Major Components of Cartridge Heaters

The cartridge heater is a cylindrical shaped industrial heater used in the injection molding process. They are fabricated from annealed pieces of metal and come with different voltage options. There are seven major components in cartridge heaters. They are heating coil, sheath, insulation, sealant, lead wire type, termination, and watt density.

The heating coil is the most important component in a heater because this is where the electrical load takes place. Nickel-chromium metal alloy is used for fabricating the heating coil and the wires are wound around a thick ceramic core. The number of spirals of the wire varies depending on the required watt density. An alternating current source is attached to the heating coil. When the power supply is switched on, the current flows through the wire and heats up the sheath of the heater. Stainless steel or metal alloys are used for manufacturing the sheath. Stainless steel is used for highly acidic environments and metal alloys like Incoloy are used for corrosive environments.

The coils are insulated in order to prevent short-circuits. A short-circuit can be disastrous and can lead to major equipment failure. Some advanced injection molding systems use a ground fault interrupting circuit for added safety. The Nichrome coil is inserted into the sheath and filled with magnesium oxide. A sealant is applied in order to prevent the coil from coming out. The sealant also prevents moisture and contamination inside the heater. The heaters can be exposed to high temperatures, and pressures.

It is very important for engineers to terminate the lead wires in order to prevent wire damage. Braided metal or metal conduits are used to protect the wires. The type of lead wire used varies depending on the design of the injection molding machines. Fiberglass and silicone rubber is commonly used because it can withstand rough temperature conditions.

A wide range of heater bands for injection molding systems are available in the market today and they can be easily bought online. Some of the popular and bestselling ones include Mica bands, Ceramic bands, and Mineral insulated bands. Always go for heaters that have high watt density. A higher watt density ensures better control and quicker response over the process. These industrial heaters can also be customized depending on application requirements. Make sure you buy branded heaters from trustworthy dealers. They are not only reliable but also durable.

Cartridge heaters play a very important role in the manufacturing process and have become an indispensable part of the injection molding process.

Major Injection Molding Machine Components

Major components of an injection molding machine that determines the quality of the product molded by the machine are the injection screws, injection barrels and the screw tips.

Barrels possess the properties of corrosion resistant and wear resistant in order to withstand the different temperature conditions, humidity and the abrasive nature of the different machining components. Molding barrels are used in a variety of molding machines including the plastic molding machines and the extruding machines.

Barrels are made out of hard materials such as nitride alloys and carbides. Due to this they would be able to handle a variety of resin that gets heated to high temperatures. In addition to these two materials, molding barrels are also made out of materials such as D2 and CPM. Among the different barrel materials, barrels made out of CPM materials lasts twice as longer as the nitride alloys.

Carbide material is the hardest material available for creating barrels. In addition to the carbide tool, it also comes impregnated with glass pieces. The life span of carbide material is twice than that of the CPM material. These carbide barrels are also called as bimetallic barrels. Among the different injection molding barrels, D2 barrels are the ones that are used for molding or extruding light parts and components. There are also cheaper barrels that are available to choose. But these barrels will not last longer.

Injection molding barrel screws are usually made out of materials such as tool steel, high carbon steel, high chrome steel and CPM abrasive material. All the type of molding screws undergo a process of surface treatment where in the hardness of the screws are enhanced considerably.

Some of the surface treatment processes that are used to increase the life span of the screws include Nitriding, Chrome plating and carbide coating. Carbide coating is useful in doubling the life of the CPM screws.

Screw tips are made out of materials such as tool steel and carbide tools such as CPM-9V and CPM-420V. While buying the screw tips, one has to be careful with the quality of the tips being supplied. There are some suppliers supplying duplicate screw tips that are manufactured in countries like China and India.

In order to ensure purchasing original and OEM injection molding barrels, screws and screw tips, one has to genuine and original accessory suppliers such as Heat Tech systems. Heat tech systems have been in the business of providing original injection molding accessories for a number of years.