Influence of vessel dimensions on the results of liquid viscosity measurements by the non-contact aerohydrodynamic method

The research is aimed at improving the accuracy of non-contact viscosity measurements in conditions of a limited sample volume of a tested liquid. A non-contact aerodynamic method based on the deformation of the liquid surface by a gas jet is considered and makes it possible to measure viscosity directly in a technological apparatus or container with liquid or in any vessel of arbitrary shape, the dimensions of which exceed the minimum allowable. In order to determine the minimum size of the vessel, the effect of distances from the walls and bottom of a rectangular vessel to the area of the impingement of the jet to the tested liquid on the viscosity measurement results was experimentally investigated. The experiments were performed on a pulsed non-contact device with an inclined aerodynamic impingement (a non-contact aerohydrodynamic viscometer). Additional movable walls and a submerged movable bottom were utilized to change the vessel dimensions. Liquids with viscosity of 0.710 Pa·s (castor oil) and 26.1 Pa·s (epoxy resin) at 25 °C were studied. The angles of aerodynamic impingement were 20° and 50°, and the gas pressure in front of the gas jet outlet varied at two levels – 5.4 and 7.0 kPa. The minimum dimensions of the vessel are determined – length 80 mm, width 40 mm, thickness of the liquid layer 20 mm, at which the additional measurement error of viscosity due to the infl uence of the vessel walls does not exceed 1.5 %. The minimum volume of a liquid sample in a rectangular vessel is 64 ml. The results obtained are useful to employees of chemical analysis laboratories in the chemical, petroleum, electrical and food industries.

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