Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 14, 2026

Combining Microfluidics and Microrheology to Determine Rheological Properties of Soft Matter during Repeated Phase Transitions
Published on: April 19, 2018
Microfluidic rheology of non-Newtonian liquids
Salvatore Girardo1, Roberto Cingolani, Dario Pisignano
1NNL, National Nanotechnology Laboratory of CNR-INFM, Università degli Studi del Salento c/o Distretto Tecnologico ISUFI, via Arnesano, I-73100 Lecce, Italy.
Abstract:
We investigate the rheological properties of a non-Newtonian glass-former liquid within lithographically defined microchannels in the range of temperatures above the vitrification region. The non-Newtonian behavior of the fluid, as evidenced by rotational rheology, is well described by a power law dependence of the viscosity on the shear rate. Taking into account such non-Newtonian character in the equations for the microfluidic motion, we relate the penetration dynamics into capillaries with the liquid rheological properties. The temperature dependence of the viscosity, determined over 1 order of magnitude in the temperature range 286-333 K and for shear rates between 0.07 and 1 s-1, can be described by a Vogel-Fulcher-Tamman law, consistent with the fragile nature of the investigated compound. Microfluidics is a promising analytical approach for the investigation of the rheology of non-Newtonian fluids within confined microenvironments.
Related Concept Videos
Newtonian Fluid: Problem Solving
A velocity gradient forms within the fluid when a Newtonian fluid is placed between two parallel plates, with...
Types of Fluids
In contrast, non-Newtonian fluids do not follow Newton's law of viscosity, and their...
Viscosity of Fluid
Characteristics of Fluids
Characteristics of Fluids
Fluids, which include both liquids and gases, are substances that deform continuously under shearing stress. For example, water and oil are liquids with molecules that can...
Viscosity
The SI unit of viscosity is...

