Integrated numerical analysis to evaluate replication characteristics of micro channels in a locally heated mold by selective induction

High-frequency induction heating is an efficient way to heat mold surfaces by electromagnetic induction using a non-contact procedure. Due to its ability to rapidly heat and cool mold surfaces, this method has been applied recently to the injection molding of micro/nano structures. The present study investigates a localized heating method involving the selective use of mold materials to enhance the heating efficiency of high-frequency induction heating. A composite injection mold consisting of ferromagnetic material and paramagnetic material was used for localized induction heating. The feasibility of this localized heating method was investigated through numerical analyses in terms of its heating efficiency for localized mold surfaces and the resulting flow characteristics in micro channels. To take into account the effects of thermal boundary conditions of localized induction heating, a fully integrated numerical analysis effectively connecting electromagnetic field calculation, heat transfer analysis, and injection molding simulation was carried out. The proposed integrated simulation was applied to the injection molding of a rectangular strip containing micro channels, and the resulting mold heating capacity and replication characteristics of the micro channels were compared with experimental findings in order to verify the validity of the proposed simulation.