Rheological properties of peanut butter

The rheological properties of two types of commercial peanut butter have been studied. Both products are concentrated suspensions, and differ by the presence of additives. The first type, referred to as “100% peanuts,” is an unstabilized suspension consisting of solid peanut particles in peanut oil which is a Newtonian fluid. The second type, referred to as “smooth,” consists of the same suspension stabilized with a vegetable oil and contains other ingredients such as salt and sugar in very small quantities. A mean volume particle diameter of 6.6 μm has been determined, the particle diameter distribution was found to be narrow, and the solids volume fraction was estimated to be 0.6. Slip encountered in rheometry was greatly reduced by gluing sandpaper to the parallel plates of the rheometer. Both samples behaved like plastic materials and apparent yield stresses of 24 Pa and 370 Pa have been determined for the unstabilized and the stabilized suspensions, respectively. No linear domain was found for both suspensions and the non-linearity was confirmed by deformed Lissajous curves and higher odd harmonics in the output signal of small amplitude oscillatory shear experiments. The stabilized suspension behaved more like a solid, the elastic modulus being larger than the loss modulus and almost independent of the frequency. This solid-like behavior is supposedly caused by strong repulsive (steric) forces induced by the stabilizing agent. Received: 29 September 1999 Accepted: 9 August 2000     

Measuring static yield stress of electrorheological fluids using the slotted plate device

An electrorheological (ER) response is defined as the dramatic change in rheological properties of a suspension of small particles due to the application of a large electric field transverse to the direction of flow. ER fluids are typically composed of nonconducting or semiconducting particles dispersed in a nonconducting continuous phase. A sufficiently large electric field will cause ER fluids to solidify, giving rising to a yield stress. Many applications in torque and stress transfer devices were proposed employing the reversible yielding behavior of ER fluids. Successful applications depend on a large yield stress of ER fluids and therefore accurate measurements of the yield stress of ER fluids are required. Reported experimental yield stresses of ER fluids have been dynamic yield stresses obtained by extrapolating the shear stress–shear rate data to zero-shear rate. It would be very helpful to the understanding of ER behaviors and the applications of ER fluids to be able to measure the static yield stress of ER fluids accurately. The slotted plate technique has been shown to be a successful method to determine the static yield stress of suspensions. The values obtained via the slotted plate method are static yield stress as the platform is designed for extremely low-speed motion. In this study, we modified the slotted plate device for the application of large electric fields and measured the static yield stress of TiO₂ ER fluids under various electric fields. The measured static yield stress values are also compared with the static yield stress values from a commercial rheometer.     

Linear viscoelastic analysis using frequency-domain algorithm on oscillating circular shear flows for bubble suspensions

To achieve a stable evaluation of the linear viscoelasticity of bubble suspensions, which have difficulties for conventional rheometers from spatial distributions of rheological properties with bubble deformations, we proposed a novel rheometry based on spatio-temporal velocity data obtained by ultrasonic velocity profiling (UVP). A frequency-domain algorithm was adopted to overcome a critical influence of measurement noise on the rheological assessment, which is inferred from error propagation characteristics through the equations of motion in discretized form. Applicability and advantage of the present rheometry with the frequency-domain algorithm were verified by two kinds of fluids: high viscous oil as a Newtonian fluid and polyacrylamide aqueous solution as a shear thinning, viscoelastic fluid. The rheometry was finally adopted for bubble suspensions subject to high oscillatory shear, and it could validly extract elasticity-originated momentum transfer as a function of space.     

