In order to control the viscosity of a dense silica methyl ethyl ketone (MEK) suspension, the surfaces of silica nanoparticles were modified by 3-glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane (GPS) or hexyltrimethoxysilane (C6S) in MEK with the addition of a small amount of pH-controlled water. First, the effect of water addition on the amount of chemisorbed coupling agent was investigated. pH-controlled water enhanced the reactivity of the coupling agent in MEK. The amount of chemisorbed coupling agent increased slightly with the addition of pH 3 water and increased remarkably with the addition of pH 12 water. Next, the effect of the organic functional groups of the coupling agent, pH of the additive water, and additive amount of coupling agent on surface interaction were determined by colloid probe AFM. The steric repulsive force between the silica nanoparticles increased due to water addition, particularly when the pH was maintained at 3. The viscosity of the silica MEK suspension reduced effectively when this repulsive force appeared; however, the optimum condition for reducing the suspension viscosity was dependent on the coupling agent species. The viscosity of the dense silica MEK suspension can be controlled by the addition of small amounts of pH-controlled water and the functional groups of the coupling agent. (c) 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.