Impact of Injection Mold Settings Optimization on the Thermal Performance of Plastic (Cup) Product using Response Surface Methodology

High quality plastic cups are attainable via the careful optimization of the injection mold settings. The development of the optimal injection mold settings of the injection speed, injection pressure, mold temperature and the cooling time input parameters in order to investigate their impact on the finished polypropylene plastic cup thermal performance response variable using the response surface methodology is the focus of this research study. A cup with a good thermal performance insulates the liquid content for a longer time helping the hot drinks to retain warmth for a longer time, and keeping the cold drinks from warming up quickly. Conversely, well insulated cups minimize condensation on the cup’s exterior, improving grip and comfort while preventing water rings on surfaces. Therefore, an important indicator of a plastic cup’s quality is the thermal performance. The response surface methodology (RSM) design of experiment (DOE) with multiple iterations of trial test moldings while varying the selected parameters was employed in this study. The response surface methodology analysis produced the following optimal solutions for each of the input variables: injection speed – 50mm/s; injection pressure – 95MPa; mold temperature – 570C; and cooling time – 15s. Correspondingly, the optimal solution of the response variable, thermal performance was 0.360W/mK. The global desirability (DG) of achieving the optimal solutions was 1 (100%), with a strong Coefficient of Determination (R2) between the input parameters and the response variable value of 89.68%. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) table showed that the selected model was a quadratic model. The ANOVA model showed that the cooling time input factor has the most significant effect on the target response, together with the interactive term coefficient of injection speed and injection pressure. The optimized results will serve as a guide to manufacturers in the optimal setting of their production parameters. The economic feasibility of determining the best mold settings and materials for enhanced product quality was demonstrated in this study with the use of the DOE. The approach of this research study will mitigate a lot of wastes and defects in production and also when employed in the production of other injection mold plastic products