Abstract

The present paper is about poorly studied phenomenon rheopexy and its existence with dilatancy in polymer suspensions filled with ceramic nanoparticles at the same range of shear stresses. According to the proposed flow model of “rheopexic–pseudoplastic–thixotropic” system it was established, that rheopexy is a measure of the solidity of the suspension and characterizes its elastic properties. Rheopexy degree R is the energy consumed for the restoration of the initial microstructure. At the same time, dilatant increasing of the effective viscosity at the low shear stresses characterizes the system resistance to shearing and the strength of structural bonds. Thus, a coexistence of rheopexy and dilatancy is the consequence of the impact of energy-structural and structural-mechanical factors.

Keywords: Rheology; Shear thickening; Rheopexy; Pseudoplasticity; Thixotropy