Opportunities and challenges of profile extrusion dies produced by additive

manufacturing processes
Nafi Yesildag, Christian Hopmann, Christian Windeck, Sebastian Bremen, Konrad Wissenbach, and Simon Merkt

Citation: AIP Conference Proceedings 1914, 040002 (2017); doi: 10.1063/1.5016712

View online: https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5016712
View Table of Contents: http://aip.scitation.org/toc/apc/1914/1
Published by the American Institute of Physics

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 Opportunities and Challenges of Profile Extrusion Dies
Produced by Additive Manufacturing Processes
Nafi Yesildaga*, Christian Hopmanna, Christian Windecka, Sebastian Bremenb,
Konrad Wissenbachb and Simon Merktb
a
Institute of Plastics Processing (IKV) at RWTH Aachen University, Seffenter Weg 201, 52074 Aachen, Germany
b
Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology (ILT), Steinbachstr. 15, 52074 Aachen, Germany

*nafi.yesildag@ikv.rwth-aachen.de

Abstract. The design and manufacture of profile extrusion dies is characterised by costly running-in trials. Significant
cost and time savings can be achieved by replacing the experimental running-in trials by virtual ones. A simulative
optimisation, however, often leads to complex, free-formed flow channels. A feasible manufacture of such dies is only
possible with additive manufacturing processes such as the Selective Laser Melting (SLM). Against this background, the
manufacture of profile extrusion dies by SLM is investigated. A major challenge is to ensure a specific surface quality of
the extruded plastics profiles. The roughness of SLM surfaces does not meet the high demands that are placed on the
surface quality of extrusion dies. Therefore, in case of the SLM die a concept for the surface finishing of the flow channel
is required, which can be applied to arbitrarily shaped geometries. For this purpose, plastics profiles are extruded both
with a conventionally and an additively manufactured die. In case of the SLM die only the die land of the flow channel
was reworked by polishing. The comparison of PP profile surfaces shows that the SLM die with polished die land leads
WRWKHVDPHVXUIDFHTXDOLW\RIWKHH[WUXGHGSURILOHDVWKHFRQYHQWLRQDOGLH5D§—P Another important task in the
design of profile dies by SLM is the optimisation of the die topology. The efficiency of the SLM process largely depends
on the volume of the part being produced. To ensure the highest possible efficiency, it is necessary to adapt the die
geometry to its mechanical loads and minimise its mass. For this purpose, the internal pressure in the die was numerically
calculated and used for a first optimisation of the die topology. The optimisation, however, leads to a free-formed outer
die wall so that the die cannot be tempered with heating tapes anymore. This problem is solved by using the high
potential of SLM for functional integration and integrating contour adapted tempering channels into the extrusion die..
Keywords: Profile extrusion, extrusion die, additive manufacturing, Selective Laser Melting
PACS: 68.08.Bc, 81.05.Bx, 81.20.Ev, 81.65.Cf83.50.Uv

INTRODUCTION
The most common production process for plastics profiles is the profile extrusion as it combines high
throughputs with a high level of automation. Here, the design and manufacture of the profile extrusion die is a key
element for the product quality and process efficiency. To date, extensive running-in trials and reworking steps are
required for the design and manufacture of the die and its flow channel [1]. Due to the high fixed costs resulting
from these iterations, profile extrusion is only profitable for high lot sizes. A promising approach to minimise the
necessary amount of design and manufacture iterations consists in the usage of numerical flow simulations in the
design process before the die manufacture [2]. However, a numerical optimisation of the flow channel often leads to
complex, free-formed channel geometries [3]. In this case, conventional processes for the manufacture of the die,
such as milling or wire eroding [1], reach their limit and lead to high manufacture costs. Depending on the
complexity of the free-formed geometries, it may even be that a conventional manufacture of the die is not possible
at all. Remedy can be provided by additive manufacturing (AM) process, in which the product, in this case the
profile die, is manufactured without a shape-giving die or mould by layer-wise application of material [4].
The main advantage of an additive manufacture of profile extrusion dies is the possibility to economically
manufacture arbitrarily shaped flow channels, especially ones with free-formed shapes. Furthermore, AM enables
the integration of additional functional elements, such as geometrically adapted tempering channels, into the die
without additional process steps. Another advantage of AM of the die is the possibility to implement a monolithic
die design. Currently, profile extrusion dies usually possess a slice design, i.e. they consist of several, screwed
together slices in which the respective flow channel is incorporated [1]. This design is necessary in order to produce
and rework complex flow channel geometries with conventional manufacture processes. In contrast to this, with AM
the die can be built as a single part even in case of a free-formed flow channel. In this way, the costs for the die