Rheology of pulp suspensions using ultrasonic Doppler velocimetry

Conventional rheometry coupled with local velocity measurements (ultrasonic Doppler velocimetry) are used to study the flow behaviour of various commercial pulp fibre suspensions at fibre mass concentrations ranging from 1 to 5 wt.%. Experimental data obtained using a stress-controlled rheometer by implementing a vane in large cup geometry exhibits apparent yield stress values which are lower than those predicted before mainly due to existence of apparent slip. Pulp suspensions exhibit shear-thinning behaviour up to a high shear rate value after which Newtonian behaviour prevails. Local velocity measurements prove the existence of significant wall slippage at the vane surface. The velocimetry technique is also used to study the influence of pH and lignin content on the flow behaviour of pulp suspensions. The Herschel–Bulkley constitutive equation is used to fit the local steady-state velocity profiles and to predict the steady-state flow curves obtained by conventional rheometry. Consistency between the various sets of data is found for all suspensions studied, including apparent yield stress, apparent wall slip and complete flow curves.     

An investigation of squeeze flow as a viable technique for determining the yield stress

A systematic study of squeeze flow (SF) was performed on different concentrations of Carbopol with varying yield stresses. A sample of constant volume was placed between two parallel plates and a series of constant force steps applied, following the plate separation as a function of time. Precise rheological measurements of the model yield stress fluids were performed in addition to the well-controlled SF tests. These rheological measurements were used in conjunction with the SF equations to determine the time-dependent plate separation, allowing a direct comparison of theory and experiment throughout the entire test. The limiting height achieved during constant force SF reveals information about the yield stress of the fluid as predicted by the theory. It appears that by carefully controlling the experimental conditions of the squeeze test one can obtain yield stress values that agree with the rheological measurements within 10%. Additionally, the validity of the lubricational theory was tested; not only for the determination of the yield stress but throughout the flow as well.     

Shear rheometry and visualization of glass fiber suspensions

The nonlinear rheological behavior of short glass fiber suspensions has been investigated in this work by rotational rheometry and flow visualization. A Newtonian and a Boger fluid (BF) were used as suspending media. The suspensions exhibited shear thinning in the semidilute regime and weaker shear thinning in the transition to the concentrated one. Normal stresses and relative viscosity were higher for the BF suspensions than for the Newtonian ones presumably due to enhanced hydrodynamic interactions resulting from BF elasticity. In addition, relative viscosity of the suspensions increased rapidly with fiber content, suggesting that the rheological behavior in the concentrated regime is dominated by mechanical contacts between fibers. Visualization of individual fibers and their interactions under flow allowed the detection of aggregates, which arise from adhesive contacts. The orientation states of the fibers were quantified by a second order tensor and fast Fourier transforms of the flow field images. Fully oriented states occurred for shear rates around 20 s^− 1. Finally, the energy required to orient the fibers was higher in step forward than in reversal flow experiments due to a change in the spatial distribution of fibers, from isotropic to planar oriented, during the forward experiments.     

Flow instability and shear localization in a drilling mud

To have a better knowledge of problems occurring with drilling fluids in complex wells, we carried out a detailed rheological analysis of a typical drilling mud at low shear rates using both conventional rheometry and MRI velocimetry. We show the existence of a viscosity bifurcation effect: Below a critical stress value, the mud tends to completely stop flowing, whereas beyond this critical stress, it reaches an apparent shear rate larger than a finite (critical) value, and no stable flows can be obtained between this critical shear rate value and zero. These results are confirmed by MRI velocity profiles, which exhibit a slope break at the interface between the solid and the liquid phases inside the Couette geometry. Moreover, this viscosity bifurcation is a transient phenomenon, the progressive development of which can be observed by MRI. A further examination of MRI data shows that, in the transient regime, the shear rate does not vary monotonously in the rheometer gap and is particularly large along the outer (rough) cylinder, which might be at the origin of the development of a region of constant shear rate in the apparent flow curve.     

