How to prevent dust generation during die cutting

Dust and loose fibers are flat die-cutting terms used to describe damage to the die-cut edge of a carton. In practice, the term refers to the production of loose particles and debris, as well as the accumulation of fibrous filaments that adhere to the die cut edges of the paperboard. It should be noted that most of these particles and fibers come from the surface of die-cut cardboard. This raises three questions:
â– How is the flat die cutting process carried out?
â–  What caused dust and loose fibers?
â–  How to avoid the generation of dust and loose fibers? How to perform the flat die cutting process In order to accurately describe the flat die cutting process using a steel die-cutting die, this process will be defined as a moving process consisting of two progressive steps. The first step is called "blasting penetration" and the second step is called "blast separation."
In the simultaneous die cutting process, the full length of the die cutting edge is in contact with the surface of the die cut material. The die cutting blade applies pressure on the paperboard material during die cutting. Although we describe die cutting as a cutting process, more precisely, this is the process by which a cardboard breaks under pressure. As the tool drills into the cardboard toward the anvil pad, the surface of the cardboard is squeezed, stretched, and compressed. Finally, the surface of the cardboard could not withstand the effects of these pressures, so it broke in the way of “blasting through”.
The term "blasting" is used to describe the cracking of the surface of the paperboard most accurately. However, because the blade exerts a strong stretching force and compressive force on the paperboard, the surface of the paperboard along the die cutting edge collapses.
After the surface of the cardboard has been broken, the sharpness of the die cutting edge is not as great as that of the previous step because the double bevel of the tool/wedge converts the vertical pressure into a lateral moving force. When the tool is deep into the board, the beveled face of the tool pushes the board vertically to both sides.
Under strong breaking pressure, the cardboard is completely torn before the cutter and the anvil pad are in contact. This "blasting separation" process is divided into surface cracking, tool wedging and cardboard breakage.
Even under outdated production conditions, the cardboard is broken under strong burst pressure as long as it is equipped with sharp steel cutters, smooth liners and an optional die-cutting system.
What caused the dust and loose fiber dust and loose fibers was caused by the damaged die-cutting blade, and the extra force caused the blade to hit the surface of the liner. Thereby the blade is widened, so that the pressing force and the stretching force applied to the surface of the cardboard are greatly increased. The cardboard is further compressed and the tension is slowly increased until the cardboard breaks. This process is overstretched, producing fragments and "dust" molecules.
As the pressure on the tool increases, further compression forces blunt the blade. The cardboard is compressed and stretched beyond the normal range, and its surface is broken into three pieces.
From the description of this process, we can conclude that dust and loose fibers come from the surface of the cardboard, which is caused by progressive damage of the die cutting edge.
How to avoid the generation of dust and loose fibers The way to avoid this problem is to keep the steel blades in good condition. There are several methods to choose from, and one of them can be used alone or in combination.
These methods are:
â–  Use a soft or "small thickness" die-cut liner;
â–  Calibrate the flat die cutting machine to prevent excessive force;
â–  Calibrate and balance the pressure on the die-cutting tool to ensure accurate Z-axis control of the cutting edge;
■ Operate the “floating knife” mode for the important tools in the production planning;
â–  Accurately integrate the double-board and area patching technology into the joint repair process to evenly press.