Proceedings of PPS-32
AIP Conf. Proc. 1914, 040002-1–040002-5; https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5016712
Published by AIP Publishing. 978-0-7354-1606-2/$30.00

040002-1
manufacture can be decreased and the die quality can be increased as there are less parting lines in the die where
melt leakage may occur. A promising AM process for the profile extrusion die is Selective Laser Melting (SLM).
This process enables the production of metal parts with series identical mechanical properties without the need for
part specific tooling or downstream sintering processes [5]. Against this background, the use of profile extrusion
dies manufactured by SLM is being investigated as part of the Cluster of Excellence “Integrated Production
Technologies for High-Wage Countries” at RWTH Aachen University. In this article, investigations about two main
challenges in the additive die manufacturing are presented: The surface quality of the plastics profiles extruded with
additively manufactured dies and the topology optimisation of the die.

PRINCIPLE OF THE SELECTIVE LASER MELTING

SLM is an AM technology developed by the Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology, which enables the layer
by layer manufacture of both metal and ceramic components according to a 3D-CAD model. With SLM individual
parts with nearly unlimited complexity can be produced without need of part specific tooling. Hereby, the process
can be divided into the process steps illustrated in Figure 1: In the first step, the geometrical data is prepared. The
3D-CAD model is cut into layers (slicing) and the scanning vectors of the laser beam are defined. In the next step, a
defined thin layer of the powder material is deposited on the substrate of the building platform. Subsequently, the
geometric data of the CAD-layer-model is transmitted to the powder bed with the help of a high-power laser beam.
The laser beam scans the layer regions in which solid material is to be contained, creating a solid layer of the piece
to be produced. After lowering the building platform by the thickness of a single layer, the described process steps
are repeated until the part is finished. The main advantage of SLM in comparison to other AM processes for metal
parts is the series identical mechanical properties of the parts produced. This is due to the fact, that the metal powder
is completely melted by the laser beam, which enables a density of approximately 100 % in the whole part [5].
Application of a Melting by laser
powder layer

Sliced
3D-CAD model

Metal or
ceramic powder
Lowering of building platform

FIGURE 1. Principle of the SLM process

INVESTIGATION OF THE SURFACE QUALITY

A major challenge in the usage of profile extrusion dies manufactured by SLM is the surface quality of the die.
Due to the high optical and haptic requirements placed on plastics profiles, usually the complete flow channel of the
profile extrusion die is polished after die manufacture. A conventional requirement is hereby to achieve a roughness
RZ of maximum 1 μm in the flow channel [6]. By contrast, the roughness of parts manufactured by commercial
SLM machines out of the steel 1.2709 have a value of at least 20 μm [7]. Accordingly, the flow channel surface
requires reworking in case of SLM manufactured dies in order to produce plastics profiles with smooth surfaces.
However, a polishing of the whole die is to be avoided, since the SLM process is especially suited to cases with free-
formed flow channels. That is why a concept for surface finishing is required, which both ensures a sufficient
quality of the extruded plastics profiles and is applicable to arbitrarily shaped flow channels. A possible solution for
this problem is to rework only the die land of the flow channel. The die land is the flow channel area with the
biggest influence on the dimensional accuracy and the surface quality of the extruded profile. At the same time, the
die land possesses a relatively simple geometry compared to the remaining flow channel and is therefore the flow
channel part easiest to rework. In the investigations presented in the next section, which are described in more detail
in [8], the effectiveness of this surface finishing concept is analysed. For this, a die for the manufacture of an L-
shape profile was manufactured both conventionally by milling and additively by SLM (Figure 2). In case of the
conventional die the whole flow channel is polished whereas in case of the SLM die only the die land is polished.
Extrusion trials are conducted with both dies on a laboratory extrusion line consisting of an extruder, a vacuum-

040002-2
assisted calibrator in a water bath and a take-off unit. The extruder used is a laboratory scale extruder 19/10DW by
Brabender GmbH & Co. KG, Duisburg, Germany, with a diameter of 19 mm and a length of 25D.

