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Numerical simulation of mold filling in foam reaction injection molding
Author(s) -
Seo Dongjin,
Ryoun Youn Jae,
Tucker Charles L.
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
international journal for numerical methods in fluids
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.938
H-Index - 112
eISSN - 1097-0363
pISSN - 0271-2091
DOI - 10.1002/fld.582
Subject(s) - mechanics , materials science , compressibility , mold , finite volume method , newtonian fluid , flow (mathematics) , bubble , computer simulation , thermodynamics , composite material , physics
A numerical simulation of reaction injection molding (RIM) of polymeric foam is developed, using a finite volume method (FVM). In this study we predict mold filling with a variable‐density fluid that fills a mold by self‐expansion. We deal with two‐dimensional, isothermal cases. With the assumptions of ideal mixing and rapid bubble nucleation, the foam is modelled as a continuum with a time‐dependent density. The continuum is assumed to be a Newtonian fluid. We develop a pressure‐based FVM for unstructured meshes that includes the SIMPLE algorithm with treatment of fluid compressibility. Cell‐based, co‐located storage is used for all physical variables. To treat the moving interface, an explicit high‐resolution interface capturing method is used. Foam flow in a slit is investigated, and the numerical calculations are in good agreement with an approximate analytic solution. For fountain flow in a rectangular cavity, the shape of the flow front is flatter and the traces of the particles are more complicated for an expanding foam than for a constant‐density fluid. An example of mold filling by an expanding foam demonstrates the geometric flexibility of the method. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.