Method of monitoring and controlling yield stress in rheologically plastic fluid

Abstract: The yield stress of rheologically plastic fluids such as coatings, sealants, and personal care lotions, determines their tendency to flow at low gravitational stress. Yield Stress is the apparent threshold stress above which flow is observed on an arbitrary time scale. An on-line technique to monitor yield stress during processing was developed herein and is used in controlling the slump or non-slump behavior of such products. A residual stress, after a flow excursion returns to zero shear rate, is related to yield stress. This residual stress is used for process monitoring. It is measured from the residual pressure or torque after a controlled strain rheometer reaches zero strain rate.

Description: This invention relates to a method of monitoring and controlling yield stress in polymer systems. The method was developed and demonstrated using an on-line capillary rheometer. Such a method has utility in on-line assurance testing of production processes and is a suitable replacement for currently used test methods performed off-line. Rheology is the science of flow and possible elastic deformation of matter. It is concerned with the response of materials to a mechanical force. The flow properties of a simple viscous liquid are defined by its resistance to flow, i.e., viscosity and are measured by determining the rate of flow through a capillary. Such a simple viscous liquid continues to deform as long as it is subjected to a tensile stress or a shear stress. Shear stress is a force applied tangentially to the material. In a liquid, shear stress produces a sliding of one infinitesimal layer over another. For a liquid under shear, the rate of deformation or shear rate is proportional to the shearing stress. This is true for ideal or Newtonian liquids, i.e. water, but the viscosity of many liquids is not independent of shear rate. Non-Newtonian liquids are classified according to their viscosity behavior as a function of shear rate. Some liquids exhibit shear thinning, whereas other liquids exhibit shear thickening. Some liquids at rest appear to behave like elastic solids until the shear stress exceeds a certain value, called the yield stress (tau 0 ), after which they flow readily. Elastic as well as viscous behavior is observed at the onset or cessation of flow when the applied stress is insufficient to initiate or sustain flow, respectively. The minimum stress required to initiate flow is referred to as yield stress, while the maximum stress observed at the cessation of flow is referred to as residual stress. Yield stress and residual stress are not necessarily equal. Their values are subject to flow rate and flow history considerations. However, on a reasonable time scale, their values are usually considered to be proportional and approximately equal for most materials. For purposes of this invention, specific measurements of residual stress were made, but the results have been reported generically in terms of yield stress. Shear stress is often plotted against shear rate on plots called flow curves which are then used to express the rheological behavior of liquids. Newtonian flow is shown by a straight line, and shear thinning and shear thickening are shown by curves. Yield stress is an intercept or point on the stress (tau) axis of such plots (see Figure 2 of the drawings, for example). Yield stress, therefore, is a parameter which is quite useful in characterizing materials. For example, water has a yield stress of zero. A method for monitoring and controlling yield stress was discovered while attempting to repeatably calibrate a capillary rheometer. It was discovered that when flow through the capillary was stopped for zero calibration, a residual positive (forward) backpressure proportional to yield stress, remained within the capillary rheometer. By manually reversing the metering pump of the rheometer, a negative (reverse) backpressure was noted. The difference between the positive and negative (forward and reverse) residual pressures is proportional to twice the yield stress, and is independent of the zero calibration value. This discovery was made while using an on-line capillary rheometer for monitoring a silicone sealant mixture. The mathematical relationship used to make the measurement is defined by the equation: Shear Stress (Flow) at Capillary Wall = RP/2L where R is the radius of the capillary, L is the length of the capillary, and P is the pressure drop through the capillary. Thus, for a given system, the pressure P is a proportional measure of the residual stress (No FLow) below which flow through the capillary will stop. The most common units for shear stress (Flow), residual stress, and yield stress (No Flow), are