Sustainable In-Machine Mold Cleaning Using Dry Ice

For injection and compression rubber molders there is a great demand to increase the productivity of their equipment and the quality of their parts, while maintaining healthy margins. This can be a balancing act between using the most effective technology while working within a shrinking budget. Dry ice cleaning systems allow for cleaning molds in the machine, while they are still hot, faster and cheaper in a non-abrasive and sustainable manner, increasing machine uptime, mold asset life and profitability. No longer do molders have to wait till the mold cools and remove it from the machine in order to clean it.

      Cleaning mold cavities and vents of resin off-gasses, cured material and mold release agents can prevent a variety of molding problems: burn, sticking parts, short shots, plate out, contamination, blemishes and flash. But often times mold cleaning is delayed because traditional cleaning methods cause downtime, and often times involves the use of chemicals harmful to employees, and abrasive products which wear away critical mold tolerances.

      Dry ice is proven to clean molds better, while reducing cleaning times up to 75% without causing mold wear, in a sustainable environmentally friendly manner. Dry ice does not create any secondary waste – it simply returns to its natural gas state upon impact. Now molds can be cleaned in a lean, clean and green method assisting in corporate TPM, 6S, Zero Landfill, 5S, Kaizan initiatives. Dry ice cleaning systems can play a significant role in helping companies support organizational quality, service & productivity goals, meet industry and government regulations, and increase profitability.

      This paper discusses the advantages of dry ice blasting as a replacement for solvent and mechanical cleaning for the removal of contaminents from molds as well as burr and flash removal from plastic parts. The effects of dry ice blasting on test samples of aluminium, bronze and weathering steel are discussed. Metal surfaces were studies before and after dry ice cleaning using light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and Z-ray diffraction. It is possible to remove organic layers from various common mold medals. The results indicate that dry ice blating is a good alternative to other commonly used abrasive methods.