Studies on transport phenomena in polymer solutions and suspensions flowing through tubes of tortuous wall geometry

Attempts have been made to analyse the momentum and heat transfer characteristics in tortuous flow of non-Newtonian fluids such as suspensions and polymer solutions through tubes of diverging–converging geometry. The results of the study indicate that the transfer coefficients are significantly higher in such systems as compared to the conventional couette flow (through uniform cylindrical tubes). Moreover, the simultaneous increase in pressure drop due to the tortuous wall geometry has been observed to be relatively insignificant. Fluids with different rheological characteristics such as Bingham plastic fluids, pseudoplastic fluids, Ellis model fluids and fluids obeying Reiner–Philippoff rheology have been studied. The specific advantages of these geometries in providing enhanced performance efficiency have been effectively highlighted.     

Rheology of shear thickening suspensions and the effects of wall slip in torsional flow

The rheological characterisation of concentrated shear thickening materials suspensions is challenging, as complicated and occasionally discontinuous rheograms are produced. Wall slip is often apparent and when combined with a shear thickening fluid the usual means of calculating rim shear stress in torsional flow is inaccurate due to a more complex flow field. As the flow is no longer “controlled”, a rheological model must be assumed and the wall boundary conditions are redefined to allow for slip. A technique is described where, by examining the angular velocity response in very low torque experiments, it is possible to indirectly measure the wall slip velocity. The suspension is then tested at higher applied torques and different rheometer gaps. The results are integrated numerically to produce shear stress and shear rate values. This enables the measurement of true suspension bulk flow properties and wall slip velocity, with simple rheological models describing the observed complex rheograms.     

Study of magnetorheological fluids at high shear rates

The tunable rheological properties of magnetorheological (MR) materials at high shear rates are studied using a piston-driven flow-mode-type rheometer. The proposed method provides measurement of the apparent viscosity and yield stress of MR fluids for a shear rate range of 50 to 40,000 s⁻¹. The rheological properties of a commercial MR fluid, as well as a newly developed MR polymeric gel, and a ferrofluid-based MR fluid are investigated. The results for apparent viscosity and dynamic and static shear stresses under different applied magnetic fields are reported.     

Characterization of yield stress fluids with concentric cylinder viscometers

The methods normally employed for shear rate calculations from concentric cylinder viscometer data generally are not applicable for fluids with a yield stress. In cylindrical systems with large radius ratios, as usually is the case with suspensions, the yield stress induces two possible flow regimes in the annulus. Unless the yield value is exceeded everywhere in the gap only part of the fluid can be sheared while the remaining region behaves like a solid plug. A correct calculation of the shear rate must take into account the presence of a variable effective gap width determined by the extent of the sheared layer. For time-independent yield stress fluids, a two-step procedure, which does not require any specific flow model, is proposed for analysing the experimental torque-speed data. Under the partially sheared condition, the shear rate can be computed exactly, whereas for the fully sheared flow the Krieger and Elrod approximation is satisfactory. The method is assessed by examining both semi-ideal data generated with a Casson fluid with known properties, and experimental data with an industrial suspension. A more complicated problem associated with characterization of time-dependent yield stress fluids is also identified and discussed. An approximate procedure is used to illustrate the dependence of the shear rate on time of shear in constant-speed experiments.     

A numerical study of the flow of Bingham-like fluids in two-dimensional vane and cylinder rheometers using a smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) based method

In this paper, a Lagrangian formulation of the Navier–Stokes equations, based on the smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) approach, was applied to determine how well rheological parameters such as plastic viscosity can be determined from vane rheometer measurements. First, to validate this approach, a Bingham/Papanastasiou constitutive model was implemented into the SPH model and tests comparing simulation results to well established theoretical predictions were conducted. Numerical simulations for the flow of fluids in vane and coaxial cylinder rheometers were then performed. A comparison to experimental data was also made to verify the application of the SPH method in realistic flow geometries. Finally, results are presented from a parametric study of the flow of Bingham fluids with different yield stresses under various applied angular velocities of the outer cylindrical wall in the vane and coaxial cylinder rheometers. The stress, strain rate and velocity profiles, especially in the vicinity of the vane blades, were computed. By comparing the calculated stress and flow fields between the two rheometers, the validity of the assumption that the vane could be approximated as a cylinder for measuring the rheological properties of Bingham fluids at different shear rates was tested.     

