Flow-induced aggregation and structuring in fiber-reinforced calcium carbonate suspensions: from rotational shear to pressure driven capillary flow in discontinuous shear thickening regime
Abstract
This work investigates the influence of polyamide (PA) fibers on the discontinuous shear thickening (DST) behavior of calcium carbonate suspensions under different flow conditions. Experiments were performed using both pressure-driven capillary rheometry and classical rotational rheometry in a cylindrical Couette geometry, allowing a direct comparison between two configurations. The results show that increasing PA-fiber concentration in suspensions significantly alters the rheological response. In both geometries, the addition of fibers shifts the flow curves, with a decrease in the critical shear rate and a slight increase in the critical shear stress associated with the DST transition. At low fiber volume fraction, φf=1%, the behavior remains approximately similar in capillary and shear flow, suggesting limited changes in the suspension microstructure. However, at higher fiber concentrations, φf≥2%, clear differences are seen, with capillary geometry exhibiting a stronger resistance to flow. This behavior could be attributed to enhanced aggregation and structuring within the suspension, likely involving coupled particle–fiber networks. In the present work, we also tried to predict the flow curves of the suspensions using the H-model, a homogenization-based approach, derived from the previous work of Chateau et al. J. Rheol. 52, 489–506 (2008). Theoretical model shows a good agreement with experimental data in rotational shear at low fiber concentrations, however, it fails to correctly predict the behavior observed in capillary flow, especially at higher PA-fiber concentrations, even with adjusting fiber orientation in the model. These findings highlight the strong influence of flow configuration on the rheology of fiber-reinforced DST suspensions and emphasize the role of flow-induced structuring and aggregation in controlling their macroscopic behavior.
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BibTeX
@article{meloussi2026flowinduced,
title = {{Flow-induced aggregation and structuring in fiber-reinforced calcium carbonate suspensions: from rotational shear to pressure driven capillary flow in discontinuous shear thickening regime}},
author = {M. Meloussi and S. Touba Lo and O. Volkova and G. Bossis and P. Kuzhir},
journal = {The European Physical Journal. Special Topics},
year = {2026},
month = jul,
doi = {10.1140/epjs/s11734-026-02462-0},
url = {https://hal.science/hal-05765467v1},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Flow-induced aggregation and structuring in fiber-reinforced calcium carbonate suspensions: from rotational shear to pressure driven capillary flow in discontinuous shear thickening regime
AU - M. Meloussi
AU - S. Touba Lo
AU - O. Volkova
AU - G. Bossis
AU - P. Kuzhir
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/07/08
JO - The European Physical Journal. Special Topics
DO - 10.1140/epjs/s11734-026-02462-0
UR - https://hal.science/hal-05765467v1
AB - This work investigates the influence of polyamide (PA) fibers on the discontinuous shear thickening (DST) behavior of calcium carbonate suspensions under different flow conditions. Experiments were performed using both pressure-driven capillary rheometry and classical rotational rheometry in a cylindrical Couette geometry, allowing a direct comparison between two configurations. The results show that increasing PA-fiber concentration in suspensions significantly alters the rheological response. In both geometries, the addition of fibers shifts the flow curves, with a decrease in the critical shear rate and a slight increase in the critical shear stress associated with the DST transition. At low fiber volume fraction, φf=1%, the behavior remains approximately similar in capillary and shear flow, suggesting limited changes in the suspension microstructure. However, at higher fiber concentrations, φf≥2%, clear differences are seen, with capillary geometry exhibiting a stronger resistance to flow. This behavior could be attributed to enhanced aggregation and structuring within the suspension, likely involving coupled particle–fiber networks. In the present work, we also tried to predict the flow curves of the suspensions using the H-model, a homogenization-based approach, derived from the previous work of Chateau et al. J. Rheol. 52, 489–506 (2008). Theoretical model shows a good agreement with experimental data in rotational shear at low fiber concentrations, however, it fails to correctly predict the behavior observed in capillary flow, especially at higher PA-fiber concentrations, even with adjusting fiber orientation in the model. These findings highlight the strong influence of flow configuration on the rheology of fiber-reinforced DST suspensions and emphasize the role of flow-induced structuring and aggregation in controlling their macroscopic behavior.
SN - 1951-6355
SN - 1951-6401
ER -