Characterization and Application of Shear Thickening Fluids

The shear thickening phenomenon was explained in this paper. The characteristics of shear thickening fluids (STFs), including reversibility and liquid to solid transition at critical shear rate were presented. Also, the applications of STFs for protective clothing and equipment were discussed. Since little references can be found which concern the effect of interparticle forces like Van der Waals forces on the performance of cementitious materials subjected to impact loading, understanding the mechanism of STF and knowing how its structure affects the properties, behaviors, and resulting applications is expected to inspire potential designs for building cementitious materials.