Viscosity

Informally, viscosity is the quantity that describes a fluid's resistance to flow. Fluids resist the relative
motion of immersed objects through them as well as to the motion of layers with differing velocities
within them. In this paper we are going to talk about the two types of viscosity. First is the Kinematic
Viscosity-(represented by the Greek letter ν "nu") is the ratio of the viscosity of a fluid to its density. The
other type is called simply as Viscosity- (represented by the symbol η "eta") is the ratio of the shearing
stress (F/A) to the velocity gradient (Δvx/Δz or dvx/dz) in a fluid.

Measuring the viscosity of a material gives the manufacturer an idea on how the material will behave
given a specific job. Knowing the viscosity of a material also affects how the production and
transportation processes are designed. To obtain an accurate reading multiple types of viscometer are
developed depending on the use-case scenario.

Types of Viscometers

• Falling Piston Viscometers

Falling Piston viscometers operate on similar

principles as the falling sphere viscometers,
except that they measure resistance to a piston
moving through a fluid. These devices are very
long-lasting and simple to operate, and require
little maintenance. For this reason, they are
very popular in industry.\

• Bubble Viscometer

Bubble viscometers measure the time it takes for

bubbles to rise through a liquid. These viscometers are most
often used for resins or varnishes. These viscometers are
fast, and very useful for measuring viscosity in the field.
Models that use the alphabetical comparison method
measure viscosity in stokes, which is equal to 1 cm2s-
 • Rotational Viscometer

Rotational viscometers measure the

resistance of fluids to torque. There are
several types of rotational viscometers: the
Stabinger viscometer was developed in 2000,
while the Stormer viscometer is commonly
used to measure viscosity of paints. The
Stabinger viscometer uses a proprietary unit,
the Krebs Unit (KU).

• Rheometers
Rheometers are most useful for non-
newtonian fluids; that is, fluids whose
viscosity isn't described by a single value.
Larger forces typically induce larger viscosity
in non-newtonian fluids. There are several
commercial rheometers on the market. For
forces below 10 pascals, ThermoFisher's
CaBER is popular. Tthe Cambridge Polymer
Group's FiSer can be used for values from 1
to 1000 pascals, while the Gottfert Rheotens is rated for values above 100 Pa and the Xpansion
Instruments Sentmanat extensional rheometer is rated for over 10 kPa.

Application of Viscosity

• Petroleum Industry

• Pharmaceutical

• Automotive Industry
 • Food and Beverage

• Chemical Industry

References

 “Types of Viscosity Measurement Devices: Viscometers and Rheometers.” Brighthub Engineering,

24 Aug. 2010, www.brighthubengineering.com/fluid-mechanics-hydraulics/83996-viscosity-
measurement-equipment/.