Prediction of fiber orientation in injection-molded parts using three-dimensional simulations

Abstract

The Folgar-Tucker (F-T) model is widely used in most commercial software packages and research programs to predict the fiber orientation distribution in injection-molded fiber-reinforced composites. However, experimental measurements reveal that the F-T model normally results in much higher fiber alignment than observed because it tends to over-predict the orientation kinetics. The Reduced Strain Closure (RSC) model was developed, based on the F-T model, to capture the slow orientation kinetics in an objective fashion. Previous studies demonstrate that t he RSC model yields good agreement of fiber orientation with experimental measurements in shell element simulations using the Hele-Shaw flow approximation. This paper focuses on the RSC model in three-dimensional finite element simulations. The fiber orientation predictions were compared to the orientation measurements in a number of injection-molded parts of various shapes and dimensions and molded with various injection speeds. The RSC model is able to capture the orientation distribution through the part thickness and the average orientation trends along the flow length without the need to tailor the inlet orientation condition to pre-existing data.