Inlet

Inlet section

Middle section

Die land
Outlet

FIGURE 2. Flow channel for the production of an L-shape profile [8]

In the extrusion trials the process parameters mass throughput (1.4 kg/h, 1.7 kg/h, 2 kg/h) and die temperature
(225 °C, 230 °C, 235 °C) are varied. The material used in the trials is Polypropylene (PP) Moplen HP400H of the
company Basell Polyolefine GmbH, Frankfurt am Main, Germany. After the extrusion trials, the surface roughness
Ra of the extruded profiles are measured with a laser confocal microscope type VK-X200 of the company Keyence
Deutschland GmbH, Neu-Isenburg, Germany. For each test point, the roughness Ra of several samples is measured
and subsequently averaged in order to determine the mean roughness.
Figure 3 shows the measured roughness of the profiles obtained with the two different dies. First of all, it can be
seen that the varied process parameters have a slight influence on the roughness in both cases. Hereby, an increase
of the throughput leads to a rougher profile surface since the higher internal die pressure leads to a stronger
replication of the rough flow channel surface. An increase of the melt temperature on the other hand improves the
surface quality. The reason for this is the decreasing melt velocity. This leads on the one hand to a stronger
replication of the protrusions in the flow channel by the melt. On the other hand, a higher mass temperature also
means a lower viscosity at the inlet of the calibrator so that the smoothing effect of the calibration is also improved.
In this case, the latter effect dominates so that the roughness decreases with increasing temperature.
5
Profile in case of conventional die
Profile roughness Ra [μm]

4 Profile in case of SLM die with polished land

Commercial profile
3

0 .
m 1.4 kg/h 1.4 kg/h 1.4 kg/h 1.7 kg/h Commercial
T 225 °C 230 °C 235 °C 230 °C profile

FIGURE 3. Average roughness of the profiles manufactured with conventionally and additively manufactured dies [8]

When comparing the conventional die and the SLM die, it can be seen that the SLM die with polished die land
leads to profiles with a surface quality comparable to that of the ones from the conventional die. In this case, the
profiles extruded with the SLM die even have a smoother surface than the ones extruded with the conventional die.
This observation, however, cannot be generalised: Roughness measurements on the investigated dies show, that the
die land of the SLM die was polished better (R¬¬¬¬Z = 7 μm) than the flow channel of the conventional die (RZ =
11 μm). Hereby, the average roughness in the flow channel of the conventional die is approx. 48 % higher than in
the die land of the SLM die. The smoother profile surfaces in case of the SLM die are entirely due to this difference
in the surface finishing of the dies. In order to evaluate the suitability of the profiles extruded with the SLM die for
industrial applications, the roughness of a commercial profile was determined as a reference (Figure 3). The
comparison of the commercial profile and the profiles from the SLM die shows that the roughness values of the
profiles are nearly identical. This confirms the assumption that the surface quality of extruded plastics profiles is
mainly influenced by the surface finish of the die land and less by the rest of the flow channel. In this case, profiles
with sufficient surface quality for industrial applications can be produced with a die manufactured by SLM by

040002-3
simply polishing the die land of the extrusion die. However, in case of plastics other than PP the rough flow channel
of the SLM die could lead to depositions in the flow channel. This aspect will be investigated in future works.

TOPOLOGY OPTIMISATION OF THE DIE

Another important topic which has to be considered in the manufacture of profile extrusion dies by SLM is the
optimisation of the die topology. The costs of the SLM process are mainly dictated by the powder costs and the
build-up time. Both factors increase with increasing volume of the die to be produced. Conversely, the highest
possible efficiency of the SLM process is given when the die volume is minimised by adapting the die topology to
the mechanical loads on the die. The die for the production of an L-shape profile, which was used in the previous
chapter, was not topology optimised. Instead, it possesses a massive design which is usual for profile extrusion dies
(Figure 4). In order to improve the efficiency of the die manufacture by SLM the topology of the die in Figure 4 is to
be optimised. The requirement for this is that the mechanical loads on the die, i.e. the internal pressure in the flow
channel and the bolt forces, are determined in a first step.

