An empirical equation of the relative viscosity of polymer melts filled with various inorganic fillers

Summary

Based on Maron-Pierce's equation, an empirical equation was suggested, which relates the relative viscosity (η _r ) of the polymer melt filled with various inorganic filler, such as glass fiber, carbon fiber, talc, precipitated- and natural-calcium carbonate powder, and glassy small sphere, to the volume fraction (φ) of the filler. The equation isη _r = (1 −φ/A)⁻², whereA is a parameter relating to the packing geometry of the filler, which is similar to the parameterφ ₀ in Maron-Pierce's equation. In the equationη _r is defined as the ratio of the viscosity of the filledsystem to that of the medium at the same shear stress not the shear rate. The applicability of the equation is above the shear stress about 10⁴ dyne/cm². The equation has a simple form and is considered to have a practical utility for filled-polymer melt systems.