(Redirected from Pascal second)
'Viscosity' is a measure of the
resistance of a
fluid to deform under
shear stress. It is commonly perceived as "thickness", or resistance to flow. Viscosity describes a fluid's internal resistance to flow and may be thought of as a measure of fluid
friction. Thus,
water is "thin", having a lower viscosity, while
vegetable oil is "thick" having a higher viscosity. All real fluids (except
superfluids) have some resistance to shear stress, but a fluid which has no resistance to shear stress is known as an 'ideal fluid' or 'inviscid fluid' .
When looking at a value for viscosity the number that one most often sees is the coefficient of viscosity, simply put this is the ratio between the pressure exerted on the surface of a fluid, in the lateral or horizontal direction, to the change in velocity of the fluid as you move down in the fluid (this is what is referred to as a velocity
gradient). For example, at "room temperature", water has a nominal viscosity of 1.0 x 10
-3 Pa∙s and motor oil has a nominal apparent viscosity of 250 x 10
-3 Pa∙s.
Etymology
The word "viscosity" derives from the
Latin word "viscum" for
mistletoe. A viscous glue was made from mistletoe berries and used for lime-twigs to catch birds.
[1]
Newton's theory

Laminar shear of fluid between two plates. Friction between the fluid and the moving boundaries causes the fluid to shear. The force required for this action is a measure of the fluid's viscosity. This type of flow is known as a
Couette flow.

Laminar shear, the non-linear gradient, is a result of the geometry the fluid is flowing through (e.g. a pipe).
In general, in any flow, layers move at different
velocities and the fluid's viscosity arises from the shear stress between the layers that ultimately opposes any applied force.
Isaac Newton postulated that, for straight,
parallel and uniform flow, the shear stress, τ, between layers is proportional to the
velocity gradient, ∂''u''/∂''y'', in the direction
perpendicular to the layers.
:
.
Here, the constant η is known as the ''coefficient of viscosity'', the ''viscosity'', or the ''dynamic viscosity''. Many
fluids, such as
water and most
gases, satisfy Newton's criterion and are known as
Newtonian fluids.
Non-Newtonian fluids exhibit a more complicated relationship between shear stress and velocity gradient than simple linearity.
The relationship between the shear stress and the velocity gradient can also be obtained by considering two plates closely spaced apart at a distance ''y'', and separated by a
homogeneous substance. Assuming that the plates are very large, with a large area ''A'', such that edge effects may be ignored, and that the lower plate is fixed, let a force ''F'' be applied to the upper plate. If this force causes the substance between the plates to undergo shear flow (as opposed to just
shearing elastically until the shear stress in the substance balances the applied force), the substance is called a fluid. The applied force is proportional to the area and velocity of the plate and inversely proportional to the distance between the plates. Combining these three relations results in the equation ''F = η(Au/y)'', where η is the proportionality factor called the ''absolute viscosity'' (with units Pa·s = kg/(m·s) or slugs/(ft·s)). The absolute viscosity is also known as the ''dynamic viscosity'', and is often shortened to simply ''viscosity''. The equation can be expressed in terms of shear stress; ''τ = F/A = η(u/y)''. The rate of shear deformation is
and can be also written as a shear velocity, ''du/dy''. Hence, through this method, the relation between the shear stress and the velocity gradient can be obtained.
In many situations, we are concerned with the ratio of the viscous force to the
inertial force, the latter characterised by the
fluid density ρ. This ratio is characterised by the ''kinematic viscosity'', defined as follows:
:
.
James Clerk Maxwell called viscosity ''fugitive elasticity'' because of the analogy that elastic deformation opposes shear stress in
solids, while in viscous
fluids, shear stress is opposed by ''rate'' of deformation.
Viscosity Measurement
Viscosity is measured with various types of
viscometer. Close temperature control of the fluid is essential to accurate measurements, particularly in materials like lubricants, whose viscosity (-40 < sample temperature <0) for example can change double in only 5 deg. C.
For some fluids, it is a constant over a wide range of shear rates. The fluids without a constant viscosity are called
Non-Newtonian fluids.