Pressure [bar]
55

44

33

22

11

FIGURE 4. (a) SLM-die without topology optimisation and (b) simulated pressure drop

The bolt forces equal the pretension forces of the used ISO metric bolts taken from [9]. In order to determine the
internal pressure in the flow channel, a flow simulation with the commercial Finite-Element software Polyflow of
the Ansys Germany GmbH, Darmstadt, Germany, is used. The simulation is conducted for a throughput of 10 kg/h
of the material Moplen HP400H at a temperature of 210 °C. The shear thinning behaviour of the plastics is modelled
with the Carreau model, whereby the corresponding Carreau parameters were determined by high-pressure capillary
rheometery (A = 10’934 Pas, B = 0.43, C = 0.69 at 200 °C). The simulation results show that the maximum pressure
in the flow channel is 55 bar (Figure 4). For a safe design, this pressure is increased in the topology optimisation by
a safety factor of 1.5 for the running-in process. Furthermore, it is assumed that this pressure is present along the
entire flow channel, as the largest pressure drop is at the die outlet.
Now that the loads on the die are determined, the next step is the actual topology optimisation. The optimisation
is conducted with the commercial Finite-Element software Abaqus of the Dassault Systémes Deutschland GmbH,
Düsseldorf, Germany. In the first optimization attempt no manufacturing and handling restrictions are considered in
order to allow the maximum possible die volume reduction. This leads to the new die topology in Figure 5.

Gaps along the

von Mises stress outer circumference
[kPa]
300

240

180

120

60

Gaps in the
0 connecting flange

FIGURE 5. Optimised die topology without consideration of manufacturing restrictions

040002-4
 Here, the high potential of SLM for functional integration can be used in order to integrate contour adapted
tempering channels into the die during its manufacture without further processing steps. In case of the die for the L-
shape profile a single spiral shaped tempering channel could be placed around the melt flow channel (Figure 6). In
this way a homogeneous tempering of the flow channel wall can be achieved as shown by a thermal simulation with
Polyflow on the right side of Figure 6. In an upcoming next step, the topology optimisation has to be repeated under
consideration of both the designed tempering channel and geometrical restrictions with regards to an ergonomic
handling of the die during its assembly, operation and disassembly.

Temperature [°C]
210.000

209.998

209.996

209.994

209.992

209.990

FIGURE 6. (a)Spiral shaped tempering channel and (b) simulated temperature distribution at the flow channel wall

CONCLUSION
A major challenge in the SLM manufacturing of profile extrusion dies is to ensure a sufficient surface quality of
the extruded plastics profiles. Here, a concept for the surface finishing of the flow channel is required, which can be
applied to arbitrarily shaped geometries. The presented investigations show that it is possible to achieve a sufficient
SURILOHVXUIDFHTXDOLW\5D§—PZith a SLM die by only polishing its die land.
Another important aspect in the AM of the die is the optimisation of its topology. The topology optimisation,
however, makes it necessary to also adapt the die tempering. A possible solution is the integration of a fluid
tempering into the die. The corresponding tempering channels can be incorporated into the die during its SLM
manufacture without further processing steps.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The depicted research has been funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) as part of the program
Cluster of Excellence “Integrative Production Technology for High-Wage Countries”. We would like to extend our
thanks to the DFG. Furthermore, we would like to thank the Basell Polyolefine GmbH, Frankfurt am Main,
Germany, for the provided test materials and the Döllken Kunststoffverarbeitung GmbH, Gladbeck, Germany, for
the reworking of the SLM die.

REFERENCES
1. W. Michaeli, Extrusion Dies for Plastics and Rubber, Munich, Vienna: Carl Hanser Verlag, 2016.
2. C. Brecher, Integrative Production Technology for High-Wage Countries, Berlin: Springer Verlag, 2012.
3. I. Szarvasy, J. Sienz, J. Pittman and E. Hinton, Int Polym Process 1, 28-39 (2000).
4. I. Gibson, D. Rosen and B. Stucker, Additive Manufacturing Technologies, Berlin: Springer Verlag, 2015.
5. J.H. Schleifenbaum, "Verfahren und Maschine zur individualisierten Produktion mit High Power Selective Laser Melting",
Ph.D. Thesis, RWTH Aachen University, 2012.
6. K.V. Herne, Plastverarbeiter 53, 78-79 (2002).
7. W. Meiners, “Selective Laser Melting – Additive Manufacturing for series production of the future?”, Intermat 2011,
Luxembourg, 2011.
8. C. Hopmann, N. Yesildag, S. Bremen, K. Wissenbach and S. Merkt, RTeJournal - Forum für Rapid Technologie 12 (2015).
9. U.F.R. Gomeringer, M.H.R. Kilgus, F.N.S. Oesterle and H.P.A. Stephan, Tabellenbuch Metall, Haan-Gruiten: Verlag Europa
Lehrmittel, 2011.

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