Evaluation of Fiber and Resin Flow During Injection Molding of Fiber-Reinforced Plastics Based on Moving Particle Simulation Method

(Estimation for Effect of Resin Properties on Fiber Flow)

Abstract

Injection conditions in injection molding with FRP and thermoplastic resin have a great influence on molded products, however, it is inefficient to evaluate the effect of injection conditions in terms of time and money. Therefore, a numerical simulation that can take account of the interaction between resin and fibers is required. In this study, a multiscale approach is applied to injection simulation based on MPS method. In the global analysis, the effect of viscosity on resin flow was evaluated. At low viscosities, the shape of the flow front and temperature distribution were affected, but the resin velocity converged when the viscosity exceeded a certain level. In the local analysis, the effect of fiber aspect ratio on fiber orientation varies with the velocity distribution occurring in space. It was also confirmed that the effect of viscosity varied depending on the location of fiber flow. And the fiber was observed converging to certain position. This is considered to express the aggregation of fibers seen in the experiment.