In paint industries, viscosity is commonly measured with a
Zahn cup, in which the
efflux time is determined and given to customers. The efflux time can also be converted to kinematic viscosities (cSt) through the conversion equations.
Also used in paint, a
Stormer viscometer uses load-based rotation in order to determine viscosity. It uses units, Krebs units (KU), unique to this viscometer.
Vibrating viscometers such as those produced by
SOFRASER can also be used to measure viscosity. These models use vibration rather than rotation to measure viscosity.
Units of Measure
Viscosity (dynamic/absolute viscosity): or
The
IUPAC symbol for viscosity is the Greek symbol eta (
), and dynamic viscosity is also commonly referred to using the Greek symbol mu (
). The
SI physical unit of dynamic viscosity is the
pascal-
second (Pa·s), which is identical to 1
kg·m
−1·s
−1. If a
fluid with a viscosity of one Pa·s is placed between two plates, and one plate is pushed sideways with a
shear stress of one
pascal, it moves a distance equal to the thickness of the layer between the plates in one
second.
The name
poiseuille (Pl) was proposed for this unit (after
Jean Louis Marie Poiseuille who formulated
Poiseuille's law of viscous flow), but not accepted internationally. Care must be taken in not confusing the poiseuille with the
poise named after the same person!
The
cgs physical unit for dynamic viscosity is the ''poise''
[1] (P; )) named after
Jean Louis Marie Poiseuille. It is more commonly expressed, particularly in
ASTM standards, as ''centipoise'' (cP). The centipoise is commonly used because water has a viscosity of 1.0020 cP (at 20 °C; the closeness to one is a convenient coincidence).
:1 P = 1 g·cm
−1·s
−1
The relation between Poise and Pascal-second is:
:10 P = 1 kg·m
−1·s
−1 = 1 Pa·s
:1 cP = 0.001 Pa·s = 1 mPa·s
Kinematic viscosity:
Kinematic viscosity (Greek symbol:
) has SI units (m²·s
−1). The cgs physical unit for kinematic viscosity is the ''stokes'' (abbreviated S or St), named after
George Gabriel Stokes. It is sometimes expressed in terms of ''centistokes'' (cS or cSt). In U.S. usage, ''stoke'' is sometimes used as the singular form.
: 1 stokes = 100 centistokes = 1 cm
2·s
−1 = 0.0001 m
2·s
−1.
:1 centistokes = 1 mm²/s
Dynamic versus kinematic viscosity
Conversion between kinematic and dynamic viscosity, is given by
. Note that the parameters must be given in SI units not in P, cP or St.
For example, if
1 St (=0.0001 m²·s
-1) and
1000 kg m
-3 then
0.1 kg·m
−1·s
−1 = 0.1 Pa·s
★ class=wikiexternal target=_blank>+1g%2Fcc&btnG=Search.
For a plot of kinematic viscosity of air as a function of absolute temperature, see
James Ierardi's Fire Protection Engineering Site
Molecular origins

Pitch has a viscosity approximately 100 billion times that of water.
The viscosity of a system is determined by how molecules constituting the system interact. There are no simple but correct expressions for the viscosity of a fluid. The simplest exact expressions are the
Green-Kubo relations for the linear shear viscosity or the
Transient Time Correlation Function expressions derived by Evans and Morriss in 1985. Although these expressions are each exact in order to calculate the viscosity of a dense fluid, using these relations requires the use of
molecular dynamics computer
simulation.
Gases
Viscosity in gases arises principally from the molecular diffusion that transports momentum between layers of flow. The kinetic theory of gases allows accurate prediction of the behaviour of gaseous viscosity, in particular that, within the regime where the theory is applicable:
★ Viscosity is independent of pressure(except in the high pressure and very low pressure under atmospheric pressure); and
★ Viscosity increases as temperature increases.
Effect of temperature on the viscosity of a gas
The
Sutherland's formula can be used to derive the dynamic viscosity of an
ideal gas as a function of the temperature:
:
where:
★
= viscosity in (Pa·s) at input temperature
★
= reference viscosity in (Pa·s) at reference temperature
★
= input temperature in kelvin
★
= reference temperature in kelvin
★
= Sutherland's constant for the gasous material in question
Valid for temperatures between 0 <
< 555 K with an error due to pressure less than 10% below 3.45 MPa
Sutherland's constant and reference temperature for some gases
{| class="wikitable"
|- bgcolor="#efefef"
! Gas
!
