Simulation of Three-dimensional Complex Flows in Injection Molding Using Immersed Boundary Method

摘要

In this paper, an immersed boundary method (IBM) has been developed to simulate three-dimensional (3D) complex flows in the injection molding process, in which the irregular boundary of mould is treated by a level set function. The melt front (melt-air interface) is captured and treated using the coupled level set and volume of fluid (CLSVOF) method. The finite volume method on the non-staggered meshes is implemented to solve the governing equations, and the melt filling process is simulated in a rectangular mould with both thick- and thin-wall sections. The numerical result shows good agreement with the available data. Finally, the melt filling processes in three different moulds, i.e., ring-shaped channels with concentric, eccentric and thin cylindrical insets, are investigated respectively. It is found that the so-called "race-tracking effect" and air traps phenomena could be observed successfully, which demonstrates the applicability of IBM to complex flows in injection molding.