Vibration induced jamming and shear thickening
We develop model systems for shear thickening suspensions and probe their rheology and configurational changes close to the vibration-induced jamming point. This work is motivated by recent work describing the formation of persistent holes and finger like protrusions in thin layers of cornstarch that are shaken at high accelerations. These phenomena must be connected to the shear-thickening properties of the cornstarch and a change from a fluid to a more solid-like, jammed state, as it is unknown what mechanism causes these shapes. In a first series of experiments, a layer of cornstarch will be vibro-fluidized using a shaker. The experiment will be repeated in an index-matched suspension of micron-sized glass spheres (diameter 10-50µm) allowing us to also measure the microscopic properties of the fluid.
Figure 1: Formation of persistent holes and finger like protrusions in thin layers of cornstarch that are shaken at high accelerations.
Info: Devaraj van der Meer
Researchers: Stefan von Kann, Jacco Snoeijer, Detlef Lohse, Devaraj van der Meer.
Embedding: JMBC
Sponsors: FOM