[K]
!
[K]
!
[10
-6 Pa s]
|-
|
air
| 120
| 291.15
| 18.27
|-
|
nitrogen
| 111
| 300.55
| 17.81
|-
|
oxygen
| 127
| 292.25
| 20.18
|-
|
carbon dioxide
| 240
| 293.15
| 14.8
|-
|
carbon monoxide
| 118
| 288.15
| 17.2
|-
|
hydrogen
| 72
| 293.85
| 8.76
|-
|
ammonia
| 370
| 293.15
| 9.82
|-
|
sulphur dioxide
| 416
| 293.65
| 12.54
|}
Viscosity of a dilute gas
Chapman-Enskog equation (1964)
[''hirshfelder et. al.''] may be used to estimate viscosity for a dilute gas. This equation is based on semi-theorethical assumption by Chapman and Enskoq. The equation requires three empirically determined parameters: the collision diameter (σ), the maximum energy of attraction divided by the
Boltzman constant (є/к) and the collision integral (ω(T
★ )).
:
; T
★ =κT/ε
★
= viscosity for dilute gas (uP)
★
= molecular weight (kg/m^3)
★
= temperature (K)
★
= the collision diameter (Å)
★
= the maximum energy of attraction divided by the Boltzman constant (K)
★
= the collision integral
★
= reduced temperature (K)
Liquids
In liquids, the additional forces between molecules become important. This leads to an additional contribution to the shear stress though the exact mechanics of this are still controversial. Thus, in liquids:
★ Viscosity is independent of pressure (except at very high pressure); and
★ Viscosity tends to fall as temperature increases (for example, water viscosity goes from 1.79 cP to 0.28 cP in the temperature range from 0 °C to 100 °C); see
temperature dependence of liquid viscosity for more details.
The dynamic viscosities of liquids are typically several orders of magnitude higher than dynamic viscosities of gases.
Viscosity of materials
The viscosity of air and water are by far the two most important materials for aviation aerodynamics and shipping fluid dynamics. Temperature plays the main role in determining viscosity.
Viscosity of air
The viscosity of air depends mostly on the temperature.
At 15.0 °C, the viscosity of air is 1.78 × 10
−5 kg/(m·s). You can get the viscosity of air as a function of altitude from the
eXtreme High Altitude Calculator
Viscosity of water
The viscosity of water is 8.90 × 10
−4 Pa·s or 8.90 × 10
−3 dyn·s/cm² at about 25 °C.
As a function of temperature:
''μ'' = ''A'' × 10
''B''/(''T''−''C'')
where ''A''=2.414 × 10
−5 N
★ s/m² ; ''B'' = 247.8 K ; and ''C'' = 140 K.
Viscosity of various materials

Example of the viscosity of milk and water. Liquids with higher viscosities will not make such a splash when poured at the same velocity.
Some dynamic viscosities of Newtonian fluids are listed below:
Gases (at 0 °
C):
{| class="wikitable"
|- bgcolor="#efefef"
!
!viscosity
[Pa·s]
|-
|
hydrogen
|8.4 × 10
−6
|-
|
air
|17.4 × 10
−6
|-
|
xenon
|21.2 × 10
−6
|}
Liquids (at 25 °
C):
{| class="wikitable"
|- bgcolor="#efefef"
!
!viscosity
[Pa·s]
!viscosity
[cP]
|-
|
liquid nitrogen @ 77K
|0.158 × 10
−3
|0.158
|-
|
acetone★
|0.306 × 10
−3
|0.306
|-
|
methanol★
|0.544 × 10
−3
|0.544
|-
|
benzene★
|0.604 × 10
−3
|0.604
|-
|
ethanol★
|1.074 × 10
−3
|1.074
|-
|
water
|0.894 × 10
−3
|0.894
|-
|
mercury★
|1.526 × 10
−3
|1.526
|-
|
nitrobenzene★
|1.863 × 10
−3
|1.863
|-
|
propanol★
|1.945 × 10
−3
|1.945
|-
|
sulfuric acid★
|24.2 × 10
−3
|24.2
|-
|
olive oil
|.081
|81
|-
|
glycerol★
|.934
|934
|-
|
castor oil
|985 × 10
−3
|985
|-
|
HFO-380
|2.022
|2022
|-
|
pitch
|2.3 × 10
8
|2.3 × 10
11
|}
★ Data from CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, 73
rd edition, 1992-1993.
