Abstract
Design of molding tools and molding cycles for sheet molding compounds (SMC) is often expensive and time consuming. Computer simulation of the compression molding process is a desirable approach for reducing actual experimental runs. The focus of this work is to develop a computer model that can simulate the most important features of SMC compression molding, including material flow, heat transfer, and curing. A control volume/finite element approach was used to obtain the pressure and velocity fields and to compute the flow progression during compression mold filling. The energy equation and a kinetic model were solved simultaneously for the temperature and conversion profiles differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) was used to experimentally measure the polymer zation kinetics. A rheometrics dynamic analyzer (RDA) was used to measure the rheological changes of the compound. A series of molding experiments was conducted to record the flow front location and material temperature. The results were compared to simulated flow front and temperature profiles.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 503-514 |
Number of pages | 12 |
Journal | Polymer Composites |
Volume | 14 |
Issue number | 6 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Dec 1993 |