dynes per square centimeter (dyn/cm 2 ), Pascals (10 dyn/cm 2 = 1 Pa), newtons per square meter (1 N/m 2 = 1 Pa) and bar (1 bar = 1 x 10 5 Pa = 14.5 psi). US-A 4,143,541 describes a method of monitoring the pressure drop which is proportional to the yield stress of material including the steps of flowing the material through a chamber having an exit through a restricted passage way, stopping the flow, allowing the pressure to stabilize and recording the residual positive pressure. DE-A 36 11 867 refers to an apparatus and a process for measuring the rheology of flowable substances whereby a sample is forced by hydrostatic or external pressure into a transparent capillary and the velocity and the maximum intrusion length after the flow has come to a stop is measured. US-A 4,096,739 discloses a process of evaluating extrudable material by forcing such material through an outlet of a chamber by means of a movable member, then stopping and securing the mobable member at a predetermined position and measuring the force on the material as it decays with time. This invention is directed to a method of monitoring and controlling the residual stress of a polymeric material. The method is carried out by practicing the following steps: (a) flowing a polymeric material in a forward direction through a capillary passageway so as to produce a positive backpressure (i.e., 17.2 bar in Table I), (b) stopping the flow of polymeric material in the forward direction and allowing the positive backpressure to stabilize and reach a constant value (i.e., +0.20 bar in Table I), (c) recording the positive backpressure under no flow conditions at the constant value reached in step (b), (d) flowing the polymeric material in a reverse direction through the capillary passageway to produce a negative backpressure, (e) stopping the flow of polymeric material in the reverse direction and allowing the negative backpressure to stabilize and reach a constant value (i.e., -1.07 bar in Table I), (f) recording the negative backpressure under no flow conditions at the constant value reached in step (e), (h) determining half the difference between the positive backpressure (+0.20 bar) and the negative backpressure (-1.07 bar) as the pressure drop (0.635 bar) through the capillary passageway, and (i) calculating a residual stress for the polymeric material according to the relationship Residual Stress (No Flow) = RP/2L where R is the radius of the capillary passageway, L is the length of the capillary passageway and P is the pressure drop through the capillary passageway determined in step (h). In other words, our invention is a method of monitoring and controlling a residual pressure drop and stress which is considered to be proportionate to the yield stress of a polymeric material. The method comprises: (a) flowing the material in a forward direction through a chamber having an exit through a restricted passageway so as to produce a positive pressure in the chamber, (b) stopping the forward flow of material into the chamber and allowing the residual positive pressure in the chamber to stabilize and reach a constant value, (c) recording the residual positive pressure in the chamber under no flow conditions at the constant value reached in step (b), (d) withdrawing material from the chamber so as to produce a negative pressure and initiate a reverse flow of material into the chamber through the restricted passageway, (e) stopping the withdrawal of material from the chamber and allowing the negative pressure to stabilize and reach a constant value, (f) recording the residual negative pressure in the chamber under no flow conditions at the constant value reached in step (e), (h) determining half the difference between the residual positive pressure and the residual negative pressure as a pressure drop proportional to the residual stress of the material, and (i) calculating the residual stress (No Flow) of the material based on the equation for determining the shear stress (Flow) for the geometry of the restricted passageway using the pressure drop in step (h). It is also noted that instead of requiring a constant value as in steps (b) and (e), residual pressure or torque after an arbitrary (predetermined) time or rate of change, will also provide a suitable measure of the yield stress. The term "polymeric material" is used herein to include any viscous stream such as a fluid, gum, rubber, paste, sealant, elastomer, caulk, adhesive, resin, coating, or personal care formulation (i.e., a lotion, cream, emulsion, or microemulsion, for example). For illustrating our method in the example below, a silicone sealant mixture was selected as the polymeric material. Silicone sealants typically contain a polydiorganosiloxane, a filler, a cross-linker, and a curing catalyst. These