Flow properties of all suspensions are controlled by their flow units. The factors effecting on the flow units are the characteristics of the particle itself (surface properties, particle sizes, particle shapes and etc.), the electrostatic interactions among the particles and the influences of the medium in the suspensions. Here, we studied the transition between the flow units with shear rate which can be added to the above factors. For the concentrated starch-water suspensions, by using the Couette type rotational viscometer, we confirmed that at low shear rate, dilatancy is appeared, but it is transformed to thixotropy with increasing shear rate. In order to explain this fact, we derived the following flow equation, representing the transition from dilatancy to thixotropy with shear rate, by assuming the equilibrium between the flow units. f = X1モ1s./メ1 + 1/(1+Kexp(c0s.2/RT))((1-X1)/メ 2)sinh-1{(モ2)0 s. exp(c2s.2/RT)} + K exp(c0s.2/RT)/(1+K exp(c0s.2/RT))((1-X1)/メ 3)sinh-1{(モ3)0 s. exp(-c3s.2/RT)} By applying this flow equation to the experimental flow curves for the concentrated starch-water suspensions, the flow parameters were obtained. And, by substituting the obtained flow parameters to the flow equation, the theoretical flow curves were reproduced. Also, Ostwald curve was represented by applying the flow equation, and the applicability for stress relaxation was discussed.
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