Fluid boundary of a viscoplastic Bingham flow for finite solid deformations

The modelling of viscoplastic Bingham fluids often relies on a rheological constitutive law based on a “plastic rule function” often identical to the yield criterion of the solid state. It is also often assumed that this plastic rule function vanishes at the boundary between the solid and fluid states, based on the fact that it is true in the limit of small deformations of the solid state or for simple yield criteria. We show that this is not the case for finite deformations by considering the example of a two state flow on a tilted plane where the solid state is described by a Neo-Hookean model with a Von Mises yield criterion. This opens new approaches for the modelling and the computation of the fluid state boundaries.     

Observations on the rheological response of alkali activated fly ash suspensions: the role of activator type and concentration

This paper reports the influence of activator type and concentration on the rheological properties of alkali-activated fly ash suspensions. A thorough investigation of the rheological influences (yield stress and plastic viscosity) of several activator parameters, including: (i) the cation type and concentration of alkali hydroxide and (ii) the alkali-to-binder ratio (n) and silica modulus (M_s), and (iii) the volume of the activation solution, on the suspension rheology is presented. The results indicate a strong dependence on the cation and its concentration in the activation solution. The viscosity of the activation solution and the volumetric solution-to-powder ratio are shown to most strongly influence the plastic viscosity of the suspension. The suspension yield stress is predominantly influenced by the changes in fly ash particle surface charge and the ionic species in the activator. A shift from non-Newtonian to Newtonian flow behavior is noted in the case of silicate-based suspensions for M_s?≤?1.5. This behavior, which is not observed at higher M_S values, or when the fly ash is dispersed in hydroxide solutions or pure water, is hypothesized to be caused by colloidal siliceous species present in this system, or surface charge effects on the fly ash particles. Comparisons of the rheological response of alkali-activated suspensions to that of portland cement-water suspensions are also reported.     

Mapping thixo-elasto-visco-plastic behavior

A century ago, and more than a decade before the term rheology was formally coined, Bingham introduced the concept of plastic flow above a critical stress to describe steady flow curves observed in English china clay dispersions. However, in many complex fluids and soft solids, the manifestation of a yield stress is also accompanied by other complex rheological phenomena such as thixotropy and viscoelastic transient responses, both above and below the critical stress. In this perspective article, we discuss efforts to map out the different limiting forms of the general rheological response of such materials by considering higher dimensional extensions of the familiar Pipkin map. Based on transient and nonlinear concepts, the maps first help organize the conditions of canonical flow protocols. These conditions can then be normalized with relevant material properties to form dimensionless groups that define a 3D state space to represent the spectrum of thixotropic elastoviscoplastic (TEVP) material responses.     

Predicting extrusion instabilities of commercial polyethylene from non-linear rheology measurements

Processing at the highest possible throughput rates is essential from an economical point of view. However, various flow instabilities and extrudate distortions like sharkskin, stick slip, and gross melt fracture (GMF) may limit the production rate of high-quality products. Predicting the process conditions leading to the occurrence of rheological instabilities is the key for improving product quality, process control, and optimization. Large-amplitude oscillatory shear (LAOS) and FT-rheology were used to quantify the non-linear rheological behavior and instabilities of a series of well-characterized commercial polyethylene (PE). From the latter, we derive the critical non-linearity parameter, F _0,c, which corresponds to the normalized intensity of the third harmonic at the critical strain amplitude, γ _0,C (defined by the appearance of the second harmonic), normalized by γ _0,C . The F _0,c is correlated with the high molecular mass fraction of the polymers and with the Deborah numbers. Linear rheological parameters and molecular structures were related to F _0,c. An experimental correlation between F _0,c of commercial PE melts and pressure fluctuations associated with flow instabilities (sharkskin) was established both for capillary rheometry and extrusion.     

