Pour minimiser les risques associés à une baisse de l'efficacité du refroidissement, le nettoyage régulier des canaux de refroidissement doit être intégré à l'entretien courant des moules. Voici quelques bonnes pratiques pour aider à maintenir les canaux de refroidissement propres et opérationnels :

1. Regular Preventive Cleaning: Establish a cleaning schedule based on the mold’s usage frequency and the type of coolant circulating in the system. Regular diagnostics and short preventive cleaning sessions effectively prevent contaminant buildup before it leads to more significant issues that impact the process.
2. Flow Monitoring: Implement systems to monitor the flow of the cooling medium through the channels. Early detection of flow reductions or increases in the delta T (the temperature difference between inlet and outlet) can indicate blockages or the accumulation of scale or rust.
3. Documenting Maintenance Activities: Maintain detailed records of all maintenance activities, including cleaning dates/times and flow rates recorded for individual channels. This documentation helps track cooling efficiency declines over time and can guide future decisions regarding tool maintenance.
4. Choosing the Right Tool: Ensure that the cleaning device has features that allow for efficient and thorough cleaning, as well as monitoring the performance of each cooling circuit in the tool. It’s beneficial if the device also has data logging capabilities, enabling you to review and reference the data in future cleaning sessions.

This post Best Practices for Effective Cooling Channel Cleaning first appeared on Coolingcare.eu and is written by testadmin

Négliger le nettoyage régulier des canaux de refroidissement peut avoir de graves conséquences pour le moule et le processus de production. À mesure que les contaminants s'accumulent, l'écoulement de l'eau se restreint, ce qui réduit l'efficacité du système de refroidissement. Une plus faible dissipation de la chaleur due à une couche d'isolation à faible conductivité thermique, combinée à un débit restreint, peut provoquer une surchauffe localisée dans le moule (connue sous le nom de "points chauds"). Il en résulte un refroidissement inégal et une qualité instable des pièces. En conséquence, le pourcentage de pièces défectueuses augmente, les coûts de production augmentent et des réparations ou même des remplacements de moules plus fréquents deviennent nécessaires. Dans les cas critiques, les canaux de refroidissement peuvent se boucher complètement, ce qui oblige à arrêter le moule, à le démonter et à le percer mécaniquement, ce qui engendre des coûts énormes. Cela augmente non seulement les dépenses d'exploitation, mais affecte aussi négativement la capacité à respecter les délais de production. À une époque où les exigences de qualité des clients sont si élevées, il est crucial de maintenir une qualité stable des pièces avec le temps de cycle le plus court possible.

Problèmes potentiels liés aux perturbations thermiques de l'outil :

1. Temps de cycle prolongés : Les canaux de refroidissement contaminés entraînent un transfert de chaleur plus lent, ce qui signifie que le moule a besoin de plus de temps pour refroidir. Il en résulte des cycles de production plus longs, ce qui réduit l'efficacité globale du processus et augmente les coûts d'exploitation.
2. Défauts de pièces : Un refroidissement inégal peut affecter la qualité des pièces. Les défauts tels que le gauchissement, les marques d'enfoncement et les écarts dimensionnels sont plus fréquents, ce qui entraîne un taux de rejet plus élevé de la part du contrôle de la qualité. En outre, un refroidissement inégal peut créer des contraintes internes, réduisant la résistance du produit et entraînant sa fissuration sous charge.
3. Usure plus rapide des moules : La réduction de l'efficacité du refroidissement oblige le moule à fonctionner à des températures plus élevées pendant des périodes plus longues, ce qui accélère l'usure des composants du moule. Cela peut réduire la durée de vie de l'outil et nécessiter des réparations et des remises à neuf plus fréquentes.
4. Consommation d'énergie plus élevée : Un système de refroidissement inefficace nécessite plus d'énergie pour maintenir le moule à la bonne température, ce qui entraîne une augmentation des coûts énergétiques et de l'impact sur l'environnement.

