The conductivity dependence of the shear stress in electrorheological fluids

Abstract

A ferroelectric KNO3/silicone oil electrorheological (ER) fluid is introduced to investigate the conductivity dependence of the ER effect under dc electric fields where the ER effect is conductivity dominated. By measuring the temperature dependence of the shear stress across the Curie temperature of particles, the dependence of the ER effect on conductivity has been quantitatively obtained in experiments. There is a critical conductivity ratio Γc (or mismatch factor βc2): when Γ<Γc, the shear stress increases with Γ; when Γ>Γc, the shear stress decreases with Γ. An agreement is obtained between theory and experiment when Γ (or β2) is lower. In the higher Γ(or β2) range, the experimental data are not in agreement with the theoretical prediction and the interfacial effect should be taken into account. The experimental data are more reliable due to the same conditions, such as the chemical nature, the surfacial property of particles, and the interfacial property between particles and suspending liquid as well as the size and shape of the particles.