THE EFFECT OF AGGREGATION ON RHEOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF AN ELECTRORHEOLOGICAL FLUID OF THE PARTICLE DISPERSION TYPE

A study was conducted on the effect of particle aggregation on the rhe ological characteristics of an electrorheological (ER) fluid of the Ba TiO3 type as a colloidal ER fluid. Increasing viscosity by applying an electric field was measured using a rotating viscometer. The experime ntal data was compared with the theoretical analysis taking into accou nt either uniform particle dispersion or particle aggregation. The eff ect of aggregation on the rheology of the ER fluid was clarified and t he increasing viscosity was quantitatively determined by a formula bas ed on the aggregation model.