A review of microstructure in concentrated suspensions and its implications for rheology and bulk flow

An overview of present understanding of microstructure in flowing suspensions is provided. An emphasis is placed on how the microstructure leads to observable bulk flow phenomena unique to mixtures. The bridge between the particle and bulk scales is provided by the mixture rheology; one focus of the review is on work that addresses the connection between microstructure and rheology. The non-Newtonian rheology of suspensions includes the well-known rate dependences of shear thinning and thickening, which have influence on bulk processing of suspensions. Shear-induced normal stresses are also measured in concentrated suspensions and include normal stress differences, and the isotropic particle pressure. Normal stresses have been associated with shear-induced migration, and thus have influence on the ultimate spatial distribution of solids, as well as the flow rate during processing; a second focus is on these uniquely two-phase behaviors and how they can be described in terms of the bulk rheology. An important bulk fluid mechanical consequence of normal stresses is their role in driving secondary flows.     

Compression behaviors of magnetorheological fluids under nonuniform magnetic field

This work is concerned with an experimental and theoretical study on compression properties of magnetorheological fluids under the nonuniform field. Experimental tests of unidirectional monotonic compression were firstly carried out under constant area operation using a commercial plate–plate magneto-rheometer where the magnetic field radial distribution was nonuniform. Normal forces increased with decreasing of the gap distance, and two regions were found through the normal force versus gap distance curves: elastic deformation and plastic flow. High normal forces could be obtained in the case of high magnetic field, high compression velocity, low initial gap distance, high volume fraction, and high medium viscosity. In the plastic flow region, the normal force with the gap distance could be fitted with a power law relation $F_{\textrm {N}} \propto h^n$ , and the index n was around well in the range (?3, ?2). Taking nonuniform magnetic field into account, the theoretical modeling in the plastic flow was then developed to calculate the normal force under compression based on the continuum media theory. Compared to the uniform field, there existed a magnetic field gradient-induced normal force under nonuniform field. Considering the sealing and squeeze strengthening effect, the gap distance-dependent shear yield stress was proposed, and a good correspondence between the theoretical and experimental results was obtained.     

Viscous dissipation with fluid inertia in oscillatory shear flow

For liquids with high viscosity and low thermal conductivity, viscous dissipation can cause appreciable errors in rheological property measurements. Here, the influences of both viscous dissipation and fluid inertia on the property measurements in oscillatory sliding plate rheometry are investigated. For Newtonian fluids, Bird (1965) solved the combined problem analytically, but only for high frequencies. Here his solution is extended to any frequencies. Also, the equations of motion and energy are solved for linear viscoelastic fluids, and new analytical solutions for the velocity and temperature profiles are given. In both Newtonian and linear viscoelastic fluids, the temperature rise in the gap increases with frequency. The location of the maximum temperature shifts from the mid-plane at low frequency towards the moving wall at high frequency. The fluid inertia increases the viscous dissipation in both fluids. By solving the combined problem, this paper simplifies rheometer design by providing one unified criterion for avoiding measurement errors. Operating limits are presented graphically for minimizing the effects of both fluid inertia and viscous dissipation in oscillatory sliding plate rheometry.     

Role of shear-thinning and viscoelasticity on the onset of instability of glass fiber suspensions in the concentric spherical gap between an inner rotating hemisphere and an outer stationary sphere

An experimental study investigated the effects of glass fiber suspensions on the onset of instability in the non-Newtonian fluid flow in the concentric spherical gaps between an inner rotating hemisphere and an outer stationary whole sphere. Glass fibers with different aspect ratios were mixed with a macromolecule polymeric solution to obtain different suspension fluids. For comparison, the pure macromolecule polymeric fluid was also investigated. The torques on the inner sphere were measured for various spherical gaps and various rotational Reynolds numbers. The onset of instability of the polymeric fluid flows was delayed by adding glass fibers to the polymeric solution for all tested gap ratios.