Transient elasticity and polymeric fluids: Small-amplitude deformations

Area of Science:

• Rheology
• Soft Matter Physics
• Continuum Mechanics

Background:

• Viscoelasticity describes materials with both viscous and elastic properties.
• Non-Newtonian effects are common in polymeric fluids, granular media, and soft matter.
• Existing models may lack thermodynamic consistency or simplicity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a continuum-mechanical theory derived from transient elasticity (TE).
• To demonstrate the theory's ability to describe non-Newtonian fluid behavior.
• To validate the theory's applicability to various flow conditions in polymeric fluids.

Main Methods:

• Development of a continuum-mechanical theory based on transient elasticity.
• Application of the theory to analyze shear and elongational flows.
• Focus on small-amplitude deformations for this study.

Main Results:

• The theory provides a thermodynamically consistent generalization of viscoelasticity.
• It accurately captures diverse phenomena in stationary, oscillatory, and transient flows.
• The Weissenberg effect and flow down an inclined channel are well-described.

Conclusions:

• Transient elasticity offers a powerful and simple framework for modeling soft matter.
• The developed theory successfully predicts a wide range of non-Newtonian fluid behaviors.
• This approach is applicable to both small and large amplitude deformations.