Effects of Geometry and Processing on the Blow Molding Pinch-Off

Jonathan Meckley

The Pennsylvania State University at Erie

Introduction
In the industry today, the rules for extrusion blow molding pinch-off design vary from
company to company. Several material suppliers have done research and provided the
results to their customers. The design of the pinch-off is important because it welds
together the parison at the bottom of the mold. If the weld is not formed correctly, it
could become a weak point in the product and break. The design of the pinch-off must
have sufficient strength to withstand the pressures of repeated cycles, be able to push the
plastic above the pinch-off to make the weld, and create a clean break off point for the
flash below the pinch-off [1].
This paper is a combination of two different research studies. This series of studies was
used to find the effects of design and processing parameters on the strength of the weld.
The first study was only used for studying the effects of design parameters. A sixteen run
two level Design of Experiments (DOE) was used to evaluate the effect of each
parameter on the strength of the weld. The second study used a DOE to evaluate the
processing parameters. Instead of using the processing parameters in the DOE, four
separate DOEs were run at different processing parameters. From previous research, it
was determined that mold closing speed and melt temperature were the two main
processing parameters that affect pinch-off strength. This study was performed to see if
these processing parameters would change the results of the basic DOE.
Theory/Background
In extrusion blow molding, a tube of hot plastic, the parison, is extruded between two
molds (Figure 1). As the molds close, the parison is squeezed at the bottom by the molds.
The parison also may be pinched at the top or on the sides in some cases. Figure 2 shows
a pinch-off at the bottom and around the neck of the bottle.
For this study, a pinch-off at the bottom was used. The pinch-off design was the double
angle. Figure 3 shows one of the pinch-off plates for the mold in the pinch-off area. The

first design parameter that was used in the study was the land, shown as A in Figure 3.
The land is usually between 0.127mm to 0.380mm [2]. Even when the mold is closed
there is a thin film of plastic in the land region. The next parameter was the first angle,
shown as D. Another parameter was the second angle, shown as H. Because there were
two angles, a parameter was needed for the distance to the second angle (O). The last
parameter was the flash pocket depth, shown as B.
An equation supplied by a material supplier was used to determine the flash pocket depth
(Equation 1). The equation [3] was used to find a flash pocket depth for a parison with an
approximate thickness of 3.175mm. An assumption of uniform thickness and diameter
was used to determine the parison weight. A process was set up on the bottle mold before
the pinch-off plates and carrier were designed. The parison length and approximate
diameter were measured during the cycle. This same process was used in the actual
DOE. The parison was rapidly cooled and measured. From the measurement, it was
calculated that the thickness at the melt temperature was approximately 3.175mm.
When the parison is squeezed by the molds, the plastic moves around in the pinch-off
area. For a high-quality weld, the correct amount of plastic has to be pushed over the
land area. The pinch-off, when the mold is closed, can be seen in Figure 4. If too little
plastic is pushed above the land area, there will not be enough plastic to form a good
weld. When too much plastic is pushed above the land, it creates a thick area of hot
plastic that will take longer to cool. While this may not create a weak pinch, it will create
dimensional problems.
Description of Equipment and Processes
A single shuttle continuous extrusion blow molding machine was used for this study. The
mold was a 0.473 liter bottle with a set of special pinch-off plates at the bottom. These
plates were made to have insertable pinch-off plates. These plates contain different
geometry for the parameters of land, first and second angles, distance to second angle,
and flash pocket depth. Figure 5 shows the factors used in the DOE. Figure 3 shows the