sealants cure by exposure to moisture, and are viscous materials which are extruded from cartridges into cracks or crevices to be sealed. The consistency of a silicone sealant is typically viscous and toothpaste-like. In applications such as building construction, silicone sealants are thixotropic and non-sagging in to remain in place until cured. When such sealants are used in building construction, aesthetics such as color are important. Therefore, silicone sealants of a variety of colors are used commercially. These sealants are made by mixing various ingredients in predetermined and defined weight or volume ratios. For room temperature vulcanizable (RTV) silicone sealants, polydiorganosiloxanes are end-blocked with silanol or similar hydrolyzable groups. These polydiorganosiloxanes typically have a viscosity in excess of one Pa.s (1,000 centistoke) measured at 25°C., preferably 1 to 100 Pa.s (100,000 centistoke). When a filler is added to this polydiorganosiloxane, the mixture is called a "sealant base", since it constitutes a major portion of the silicone sealant, and because other ingredients are then added to arrive at a final composition. Useful fillers are (i) reinforcing fillers such as silica or carbon black; and (ii) non-reinforcing or semi-reinforcing fillers such as titanium dioxide, quartz, diatomaceous earth, calcium carbonate and alumina. To this "sealant base", cross-linking agents and catalysts are frequently added. The cross-linking agents are generally silanes or partial hydrolysis products of silanes. These silanes include acetoxysilanes, alkoxysilanes, ketoximosilanes, aminosilanes and amidosilanes. The cross-linking silanes have three to four hydrolyzable groups per molecule, while the partial hydrolysis products have more than three. In addition to cross-linking agents, silicone sealants include chain-extending agents which are also silanes, but with only two hydrolyzable groups per molecule. The hydrolyzable group terminating the polydiorganosiloxane is often the same as the group of the silane cross-linking agent, but mixtures of different types of hydrolyzable groups can be present in the same silicone sealant composition. Catalysts for curing these sealant compositions are dependent upon the type of cross-linking agent and include compounds such as metal carboxylates, alkyl orthotitanates, titanate chelates and zirconium alkoxides or chelates. Since the polydiorganosiloxane in the silicone sealant base is clear and colorless, coloring agents are often needed. While these sealants can be clear, they are usually produced in five to eight standard colors, including black, white, and various tones of beige, brown or gray. Virtually any color or hue is possible, subject to the reproducibility of the pigment, the exactness of metering, and the thoroughness of mixing. These coloring agents, commonly called pigments, include various categories of inorganic and organic pigments. For example, the most important inorganic coloring agents employed in silicone sealants are derived from iron oxide pigments, such as yellow, brown, red and black iron oxides. Other synthetic inorganic pigments include cadmium orange, chromium oxide green, manganese violet and molybdate orange. Representative of numerous varieties of organic synthetic coloring agents for silicone sealants are Acid Red 52, Benzidine Yellow HR, Methyl Violet, Phthalocyanine Green and Blue, Pigment Brown 28 and Victoria Blue B. To facilitate processing, the coloring agent is added to the "sealant base" in the liquid state. These pigment dispersions, color concentrates and liquid colorants are readily achieved by dispersing a pigment in a liquid carrier. In the past, processes for coloring silicone sealants have been complicated by the fact that frequent changeovers from one color to another are required. Thus, the "sealant base" was first compounded, catalyzed and packaged in drums or bulk containers. Then, these containers were moved to a separate process area for pigmentation. Many different pigments are needed to make the variety of colors and shades required in the market place. Therefore, matching a particular color often requires sophisticated blending techniques of a number of pigments. Usually, production personnel load the "sealant base" into a large mixer and meter the necessary coloring agent into the mixer to produce the desired silicone sealant and color. The ingredients are mixed for a period of time and inspected for color match using standard colorimetry technology. The addition of the pigment has to be carefully controlled, because pigments can degrade the physical properties of the silicone sealant, when the amount of pigment exceeds certain concentration levels. When the color of the sealant is determined correct, the silicone