This post Consequences of Neglecting Cooling Channel Cleaning first appeared on Coolingcare.eu and is written by testadmin

The mineral deposits are primarily composed of calcium and magnesium carbonates. Carbonates, which are generally insoluble, are precipitated by heating water containing soluble calcium and magnesium bicarbonates. Bicarbonate is thermally unstable and will decompose to form carbonates and thus limescale when heated.

Factors influencing scale deposition:

• The higher the (temporary) water hardness, the more scale will form.

• The higher the pH (alkaline pH) of the water, the greater the tendency to scale

• The higher the temperature to which the water is heated, the more scale build-up will be present.

Precipitation and scaling on channel walls increases dramatically when the water temperature exceeds 60 degrees Celsius. It also depends on the hardness of water, so in some areas the problems caused by limescale are greater than in others. To counteract limescale problems, most injection molders deploy some form of water treatment to minimize the risk of mineral-based deposits such as calcium or magnesium.

The DS2 cleaner is recommended to remove limescale from calcium and magnesium deposits.

Another type of deposit is formed during the corrosion process. These can be solid, water-insoluble deposits (such as incrustations during the microbial corrosion process) or scale – a layer of solid corrosion products or hard iron oxides. Like other deposits, they are dangerous to the ducts, restrict the flow and reduce the efficiency of heat removal.

Rust-based scale in the channels of water-cooled molds will typically have a high concentration of iron oxides / corrosion by-products. This is mainly because companies use „closed-loop” water systems where the concentration of iron oxide is up to seven times higher than in regular tap water. Another reason for the formation of deposits from the corrosion process may be the water left in the channels after the cleaning process. The dissolved oxygen in the water reacts with steel causing corrosion.

The DS1 cleaner is recommended for descaling with a high concentration of iron oxides.

This post Types of sediments and scale deposits first appeared on Coolingcare.eu and is written by testadmin

We see this type of connections most often in bigger molds that have a large number of cooling channels. It is impractical to connect cooling to each of the channels separately, so they are usually bundled into one manifold, the purpose of which is to supply the cooling media to the individual cooling circuits in the mold. Of course, this type of solution is not perfect. We must remember that the parallel connection of channels will typically generate various pressure drops (these drops may result from large disproportions in diameters, lengths or distances of the channels from each other, forcing them to be connected to the manifold with hoses of different length) which inevitably translate into uneven distribution of the cooling liquid to individual circuits, even if a manifold with an appropriate pressure-balancing volume is used. This solution should be treated as a compromise, as we should always try to connect channels in such a way that the risk of uneven distribution of the coolant is as low as possible. In a situation where one of the circuits is partially or completely blocked, a parallel connection will prevent the cleaning liquid from reaching this channel, because the solution will always try to find the path of least flow resistance.

However, it should be remembered that the process of cleaning the channels is not a process of cooling. This is a common misconception that people who bridge channels for cleaning use, arguing that the mold is connected in the same way during production. If we want to effectively clean the circuits connected to each other by means of a manifold, we must use a feed pump with a much higher capacity, that is able to overcome pressure drops generated by the cooling system, while maintaining the appropriate dynamics, which will guarantee the effectiveness of cleaning in the shortest possible time. The effectiveness of devices equipped with single pumps with a higher flow rate depends primarily on the number of litres of pumped liquid in a given time, which is never the most effective solution. That is why it is worth looking for solutions using hybrid systems, such as the patented, two-stage hydromechanical cleaning process in CoolingCare machines, in which two cooperating pumps for each of the cleaning sections are used. This approach gives much more flexibility and significantly reduces cleaning time.

This post A few words about parallel connections… first appeared on Coolingcare.eu and is written by testadmin

The purpose of the efficient cooling system of the mold is to guarantee an even distribution of temperatures on individual molding cavities, which translates into appropriate dimensional tolerances and the quality of injected parts.

Any temperature deviations caused by flow disturbances and / or the inability of the channels to effectively take away the heat will, over time, translate into the deteriorated quality of the manufactured product, the circulating medium circulating in the mold cooling system receives heat from it, ensuring an even temperature distribution, which in turn translates into appropriate quality, compliance with dimensional tolerances or cycle time.

