Further considerations of axisymmetric contraction flows (Q1187035)

Two distinct mechanisms are proposed for the flow of non-Newtonian fluids through abrupt contractions. The first is a quasi-radial flow which is argued to reflect at least qualitatively the flow characteristics at low strain rates. Depending on the rheological properties of the fluid, the second mechanism, referred to as funnel flow, may well be preferred at higher rates of strain. The change from the first to the second flow mechanism is often seen to occur experimentally with the appearance of a so-called `lip' vortex. An approximate analytical inelastic treatment is offered for the quasi-radial flow and, in addition, an attempt is made to include the effect of elasticity in both flows. Particular attention is placed on the influence of shear viscosity, elasticity (through the first normal stress difference in shear) and extensional viscosity.