sealant is then moved to a proportioning machine where the silicone sealant is dosed into cartridges, drums or pails, in a one-part volumetric dosing system. During dosing, production personnel measure various physical properties of the silicone sealant "off-line" to insure its quality, and verify that the sealant meets product and manufacturing specifications. This requires that production personnel sample the silicone sealant, send the sample to the laboratory for testing, and wait for laboratory confirmation that said sealant meets production specifications. Such "off-line" procedures are costly and time consuming, contribute to an already lengthy manufacturing process and otherwise waste valuable manufacturing time. This invention can surprisingly eliminate "off-line" testing for yield stress by providing direct "on-line" measurement. For example, it can be used as a substitute for the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) "Standard Test Method for Slump of Sealants", Designation D 2202-93a (Annual Book of ASTM Standards Volume 04.07), where samples of viscous material are placed on a flat horizontal surface having a graduated scale, the surface is raised to the vertical, and the distance of travel (or slump) of the viscous material down the vertical surface is then measured. Our method can also substitute for penetrometer yield tests used in monitoring and controlling physical properties of product materials. Figure 1 is a pictorial representation of one type of commercially available capillary rheometer including various components of the system necessary to perform our method. Figure 2 is a graphical representation of shear stress plotted against shear rate for some common types of flow behavior referred to above. The yield stress (tau 0 ), where appropriate, is shown on the y axis (i.e., the shear stress coordinate). Viscosity is defined as the shear stress divided by the shear rate at any point. Figure 3 is another graphical representation, similar to Figure 2, but showing the flow behavior for some common food products. The Newtonian Fluid KARO™ DARK SYRUP (i.e. no yield stress) has a higher viscosity at high shear rate, while the MIRACLE WHIP™ SALAD DRESSING and the HEINZ 57™ TOMATO KETCHUP, hereinafter SYRUP, SALAD DRESSING and KETCHUP, show a yield stress and a much higher viscosity at low shear rates. Plastic materials like the salad dressing and the ketchup show little or no deformation up to a certain level of stress. Above this yield stress, the material flows readily. For example, to exceed the yield stress of the ketchup in the neck of a bottle, one must frequently tap the bottle. When the shear stress at the wall exceeds the yield stress, flow is rapid. For the ketchup in Figure 3, the yield stress (tau y ) is 200 dynes/cm 2 (20 Pa). For the salad dressing in Figure 3, the yield stress (tau y ) is 600 dynes/cm 2 (60 Pa). Thus, with reference to Figure 1, there is depicted one form of capillary rheometer device suitable for practicing our claimed method. The device will be seen to comprise a cylindrical HOUSING 1 having a HEATING ZONE 2. The HEATING ZONE 2 can be controlled to provide temperatures in the range of 60-350°C. A positive displacement GEAR PUMP 3 is arranged within the HEATING ZONE 1, and is driven by a DRIVE MOTOR 4 (i.e., a servo-motor) mounted on the top of the HOUSING 1. The DRIVE MOTOR 4 is capable of generating a speed of 0.1-100 RPM. The heated HOUSING 1 contains a CHAMBER 5 having a CHAMBER EXIT 6. The CHAMBER EXIT 6 is in fluid communication with a CAPILLARY DIE 7 located in the lower portion of the heated HOUSING 1. The CAPILLARY DIE 7 is removably mounted within the HOUSING 7 in the HEATING ZONE 2. Typically, the geometry of the CAPILLARY DIE 7 provides for lengths/diameters of 20/1, 20/2, 20/3, 20/4, 40/1, 40/2, 40/3, and 40/4 (millimeters), respectively. Some dies are even available with lengths/diameters of 60/1 to 20/4 millimeters and are useful herein. The device in Figure 1 is especially designed for finishing and compounding processes in which there are frequent product changes. It allows easy access to the CAPILLARY DIE 7, which is readily changed with a minimum of downtime. The process stream, i.e., a silicone sealant mixture, is tapped from the pressurized main PROCESS STREAM 8, and is in fluid communication with the inlet of the GEAR PUMP 3 by means of a FLOW CONTROL VALVE 9. A PURGE VALVE 10, located downstream of the FLOW CONTROL VALVE 9, is used to (i) vent air from the lines, (ii) withdraw samples of material from the lines, (iii) deliver material from the process line to the GEAR PUMP 3 more rapidly for testing, or (iv) to purge the lines of materials previously pumped through the system. Temperature and pressure conditions existing within the CHAMBER 5 