factor letters associated with the design parameters. The values used for the levels can be
seen in Figure 6. The + indicates a high level and the - indicates a low level. The
mold and the pinch-off carrier, as well as the pinch-off plates, can be seen in Figure 7.
The pinch-off carrier was designed so two screws are used to hold the pinch-off plates in
place. The screws allow for quick changes of pinch-off plates. Details of the pinch-off
plates are shown in Figure 8.
The students that originally designed and had the insert plates built incorrectly had the
levels for factors H and O, second angle and distance to second angle respectively, the
same. This essentially made both factors the same. Since there were sixteen runs and
now four factors, the DOE was a full factorial.
The steps for conducting the basic DOE were as follows. The blow molding machine
was run for an hour to get the temperatures in the mold in equilibrium. The first of
sixteen pinch-off plates was put in the carrier and fifteen bottles were molded. The
bottles were set aside for future testing. The first set of pinch-off plates was removed and
the second set was installed. This procedure was repeated until the sixteenth set was
completed.
There were two different studies performed. The first study was used to find the design
parameters that affect the pinch-off strength. It used just the basic running of the DOE.
The same process that was used to determine the pinch-off thickness and diameter was
used for the DOE.
The second study used the same basic DOE four times, varying both the mold closing
speed and the melt temperature. Figure 9 showed the levels of the two processing
parameters that were used in the study. The two parameters were selected from previous
research [4]. The process was changed because of the changes in melt temperature. It
was a year in between the two studies and the head on the blow molding machine was
changed. This also contributed to the changes in the process.

Tensile testing was the main evaluation technique for both studies. A special cutter was
constructed to ensure the test specimens would fail at the weld. The tensile test
specimens can be seen in the top of Figure 10.
Presentation of Data and Results
For the first study there was only one run of the DOE. A spreadsheet was used to analyze
the data. The results of the spreadsheet can be seen in Figure 11 [5]. The factors that
contributed to the strength of the weld were Factors A, D, and an interaction between A
and D (E). None of the other factors significantly contributed to the strength of the weld.
For the second study there were four different runs of the basic DOE. Figure 12 [6]
shows the typical results from the spreadsheets used to analyze the data. The results
stayed constant throughout the four DOEs. In this study, flash pocket (B) showed up as
the dominant factor. Factors A and D were also found to influence the weld strength, just
as in the first study.
The weld strength from each of the two processing parameters was graphed against the
DOE run number. This can be seen for mold closing speed in Figure 13 [6]. The graph
for melt temperature can be seen in Figure 14 [6].
Discussion of Results
Design Study
For the first study, the factors that promoted the flow of plastic over the pinch-off to form
a strong weld were the land length at the high level and the first angle at the low level.
Since both a longer land and shallower angle will squeeze the parison more, it is logical
that it causes the material to flow more. When the flash pocket squeezes the parison, the
flow of the parison being squeezed by the land and first angle will flow over the land and
into the mold cavity. When the parison is squeezed in the flash pocket, it becomes
pressurized. This would help to keep the flow of the parison from going into the flash

pocket region. An earlier study performed with this set of pinch-off plates found that the
flash pocket was a major contributor to weld strength. Since there were several months
between the two studies, there could have been a change in parison geometry. The main
culprit could have been the thickness in the pinch-off region.
Processing Study
For the second study, the same basic DOE was run four times with two processing
conditions that changed. In this study each of the four runs showed some of the same
factors consistently throughout the four runs. Flash pocket depth at the shallowest was
the dominant factor in all four runs. Land length at the lower level was another major
factor in one of the four runs. This is a reversal from the first study. It is possible that the
parison thickness could have been thicker in these series of runs and caused the flash
pocket depth to overshadow all other factors. The first angle at the lower level was also a
major factor in one of the four runs.
Graphing the runs with the high and low melt temperatures and then the mold closing
speeds, shows the relationships of the high to low processing parameters. As expected,
the low mold closing speed produced the stronger pinch. As the mold closes slower, it
gives the parison more time to react to the squeezing and allows more plastic to flow
above the pinch-off. Both high and low closely followed the same trend, with the
exception of a few data points.
The melt temperature plot was not as consistent as the mold closing speed. From the
general trend of the graph, it shows that the lower temperature produces a stronger weld.
This goes contrary to what was initially thought before the study was run. It was
assumed that a higher temperature would make for a stronger weld. There are two
possible reasons for the higher temperature having weaker weld strength. If the data are
true, it may be due to the viscosity being lower and therefore making it easier for the
parison to flow into the flash pocket than to flow over the land. The second possible
reason for the lower weld strength could be that the higher temperature could have caused
a lower melt strength and that would have made the parison sag more. Since the same