Corrosion products, limescale and other deposits on the walls of the channels are the silent killer of the efficiency of our cooling system. Scale deposits reduce the efficiency of the cooling system by reducing the its diameter. Worse still, due to its very low thermal conductivity, even a thin layer of scale acts as an insulator, making it difficult to receive the heat from the molding cavity. The scale never precipitates evenly, which can quickly lead to disturbed mold thermal behaviour and quality problems. That is why it is so important to regularly monitor the cooling efficiency in our molds and act preventively.

It should be remembered that the issue of cleaning channels and maintaining high cooling efficiency throughout the life of the tool applies not only to those made in additive technologies, but also to conventional, drilled cooling channels. The only difference is that the complex geometry of the channels and the small diameters of the channels with conformal cooling make cleaning more difficult and requires the appropriate tools and methods. This does not mean, however, that classic structures with drilled channels are free from problems related to reduced cooling efficiency or clogging. It is a very common phenomenon and, worst of all, it happens imperceptibly.

This post Do you control the performance of your injection molds? first appeared on Coolingcare.eu and is written by testadmin

Every year, companies around the world unknowingly lose hundreds of thousands of Euros due to the gradual decline in cooling efficiency in their tools and machines. Lower mold efficiency, longer cycle time due necessity of counteracting dimensional deviations of plastic parts, longer mold downtimes, maintenance and servicing – all these factors increase operating costs and translate into a decrease in company profits. The source of these problems originates not only in the quality of the cooling water, but also in the processing temperatures, which translate into precipitation and gradual deposition of deposits and rust inside cooling channels of molds as well as other heat exchangers.

The rate at which mineral deposits or corrosion byproducts are deposited depends on many factors, such as the chemical composition of the cooling medium and the operating temperature. Also, the way the cooling is designed can have a significant impact on the decrease in cooling efficiency. „Dead” areas that generate zero flows will be places where the deposits precipitated from the cooling medium will naturally settle. It is important to simulate the flow of the medium at the design stage of the mold cooling, so as to avoid fundamental errors that increase the risk of a drop in cooling performance. Unfortunately, at the stage of constructing the mold, the topic of the decrease in cooling efficiency due to calcification of the system seems so distant that it is rarely taken into account.

This post Factors influencing the decrease in cooling efficiency first appeared on Coolingcare.eu and is written by testadmin

When talking to customers, we always try to convince them to test the device they are interested in. We believe that before making an investment decision, the effectiveness of the solution should always be verified, especially when we are not dealing with a product that directly boosts a company’s productivity (like an additional injection molding machine, for example), but rather with a device that indirectly „unlocks” productivity and minimizes production costs.

During our visits to various companies, we often encounter competitors’ machines that, for some reason, are not being used and are left gathering dust in a corner. When we ask why the machine is not being used, we usually hear that it did not perform as expected in practice—whether in terms of effectiveness, ease of use, or reliability. This naturally raises the question of how the purchase decision was made and why the final users of the product were not actively involved in the decision-making process, or at least in giving their opinion on the solution.

Marketing departments can be very creative, writing things in brochures designed to catch the attention of a specific target group. It often turns out that a loudly promoted feature is something entirely trivial and obvious, or worse, that the so-called „automatic” XYZ device still requires frequent operator intervention during the process.

From our 7 years of experience, we’ve learned that purchase decisions made solely based on price, without considering the actual needs of the company, often result in the purchased machine being set aside and unused because it is either a) ineffective or b) impractical from the operator’s perspective. Such a purchase is a waste of money and, even worse, spoils the market, because the chance of buying another device with similar features is usually lost.

That’s why, as a manufacturer, we urge you to test, compare, and verify what you read and hear from salespeople. Remember, the most expensive machines are those that aren’t used; such an investment will never pay off. Verifying the effectiveness of a solution in your production environment will allow you to truly assess the machine’s performance, ease of use, and overall design.

This post The most expensive machine is the one you don’t use, because it will never pay off. Don’t buy a pig in a poke. first appeared on Coolingcare.eu and is written by testadmin