Fluids with variable compositions, such as
honey, can have a wide range of viscosities.
A more complete table can be found
here, including the following:
{| class="wikitable"
|- bgcolor="#efefef"
!
!viscosity
[cP]
|-
|
honey
|2,000–10,000
|-
|
molasses
|5,000–10,000
|-
|molten
glass
|10,000–1,000,000
|-
|
chocolate syrup
|10,000–25,000
|-
|
chocolate
★
| 45,000–130,000
[2]
|-
|
ketchup
★
|50,000–100,000
|-
|
peanut butter
|~250,000
|-
|
shortening
★
|~250,000
|}
★ These materials are highly
non-Newtonian.
Viscosity of solids
On the basis that all solids flow to a small extent in response to
shear stress some researchers
[2][3] have contended that substances known as
amorphous solids, such as
glass and many
polymers, may be considered to have viscosity. This has led some to the view that
solids are simply
liquids with a very high viscosity, typically greater than 10
12 Pa•s. This position is often adopted by supporters of the widely held misconception that
glass flow can be observed in old buildings. This distortion is more likely the result of glass making process rather than the viscosity of glass.
[4]
However, others argue that
solids are, in general, elastic for small stresses while
fluids are not. Even if
solids flow at higher stresses, they are characterized by their low-stress behavior. Viscosity may be an appropriate characteristic for
solids in a
plastic regime. The situation becomes somewhat confused as the term ''viscosity'' is sometimes used for solid materials, for example
Maxwell materials, to describe the relationship between stress and the rate of change of strain, rather than rate of shear.
These distinctions may be largely resolved by considering the constitutive equations of the material in question, which take into account both its viscous and elastic behaviors. Materials for which both their viscosity and their elasticity are important in a particular range of deformation and deformation rate are called
''viscoelastic''. In
geology, earth materials that exhibit viscous deformation at least three times greater than their elastic deformation are sometimes called
rheids.
Bulk viscosity
The
trace of the
stress tensor is often identified with the negative-one-third of the thermodynamic
pressure,
,
which only depends upon the equilibrium state potentials like temperature and density (
equation of state). In general, the trace of the stress tensor is the sum of thermodynamic pressure contribution plus another contribution which is proportional to the divergence of the velocity field. This constant of proportionality is called the 'bulk viscosity'.
Eddy viscosity
In the study of
turbulence in
fluids, a common practical strategy for calculation is to ignore the small-scale ''vortices'' (or ''eddies'') in the motion and to calculate a large-scale motion with an ''eddy viscosity'' that characterizes the transport and dissipation of
energy in the smaller-scale flow (see ''
large eddy simulation''). Values of eddy viscosity used in modeling
ocean circulation may be from 5x10
4 to 10
6 Pa·s depending upon the resolution of the numerical grid.
Fluidity
The
reciprocal of viscosity is ''fluidity'', usually symbolized by
or
, depending on the convention used, measured in ''reciprocal poise'' (
cm·
s·
g-1), sometimes called the ''rhe''. ''Fluidity'' is seldom used in
engineering practice.
The concept of fluidity can be used to determine the viscosity of an
ideal solution. For two components
and
, the fluidity when
and
are mixed is
:
which is only slightly simpler than the equivalent equation in terms of viscosity:
:
where
and
is the mole fraction of component
and
respectively, and
and
are the components pure viscosities.
The linear viscous stress tensor
(See ''
Hooke's law'' and ''
strain tensor'' for an analogous development for linearly elastic materials.)
