Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
Non-Newtonian Fluids
Textbook Reference
Fluid Flow for Chemical Engineers, second edition, F. A.
Holland and R. Bragg, Edward Arnold, London, 1995.
Available online at:
http://www.knovel.com.ezproxy.lib.monash.edu.au/
Behaviour of
real fluids
lies in the
approximate
range,
0.2<n<1.3
Rabinowitsch-Mooney Equation
The solution to the problem of determining the wall
shear rate for a Non-Newtonian fluid in laminar flow in a
tube.
Derivation is not given: Refer the text book cited
The relevant equations are:
Equation 2
Rabinowitsch-Mooney Equation
The wall shear rate for a non-Newtonian fluid can be
calculated from the value for a Newtonian fluid having the
same flow rate in the same pipe, the correction factor being
the quantity in the square brackets.
Clearly the flow characteristic (or the rate of shear at the
wall) for a non-Newtonian fluid in laminar flow is not equal
to the magnitude of the shear rate at the wall.
Now the flow curve against can be determined.
How?
Rabinowitsch-Mooney Equation
How?
1) Measure at various values of .
2) Calculate from the pressure drop measurements using
equation 1 and the corresponding values of the flow
characteristic () from the flow rate measurements.
3) Plot against and measure the gradient (i.e. derivative) at
various points on the curve.
4) Calculate the true wall shear rate from equation (2) with
the derivative determined in step 3. In general, the plot of
against will not be a straight line and the gradient must be
evaluated at the appropriate points on the curve.
Rabinowitsch-Mooney Equation
10
Rabinowitsch-Mooney Equation
Figure shows
typical plots of
against
and obtained
by following
the procedure
above.
11
Example 1
For a Newtonian fluid compare the following plots:
against and
against
12
Example 1
Discuss the same plots for a Non-Newtonian fluid:
against and
against
13