Commercial mayonnaise and mustard samples placed in a wide, shallow Te
flon container were compressed by a wide Teflon plate to induce an 'im
perfect' lubricated squeezing flow. A dominant squeezing flow regime c
ould be clearly identified as a linear region in the log F(t) vs log H
(t) relationship, F(t) and H(t) being the momentary force and specimen
height respectively. The slope of the relationship enabled the estima
tion of the flow index, n, and the consistency coefficient K. The n va
lues of the mayonnaise were on the order of 0.6-0.85 and those of the
mustard about 0.7. The corresponding K values were on the order of 6-1
3 and 4-5 kPas(n) respectively. Considering the crudeness of the array
the measurements were highly reproducible and sensitive enough to det
ect differences (mayonnaise) or establish similarities (mustard) in pr
oducts of different brands. The calculated flow index was practically
independent of the plate's radius and of the consistency coefficient,
which had a weak dependency on the latter. The calculated elongational
viscosity vs biaxial strain rate relationship could also be used to c
ompare the different products and brands. At 0.01 s(-1) the elongation
al viscosity of the maynonnaise was on the order of 150 kPas, and of t
he mustard 60 kPas.