Rheologica Acta, Vol.33, No.6, 542-552, 1994
GEOMETRY DEPENDENCE OF THE VISCOSITY OF A THERMOTROPIC LC-POLYMER MEASURED BY SLIT DIES
This paper reports on geometry dependent viscosity curves of the biaxial thermotropic LC-Polymer Vectra B 950 measured with rectangular slit dies. The geometry dependence of the flow behaviour originates from the flow of two layers. The layer near the wall is highly flow oriented and free from defects. The layer in the bulk has an ordered texture. The thickness of the wall layer decreases with wall shear stress. Based on the Frank theory and the assumption that the core of a moving disclination is the smallest radius of distortion, the wall layer thickness is predicted and compared with experimental data.
Keywords:CONTINUUM THEORY;SHEAR