between the outlet of the GEAR PUMP 3 and the inlet of the CAPILLARY DIE 7 are easily monitored by means of pressure and temperature sensors. A PRESSURE SENSOR 11 such as a 50 bar transducer is typically employed. The TEMPERATURE SENSOR 12 is a thermocouple for directly monitoring and controlling the melt temperature in the melt channel. Materials passing through the CAPILLARY DIE 7 are sent TO WASTE 12 as shown in Figure 1, or these materials are recirculated back to the PROCESS STREAM 8. The following example illustrates the invention in more detail. The silicone sealant used as the PROCESS STREAM 8 in this example was a mixture containing a polydiorganosiloxane end-blocked with silanol, a filler and an acetoxysilane. Such silicone sealant mixtures are more completely described in US Patents 3,035,016; 3,077,465; 3,274,145 and 4,115,356. Generally, sealant systems of this type are represented by the reaction sequence: ≡SiOH + (AcO) 2 RSi(OAc) → (AcO) 2 RSiOSi≡ + HOAc where Ac is CH 3 CO-. These mixtures vary from viscous fluids to thick viscous pastes, and are curable to rubbery materials or elastomers when exposed to moisture. Example I What led to this experiment was the problem of establishing repeatable and precise zeroing of a capillary rheometer. It was surmised that the problem may have been due to a residual pressure and stress related to the yield stress of the silicone sealant mixture contained in the capillary rheometer. In prior experiments, it had been noted that when the capillary die was removed from the rheometer, or when the capillary die was re-inserted into the rheometer, the procedure had an impact on the zero value. This impact was in the direction, and of an approximate magnitude, expected for the yield stress of the silicone sealant mixture corresponding to a capillary die with a diameter of one millimeter and a length of forty millimeters. It was decided that, to confirm yield stress effect, the pump would be shut off with the capillary die in the rheometer, and the "zero" noted. Then it was decided to manually reverse the pump a small amount and to note a new "zero". The difference between these two "zero" values should therefore correspond to twice the yield stress; and their average would be a true "zero" point for the system. This procedure of obtaining readings in opposite flow directions takes into account and eliminates the drift factor often found in pressure sensors and pressure gauges. Thus, under ideal conditions, gauges in empty pipes with no flow read 0.00. Under non-ideal conditions, however, gauges often drift with time from a true zero value to either a positive or negative value. Therefore a true reading is obtained herein regardless of drift, by monitoring and controlling the value which is one-half of the difference between two readings taken in opposite directions. Accordingly, it was found that this residual pressure within a GOETTFERT™ Model MBR Capillary Rheometer, depicted schematically in Figure 1, after gear pump stoppage, resulted from the yield stress of the silicone sealant mixture. By monitoring and controlling this residual stress, a calculation of yield stress based on capillary die geometry (i.e., its configuration) was then made. The capillary die used in the experiment had a length of forty millimeters and a diameter of one millimeter. Measurements were made at a temperature of 50°C. The data recorded during this experiment is shown in Table I. By way of explanation, values of 17.2 bar at time 9:05 and of 17.1 bar at time 9:37, are measurements of flow stress or shear stress of the sealant material. Residual stress on the other hand, is measured under conditions of no flow and is reflected by pressure sensor readings at times indicated as "No flow". Time Condition of Pump Pressure Sensor Reading (bar) 8:43-8:48 Flow in forward direction at 2.0 cm 3 /minute ------- 8:53 No flow for 5 minutes + 0.15 8:54 Reversed 1/4 turn (0.05 cm 3 ) ------- 9:02 No flow for 8 minutes - 0.34 9:05-9:20 Running forward at 2.0 cm 3 /min + 17.20 9:21 No flow for one minute + 0.20 9:24-9:30 Reversed one turn (0.2 cm 3 ) ------- 9:34 No flow for 4 minutes - 1.07 9:35-9:39 Running forward at 2.0 cm 3 /min + 17.10 9:41 No flow for 3 minutes + 0.20 The residual stress, expected to relate to the yield stress of the acetoxy silicone sealant mixture used in this example, was calculated by (i) determining half the difference between the positive backpressure and the negative backpressure as the pressure drop (P) through the capillary passageway, and (ii) calculating the residual stress of the polymeric material according to the relationship Residual Stress (No Flow) = RP/2L where R is the radius of the capillary passageway, L is the length of the capillary passageway, and P is the pressure drop