Volume 15, Issue 2

There is often a need to perform rheological tests on dilute polymeric liquids at a time long after their initial preparation, for example if a more sensitive or novel method of measuring a material property (such as uniaxial/biaxial extensional viscosity or second normal-stress differences) becomes available. An inexpensive method of storing such fluids which prevents any form of deterioration (e.g. bacteriological) would therefore be of great value. This study explores the potential of freezing as that storage process by investigating whether the freeze-thaw process itself leads to rheological changes. The rheological properties of three polymeric liquids: 0.25 % xanthan gum, 0.125% polyacrylamide and a 0.1 %/0.1 % carboxymethylcellulose / xanthan gum blend commonly used in non-Newtonian fluid flow studies were determined in both shear and oscillation before and after a freeze-thaw process. Within the uncertainty of the rheometer used, the rheological properties of the polymers studied were found to be unaffected by the freeze-thaw process leading to the conclusion that this storage method is indeed a practical possibility.

In order to characterise the structure and flow behaviour of model chocolate systems Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) and rheometry were used to determine the T 1 - and T 2 - NMR relaxation times and their corresponding flow functions. T 1 and T 2 characterise the molecular mobility of fluids and correlate with both the zero-shear-rate and infinity viscosity of various chocolate model systems (determined with rotational rheometry and capillary rheometry). Based on this correlation, NMR provides the possibility to determine characteristic viscosities of chocolate masses by means of NMR-relaxation experiments. The viscosities of chocolate masses are important process parameters, as they are used for quality control of the production process. An online process viscosimetry via T 2 relaxation would allow the installation of an efficient process control and, thus, a process automation. This NMR application with comparatively short measuring times is especially interesting for disperse systems where the use of conventional rheometric techniques may cause large errors. The only prerequisite for the measurement of the viscosities using NMR is a previous calibration. This was performed with the help of rotational and capillary rheometry. The NMR self-diffusion experiments are especially appropriate to characterise the influence of emulsifiers on the structure and the flow behaviour of chocolate masses.

The calibration of the temperature control unit of a rotational rheometer with a hood oven is shown. The calibration technique shown for a Paar-Physica rheometer can be adapted to any rheometer with hood oven (indirect heating). The temperature of the bottom fixed plate and the air bearing suspended cone or plate are measured independently. By keeping the amount of venting gas constant, the set temperature of the hood oven is adjusted to reach a minimum gradient across the measuring gap. The calibration procedure is optimized to keep the oven as close as possible to the measuring position.

Magnetorheological fluids (MRFs) show a high but reversible rise of the viscosity upon application of an external magnetic field. This effect can be utilized in controllable friction dampers where the MR fluid flows through a gap with a adjustable magnetic field. The change in the magnitude of the magnetic field leads to a change of the viscosity of the fluid which in turn effects the pressure drop in the system. So the damping force can be controlled by the magnitude of the external magnetic field. This energy dissipation leads to a rise of the damper temperature. For designing those dampers it is vital to know the influence of the geometry, which influences the magnetic field strength, as well as the flow properties and the temperature dependence of the magnetorheological effect. An approach to the solution of this problem is shown by using an Arrhenius relationship, where the fluid viscosity is a function of the shear rate, the magnetic field and the temperature. The aim of the here presented research is to show how the fluid behavior can be simply modeled for use in CFD codes to design dampers or other applications.