Paper Number
GI1                         My Program 

Session
Gallery of Rheology - Images

Title
Cutting edge: Fracture of viscoelastic liquids

Presentation Date and Time
October 22, 2025 (Wednesday) 6:30

Track / Room
Gallery of Rheology Session: Images / Sweeney Ballroom E+F

Authors (Click on name to view author profile)

1. Marsh, Maxwell C. (University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign)
2. Ewoldt, Randy H. (University Of Illinois Urbana-champaign, Mechanical Science and Engineering)

Author and Affiliation Lines (in printed abstract book)
Maxwell C. Marsh and Randy H. Ewoldt
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801-3180

Speaker / Presenter 
Marsh, Maxwell C.

Keywords
experimental methods; non-Newtonian fluids; polymer solutions; techniques

Text of Abstract
Present theories into the onset of the edge fracture instability are well established and accepted by the rheological community. However, prior studies often lack compelling visual evidence of a critical shear rate or a characteristic length consistent with these theories. Here we provide a detailed, high-resolution image of the edge fracture instability in a sheared viscoelastic fluid, complemented by rigorous rheometric data and our newly derived criteria. This result can be used to reinforce the theories behind edge fracture and inspire new mitigation strategies.