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Design of optimal extrusion die for a range of different materials
Author(s) -
Lebaal Nadhir,
Schmidt Fabrice,
Puissant Stephan,
Schläfli Daniel
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
polymer engineering and science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.503
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1548-2634
pISSN - 0032-3888
DOI - 10.1002/pen.21298
Subject(s) - distributor , extrusion , die (integrated circuit) , optimal design , materials science , mechanical engineering , rheology , finite element method , material flow , range (aeronautics) , coating , flow (mathematics) , computer science , composite material , engineering drawing , mechanics , engineering , structural engineering , ecology , machine learning , biology , physics
THE coat‐hanger melt distributor is a device commonly used in the wire coating process. Its task is to distribute the melt around the conductor uniformly. It is quite common that materials and flow rates differ from what had been specified during the design procedure. This may lead to bad performance with materials of very different rheological properties from the design material. In this article, we present an optimal design approach to avoid this loss of performances. This approach involves coupling a three‐dimensional finite element simulation software with an optimization strategy based on a response surface method. The objective is to determine a coat‐hanger melt distributor geometry that ensures a homogeneous exit velocity distribution that will best accommodate for a different range of materials. A coat‐hanger melt distributor with a manifold of constant width is designed, and a set of flow distribution measurements is established for two different materials. The results of numerical simulation are then validated by comparison with experimental measurements. The effect of material change is also investigated. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2009. © 2008 Society of Plastics Engineers