Mechanical Engineering Faculty Research
Title
Correlation of Polysiloxane Molecular Structure to Shear-Thinning Power-Law Exponent Using Elastohydrodynamic Film Thickness Measurements
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
Spring 4-15-2015
Abstract
Siloxane-based polymers (polysiloxanes) are susceptible to temporary shear-thinning that manifests as a reduction of elastohydrodynamic film thickness with increasing entrainment speed or effective shear rate. The departure from Newtonian film thickness can be predicted with the power-law exponent ns, an indicator of the severity of shear-thinning in a polymeric fluid that is influenced by the macromolecular structure. In this paper, a combination of extant rheological and tribological models is applied to determine the power-law exponent of several polysiloxanes using film thickness measurements. Film thickness data at several temperatures and slide-to-roll ratios are used to validate the methodology for several siloxane-based polymers with alkyl and aryl branches.
Publication Title
Journal of Tribology
Volume
137
Issue
3
First Page
031503
Last Page
031503
Recommended Citation
Zolper, Thomas J.; Shiller, Paul; Doll, Gary; Jungk, Manfred; Marks, Tobin J.; Chung, Yip Wah; Greco, Aaron; Dehkordi, Babak Lotfizadeh; and Wang, Qian, "Correlation of Polysiloxane Molecular Structure to Shear-Thinning Power-Law Exponent Using Elastohydrodynamic Film Thickness Measurements" (2015). Mechanical Engineering Faculty Research. 1100.
https://ideaexchange.uakron.edu/mechanical_ideas/1100