Rheology of chlorosulphonated polyethylene solutions

The viscosity behaviour of chlorosulphonated polyethylene was studied as a function of shear rate, concentration and temperature in three aromatic solvents viz. benzene, toluene and xylene. The Carreau model was used to correlate the data. The time constant t₁ arising from the Carreau model was compared with the Bueche time constant λ_H; there appears to be good agreement between them especially at lower temperatures and higher concentrations. A unified curve based on plots of η/η_O vs γλ_H correlated the data successfully. The temperaure dependence of the zero shear viscosity was studied. The apparent activation energy for viscous flow was linearly related to the polymer concentration.