Viscous forces in a fluid are a function of the rate at which the fluid velocity is changing over distance. The velocity at any point
is specified by the velocity field
. The velocity at a small distance
from point
may be written as a
Taylor series:
:
where
is shorthand for the dyadic product of the del operator and the velocity:
:
This is just the
Jacobian of the velocity field. Viscous forces are the result of relative motion between elements of the fluid, and so are expressible as a function of the velocity field. In other words, the forces at
are a function of
and all derivatives of
at that point. In the case of linear viscosity, the viscous force will be a function of the Jacobian
tensor alone. For almost all practical situations, the linear approximation is sufficient.
If we represent ''x'', ''y'', and ''z'' by indices 1, 2, and 3 respectively, the ''i,j'' component of the Jacobian may be written as
where
is shorthand for
. Note that when the first and higher derivative terms are zero, the velocity of all fluid elements is parallel, and there are no viscous forces.
Any matrix may be written as the sum of an
antisymmetric matrix and a
symmetric matrix, and this decomposition is independent of coordinate system, and so has physical significance. The velocity field may be approximated as:
:
where
Einstein notation is now being used in which repeated indices in a product are implicitly summed. The second term on the left is the asymmetric part of the first derivative term, and it represents a rigid rotation of the fluid about
with angular velocity
where:
:
For such a rigid rotation, there is no change in the relative positions of the fluid elements, and so there is no viscous force associated with this term. The remaining symmetric term is responsible for the viscous forces in the fluid. Assuming the fluid is
isotropic (i.e. its properties are the same in all directions), then the most general way that the symmetric term (the rate-of-strain tensor) can be broken down in a coordinate-independent (and therefore physically real) way is as the sum of a constant tensor (the rate-of-expansion tensor) and a traceless symmetric tensor (the rate-of-shear tensor):
:
where
is the
unit tensor. The most general linear relationship between the stress tensor
and the rate-of-strain tensor is then a linear combination of these two tensors :
:
where
is the coefficient of bulk viscosity (or "second viscosity") and
is the coefficient of (shear) viscosity.
The forces in the fluid are due to the velocities of the individual molecules. The velocity of a molecule may be thought of as the sum of the fluid velocity and the thermal velocity. The viscous stress tensor described above gives the force due to the fluid velocity only. The force on an area element in the fluid due to the thermal velocities of the molecules is just the hydrostatic
pressure. This pressure term (
) must be added to the viscous stress tensor to obtain the total stress tensor for the fluid.
:
The infinitesimal force
on an infinitesimal area
is then given by the usual relationship:
:
See also
★
Deborah number
★
Dilatant
★
Hyperviscosity syndrome
★
Thixotropy
★
Viscometer
★
Viscometry
★
Viscosity index
References
1. IUPAC definition of the Poise
2. Glenn Elert: The physics hypertextbook, retrieved on August 1, 2007.
3. PDF file about the Properties of glass [3] page 6, retrieved on August 1, 2007
4. "Antique windowpanes and the flow of supercooled liquids", by Robert C. Plumb, (Worcester Polytech. Inst., Worcester, MA, 01609, USA), J. Chem. Educ. (1989), 66 (12), 994-6
★
Mechanics of Fluids, Massey, B. S., , , , 1983, ISBN 0-442-30552-4
★
Mechanics, Symon, Keith, , , Addison-Wesley, Reading, MA, 1971, ISBN 0-201-07392-7
★
Fluid Mechanics (Course of Theoretical Physics Volume 6), , L. D., Landau, Butterworth Heinemann, 1997, ISBN 0-7506-2767-0
★
Molecular theory of gases and liquids, J.O.Hirshfelder, C.F.Curtis and R.B.Bird, , , , 1965, 54-7621
★
Is Glass a Liquid or a Solid?
★
External links
★
Gas Dynamics Toolbox Calculate coefficient of viscosity for mixtures of gases using VHS model
★
Physical Characteristics of Water A table of water viscosity as a function of temperature
★
Glass Viscosity Measurement Viscosity measurement, viscosity units and fixpoints, glass viscosity calculation
★
diracdelta.co.uk conversion between kinematic and dynamic viscosity.
★
Industrial viscosity measurement by vibrating
viscometer