through the capillary passageway. Thus, as a first example in Table I, Residual Stress (No Flow) = (0.5 mm) [+0.15 - (-0.34)] 2 2 (40 mm) = 0.0015 bar As a second example in Table I, Residual Stress (No Flow) = (0.5 mm) [+0.20 - (-1.07)] 2 2 (40 mm) = 0.0040 bar Given the fact that the pressure sensor used in this experiment was a 50 bar (50 x 10 5 Pascal) transducer, these much smaller residual pressures and the resulting variations in residual stress are considered acceptable within the limits and capability of the equipment employed. An average of these values provides a good estimate of yield stress, even though additional readings were not obtained. The advantages of obtaining forward and reverse (dual) readings are that (i) the rheometer system becomes insensitive to calibration errors, and (ii) the forward and reverse measurement has a larger range than methods using forward (single) measurements. While single and dual methods each result in measurement of residual (yield) stress, the forward and reverse (dual) measurement provides greater precision and accuracy. While the method has been demonstrated herein using a capillary die, the rheometer can be modified to force polymeric material through a thin rectangular channel or slit, a square die or a tapered die. For example, except for numerical constants, equations for calculating the shear rate for slit rheometry are the same as for capillary rheometry. The working equation for a slit rheometer pertinent to the invention is shown below: Residual Stress (No Flow) = HP 2(1 + H/W)L where H is the thickness of the slit, P is the pressure drop across the slit, W is the width of the slit, and L is the length of the slit. In addition, our method is applicable in torque recording rheometers such as Couette-type rheometers, cone and plate rheometers, and parallel plate rheometers.

Claims: A method of monitoring and controlling a pressure drop which is proportional to the yield stress of a polymeric material, the method comprising: (a) flowing said material in a forward direction through a chamber having an exit through a restricted passageway so as to produce a positive pressure in the chamber, (b) stopping the forward flow of material into the chamber and allowing the residual positive pressure in the chamber to stabilize and reach a value, (c) recording the residual positive pressure in the chamber under no flow conditions at said value reached in step (b), characterized by (d) withdrawing material from the chamber to produce a negative pressure and initiate a reverse flow of material into the chamber through the restricted passageway, (e) stopping the withdrawal of material from the chamber and allowing the negative pressure to stabilize and reach a value, (f) recording the residual negative pressure in the chamber under no flow conditions at the value reached in step (e), and (h) determining half the difference between the residual positive pressure and the residual negative pressure as a pressure drop proportional to the yield stress of said material. A method according to claim 1 wherein the pressure drop is determined on-line while said material is part of a process stream. A method according to claim 2 wherein said material is selected from a fluid, gum, rubber, paste, sealant, elastomer, caulk, adhesive, resin, coating or personal care formulation. A method according to claim 2 wherein the restricted passageway is a capillary passageway, a rectangular channel, a slit channel, a square channel or a tapered passageway. The method of claim 1 further comprising (i) calculating the residual stress (No Flow) of said material based on the equation for determining the shear stress (Flow) for the geometry of the restricted passageway using the pressure drop in step (h). A method according to claim 4 wherein the restricted passageway is a capillary, and the residual stress of said material is calculated according to the relationship Residual Stress (No Flow) = RP/2L where R is the radius of the capillary passageway, L is the length of the capillary passageway and P is the pressure drop in step (h). A method according to claim 4 wherein the restricted passageway is a rectangular channel or a slit channel, and the residual stress of said material is calculated according to the relationship Residual Stress (No Flow) = HP 2(1+H/W)L where H is the thickness of the rectangular channel or slit channel, P is the pressure drop in step (h), W is the width of the rectangular channel or slit channel, and L is the length of the rectangular channel or slit channel.

Inventors: DELEEUW DAVID CHARLES, LANGLEY NEAL ROGER, DELEEUW, DAVID CHARLES, LANGLEY, NEAL ROGER
Applicants: DOW CORNING, DOW CORNING CORPORATION
Application year: 1997
Main classification: G01N11
IPC codes: G01L1, G01N33, G01N11