Influences of the mesh in the CAE simulation for plastic injection molding

Abstract Although computer-aided engineering (CAE) software has been used for many years in the plastic industry, identifying the most appropriate mesh geometry and density remains a challenge. It can affect the accuracy of the simulation, the time and the costs. The evaluation of the most suitable mesh is not easy because the difficulties to obtain the real the values of the pressure and temperature inside the mold. The current work investigates this issue. A mold was manufactured and sensors were installed in its interior. CAE simulations using different mesh geometries and densities were evaluated against the experimental data. The results showed that the computational time was mostly influenced by the mesh geometry. The use of 2D mesh and lower density can lead to a faster and more precise simulation of pressure inside the mold and 3D mesh with lower density can provide a faster and precise simulation of the temperature.