MEASURING VISCOSITY - MARCH 2015

Viscosity is an important parameter when any flow measurements of fluids such

as liquids, semi-solids, etc. Anyone involved with flow characterization in research
and development and quality control will definitely wants to know the viscosity
parameter of the food items they are handling. Many food manufacturers now
regard viscometers as a essential part of their food development. The viscosity
measurements are quick, very accurate and reliable way to analyse the
parameters of the foods.

The viscosity measurements will give us a good indication on the flow behaviour
in the process line. The rheological properties can be found in the area of quality
control where raw materials must be consistent from batch to batch. The flow
behaviour is an indirect measure of the product consistency and quality.
n = viscosity = shear stress/shear rate
The flow of food products in the process systems follow the newtonian fluid and
non-newtonian fluid. In newtonian fluid the viscosity remains constant as the
shear rate is varied. Typical newtonian fluids include water and thin motor oils.
What this means is that at a given temperature the viscosity of the newtonian
fluid will remain constant regardless of which viscometer is used to measure.
Non-newtonian fluids can be broadly defined as the relationship between shear
stress and shear rate is not a constant. In other words when the shear rate is
varied the shear stress does not vary in the same proportion or not necessary in
the same direction. The viscosity of such fluids will therefore change as the shear
rate is varied.
The following are the non-newtonian fluids which you can come across:

Pseudoplastic the fluid display a decreasing viscosity with an increasing shear

rate. The most common of the non-newtonian fluids, pseudoplastics include
apple sauce, peach puree, tomato juice, concentrated peanut better etc. This type
of flow behaviour is sometimes called shear thinning.
Dilatant the fluid display an increasing viscosity with an increase in shear rate
characterizes the dilatant fluid. Although rarer than pseudoplastic dilatancy is
observed in fluids containing high levels of deflocculated solids such as candy
compounds, and cornstarch in water. Dilatancy is also referred to as shear
thickening flow behaviour.
Bingham Plastic - this type of fluid behaves as a solid under static conditions. A
certain amount of force must be applied to the fluid before any flow is affected.
This force we use is the yield stress. Tomato catchup is a good example of this
type of fluid. The yield value will often make it refuse to pour from the bottle until
the bottle is shaken with a vigorous force. Once the yield stress is exceeded the
flow begins and the plastic fluid may display newtonian behaviour, pseudoplastic
or dilatant flow characteristics. Other examples are toothpaste and margarine.
Thixotropy and Rheopexy some fluids display a change in viscosity with time
under conditions of constant shear rate. The thixotropic fluid undergoes a
decrease in viscosity with time while it is subjected to constant shearing. Example
is starch paste. Rheopexic is the opposite to thixotropic in that the fluid viscosity
increases with time as it is sheared at a constant rate. Example is whiopped
cream. However both thixotropic and rheopexic may occur in combination with
any of the previously discussed flow behaviours.

Whenever we discuss on the viscosity measurement of the food product we

imply the existence of what we called as laminar flow which is the movement of
one layer of fluid past another with no transfer of matter from one to the other.

The principles introduced represents a cross-section from traditional to

technically advanced methods of measurements of viscosity.
1.
2.
3.
4.

Gravimetric Capillary Principle

Rotational Principle
Stabinger Viscometer Principle
Rolling/Falling Ball Principle