MODELING OF FLOW AND HEAT TRANSFER WITHIN HOT RUNNER SYSTEMS USING THE RADIAL FUNCTION METHOD (RFM)

摘要

The radial functions method (RFM) was used to model the flow and heat transfer within hot runner systems. The technique is a meshless method that deals well with highly non-linear problems. The technique was implemented to simulate the coupled flow and heat transfer effects, as well as the interaction with the metal surroundings of hot runner systems. Practical problems were simulated, and the results clearly show various effects that control the flow in injection molding runner systems, such as the thermal imbalance generated by the runner bifurcations, that may lead to flow imbalances during the filling process.