How to Maintain an Injection Molding Machine?
Maintenance of injection molding machines is crucial in hot weather!
To ensure the smooth operation of your injection molding equipment, remember to schedule regular inspections, maintenance, and servicing. Maintain proper usage practices to extend the machine’s duration.
01 Ensure cleanliness of the machine and its surroundings.
Maintain cleanliness around the machine, and regularly clean up any accumulated debris around the electrical box and the machine. This promotes proper heat dissipation and ventilation for electrical components.
02 Pay attention to electrical safety.
In hot weather, warehouses often use a large number of fans for cooling. Pay attention to socket maintenance and secure wire routing.
Ensure electrical safety inside the electrical box, and strictly avoid improper wire connections.
Re-tighten wire terminals every six months to prevent electrical fires caused by overloaded or short-circuited circuits.
03 Cabinet Fans
Check the operation of the electrical cabinet’s fans, ensuring that there are no obstructions blocking the airflow, which could affect heat dissipation.
You can use a small piece of paper to check if the fans are running, and then remove the filter for cleaning.
Some fifth-generation machines have intelligent fan start-stop control and speed detection.
For certain machine models equipped with sheet metal fans, it’s necessary to inspect their maintenance and ensure they are working correctly and in the right direction.
04 Check hydraulic Oil Temperature
The ideal operating temperature for hydraulic oil falls between 30 to 50°C.
When the oil temperature exceeds 60°C, for every 8°C increase, the oil’s lifespan is halved.
When the oil temperature reaches 90°C, the oil’s lifespan is only 10% of what it would be at 60°C.
The temperature of hydraulic oil directly affects other components in the system, such as oil pumps, cylinders, and hydraulic valves, leading to reduced control precision and responsiveness. Elevated oil temperatures accelerate oxidation and degradation, causing the oil to darken. The accumulation of these oxidation byproducts can lead to fatal damage to the system.
Additionally, high temperatures can accelerate the aging of seals, making them harden and crack.
While low temperatures result in increased energy consumption and reduced operational speed.
Various factors can cause excessively high oil temperatures, often attributed to oil system faults or cooling system failures.
It’s important to regularly check if the oil temperature thermocouple is functioning correctly.
05 Ensure the Cooler Functions Properly
Check if the oil cooler is operating correctly. Start by examining the water circulation and verifying if the inlet and outlet water pressure differentials meet the standard.
If scaling leads to poor cooling efficiency, it is necessary to clean the oil cooler.
When the ambient temperature is high (40°C), it is advisable to activate the oil cooling system when starting up to prevent excessive temperature rise in the system, which could otherwise damage the hydraulic oil.
06 Cooling Circuits
Inspect the barrel and mold cooling system and check the return flow. If there are blockages or insufficient flow, the circuits need to be cleaned.
07 Servo System
The drive and motor use fan cooling. To prevent potential servo system failures, regularly check if the fans are operating correctly to ensure the servo system operates under normal cooling conditions.
08 Thermal Deformation of Mechanical Components
Due to temperature increases, some small components that are not heat-resistant may experience slight deformation. This can reduce the originally flexible operating space, leading to lower quality of work for the components.
09 Deformation of Rubber Components
Excessive temperatures in the injection molding machine can lead to thermal deformation of some plastic components, accelerating aging and reducing sealing performance and lifespan, resulting in leaks.
10 Reduced Hydraulic System Performance
Excessive temperature rise in the injection molding machine can lead to decreased component quality, air dissolution in the hydraulic oil, the formation of air bubbles, and a subsequent reduction in hydraulic system performance.
Therefore, closely monitoring the working temperature of the hydraulic oil is crucial.