process was used, the lower melt strength would have changed the diameter and
thickness.
Future Research
When these studies were performed, there was no way to accurately determine the
diameter and thickness. In other studies, to verify blow molding simulation software, an
accurate description of the parison was needed. A linear laser measuring device was used
to measure the diameter at several locations along the parison. A pillow or
compartmentalized mold was used to trap the parison in several volumes along its the
length. A spline was drawn through the points taken from the laser measuring device in a
CAD package. Once the CAD model was developed, measurements could be taken at
any point. Measurements were then taken at points that corresponded with the pillow
mold. A spreadsheet was used to take the measurements from CAD and the weights from
the pillow mold. This spreadsheet then calculated the average thickness for each
compartment in the pillow mold. When the experiments are run again, the measuring
techniques will be used to ensure the thickness and diameter are the same each time the
process is changed. The experiments will be run again this fall on a new machine with
better control.
Blow molding simulation software is currently being studied to determine its usefulness
in predicting the dimensions of the weld. Figure 15 shows some of the preliminary
analyses results. These preliminary analyses are showing some promise, but the
technique still needs to be worked on before verification analyses can be performed.
A new set of pinch-off plates and carrier are going to be designed in the future. The
current sets have been used five to six times and are showing wear. The new inserts will
be set up for a three level DOE. The carrier, insert holder, and plate can be seen in Figure
16. The three levels will consist of a high, middle, and low for each factor. Based on the
research presented above, the only factors to be examined will be flash pocket depth, land
length, and first angle. The second angle will be eliminated. It was not possible to get

good cooling because of the thinness of the original pinch-off plates. The new inserts
have been designed with better cooling.
Conclusions
From the two studies performed, it is evident that three design parameters contribute to a
stronger weld at the pinch-off; they are: longer land length, smaller first angle, and
shallower flash pocket depth. While the first study did not show the results for the flash
pocket, an earlier study did find this to be a factor. The second study did show flash
pocket as a main factor.
A slow mold closing speed was better than a fast speed. This, however, is not desirable in
industry. Even a few tenths of a second, on a product that has an overall cycle less than
20 seconds, can significantly increase the cycle time of that product. Processors would
rather use the faster mold close.
The results from the melt temperature changes require further study. More work is
needed to qualify the results shown in this study.
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank the following teams of students for the work performed in these
studies. Without them this research would not have been possible.
Jeremy Smith & John Evans
Frank Hieber & Jason Mica
Ed Telford & Jeff Mendenhall
Matt Marlowe & Chad Weller
I would also like to thank Brad Johnson for his contributions to the DOEs. The Blow
Molding Consortium at Penn State Erie, The National Science Foundation, and The Ben
Franklin Partnership financial contributions helped to buy the equipment and mold
modifications needed in this research.

References
Rosato, Rosato, Blow Molding Handbook, 1st Ed, Hanser, 1989, p 268
Lee, Norman, Blow Molding Design Guide, 1st Ed, Hanser, 1998, p 155
BP Technical Bulletin, Design of the Pinch-Off
Phillips 66 Technical Bulletin, Pinch-Off Parameters for Blow Molding Extra High
Molecular Weight HDPE, 1976
Heiber, Mika, The Effects of Pinch-Off Geometry on the Strength of the Weld Line in
Blow Molded Bottles, ANTEK Conference Procedings, 1997, p3339
Marlowe, Weller, Effects of Processing Parameters on Pinch-Off Designs, Antek
Conference Procedings, 2000, pp 3438-3439