SYNOPSIS --------
During this first year a preparation procedure for stable model suspensions was established. Preliminary rheological data suggest the presence of a deformable stabiliser layer. There seems to exist an analogy between oscillatory and steady state data.
The yielding of weakly flocculated suspensions starts at low strains (10 -2 - 1O'3) both in steady state and oscillatory flow. In the former it occurs before the stress overshoot is reached. Time effects suggest a kinetic contribution in yielding. The structural breakdown proceeds according to different patterns in different materials thus complicating the modelling.
Data reduction schemes for dielectric probing of structure have been suggested on the basis of data for carbon black suspensions. The application of transient dielectric data in studying thixotropic time scaler is demonstrated.