastics have many advantages over metal parts, including lower mass and ease of fabrication. To further
improve their elastic modulus, creep resistance, and dimensional stability, short fibers are added to polymers. Such
composites find widespread use because they can be processed with techniques used for unfilled polymers, provided the
fiber length is below a certain limit. However, the application of fiber-filled thermoplastic materials has been limited in
many cases by the inability to accurately predict performance and durability.
In this work, structural analysis capability of ANSYS is used in conjunction with flow simulation capability of
Moldflow. The Moldflow fiber orientation simulation model allows significantly improved prediction of orientation of
fibers in a molded component over a range of polymer materials and fiber contents. The ANSYS interface for Moldflow is
used to translate this information to an input file for structural analysis using ANSYS. With effect of fiber orientation
incorporated in the material properties, results of this structural analysis provide more realistic valuse of deformation and
stresses in the formed part.
Linear orthotropic analysis is carried out on ash tray door component by coupling Moldflow with ANSYS. A
comparison is made between the results from linear isotropic and linear orthotropic analysis with different gating systems
to understand the effect of these parameters on the mechanical performance of the part. Simulation results are able to
predict the observed mechanical behaviour of short-fiber filled plastic components when the anisotropy of the material is
taken into consideration. Traditional approach of treating the material property as isotropy overestimates the stiffness of
the part. Also, modelling of flow is able to quantify the anisotropy generated in the part during its fabrication process.
Keywords: Fiber Filled Plastic, Fiber Orientation, Anisotropic, Orthotropic, Moldflow, ANSYS
Abbreviations
CAD
Computer-Aided Design
CAE
Computer-Aided Engineering
1. INTRODUCTION
One of the complicating factors for injectionmolded plastic parts is the change in the properties of
plastics during the manufacturing process. While this is
not a problem in and of itself, problems can arise if the
structural analyses are based on generic material data
that does not accurately represent the actual properties
of the molded part. This can lead to over engineering of
components, resulting in increased costs and material
usage, or under-engineering, which can result in
premature failure of parts.
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2. GEOMETRIC MODEL
The geometric model of the component used for
this study, an ash tray door used in automobiles, is
shown in Fig. 4. This component can be seen in the rear
door of a car as a closing door for the ash tray. The part
thickness varies from 0.6 mm to 2.5 mm.
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3. ANALYSIS RESULTS
Material
Melt temperature
Mold temperature
Injection time
Switch-over Velocity/Pressure
Pressure
Packing/Holding
Time
Cooling Time
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Case
Description
Structural analysis
with
isotropic
property
Structural analysis,
1 gate molding,
with
orthotropic
property
Structural analysis,
2 gate molding,
with
orthotropic
property
sp
(mm)
%
difference
1.31
-----
2.78
52
2.42
45
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5. CONCLUSIONS
Based on the simulation results presented above,
the following conclusions were drawn:
6. REFERENCES
[1] http://www.popsci.com/cars/article/200409/plastics-automotive-markets-vision-andtechnology-roadmap, Retrieved on 25-Jun-09
[2] Interface to CAE structural software- Moldflow
iMUG May-08, Slide No.15 and 16.
[3] Ashok K Kancharla, Harindranath Sharma K, and
Paul Nugent, Orthotropic Structural Analysis of
Short Fiber Filled Thermoplastics: AbaqusMoldflow Interface, Experimental Validation,
SIMULIA India Regional Users Meet, 2009.
[4] Du Hwan Chung and Tai Hun Kwon, Fiber
Orientation in the Processing of Polymer
Composites, Korea-Australia Rheology Journal
Vol. 14, No. 4, pp. 175-188, December 2002.
[5] Autodesk, Moldflow and Moldx-3D reference
manuals and help files, Autodesk Moldflow 2010
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