The rheology of Brownian suspensions

Abstract

The viscosity of a suspension of spherical Brownian particles is determined by Stokesian dynamics as a function of the Péclet number. Several new aspects concerning the theoretical derivation of the direct contribution of the Brownian motion to the bulk stress are given, along with the results obtained from a simulation of a monolayer. The simulations reproduce the experimental behavior generally observed in dense suspensions, and an explanation of this behavior is given by observing the evolution of the different contributions to the viscosity with shear rate. The shear thinning at low Péclet numbers is due to the disappearance of the direct Brownian contribution to the viscosity; the deformation of the equilibrium microstructure is, however, small. By contrast, at very high Péclet numbers the suspension shear thickens due to the formation of large clusters.