Non--Newtonian viscosity of interacting Brownian particles: comparison of theory and data

TL;DR

This paper evaluates a first-principles theory of non-Newtonian viscosity in dense colloidal suspensions, comparing it with simulation data near glass transitions, and finds good agreement in describing shear-thinning behavior.

Contribution

It provides a validation of a recent theoretical approach against simulation data, demonstrating its ability to predict non-linear rheology near glass transitions.

Findings

Universal transition between glass yielding and shear-thinning flow

Theory accurately rationalizes data over wide shear rate and viscosity ranges

Good agreement between theory and simulation results

Abstract

A recent first-principles approach to the non-linear rheology of dense colloidal suspensions is evaluated and compared to simulation results of sheared systems close to their glass transitions. The predicted scenario of a universal transition of the structural dynamics between yielding of glasses and non-Newtonian (shear-thinning) fluid flow appears well obeyed, and calculations within simplified models rationalize the data over variations in shear rate and viscosity of up to 3 decades.