A simple,versatile and inexpensive rheometer for polymer melts

A simple, versatile biconical rehemoter has been developed. This device provides shear creep and creep recovery data for polymer melts over a temperature range of 200–500°F. and a range of applied shear stresses from 2 × 10³ to 9 × 10⁵ dynes/cm². Extensive reheological data have been obtained for two samples each of polyisobutylene and high-density polyethylene. These illustrate the value of the device in obtaining data useful for predicting and understanding the processing properties of polymer melts.