A PEEK into the ULTEMate way to cool
Within the injection molding process, the back half of the process needs as much or more attention as the front half. Melting the material and injecting it into the mold is important for a quality part, but so too is the “cooling” of the part to maintain quality.
The commonly used convention in mold cooling is a water based circulation system. Water is passed through a heating unit, that brings it up to a preset temperature, generally between 120 degrees F and 200 degrees F.
Less common but absolutely necessary if you are going to be producing high temp engineered resins melting at 500 to 700 F is an oil based circulation system.
OPTION 1: HOT WATER
Pressurized hot water as a heating medium typically requires the least capital equipment investment. The cooling channels in the mold circulate hot water in order to get the cavity temperature to the desired level. The required equipment typically consists of a fluid temperature-control system with one heating and one cooling circuit . While a water-based solution is an easy, relatively low-cost alternative, the process has limitations. The most limiting factor is the maximum temperature that can be achieved efficiently with water. While some units can heat as high as 300 F you run the risk of the water turning to steam being above the boiling point.
OPTION 2: HOT OIL
The main benefit of hot oil as the heating medium is its very high heat-transfer characteristic. Also, oil can be heated to 600 F, making it suitable for specialty polymers such as PEEK, ULTEM, or high-carbon-content polymers. Oil systems are not widely used, as most of the molding companies out there process the typical resins. An oil-based solution should be considered only for very high-temperature resins and where other technologies cannot deliver the desired benefits.
The high temp engineered resins are not to be shied away from if they are the answer to your component and product requirements. Seek out a molder that already processes these resins AND they use a hot oil mold temp system. PlastiCert does and has been for many years, we are experts in high temperature resin processing.
Do you have a demanding product environment calling for high temp engineered resins? Don’t sweat it, call PlastiCert!