Rheological properties of paraffin as an analogue material for viscous crustal deformation
Abstract
The rheological stratification induced by temperature variations within the crust requires analogue materials with temperature-sensitive viscosity to properly simulate the change of mechanical properties with depth. Rheological calibration experiments on commercial paraffin wax with melting point of 53±1°C show that this material is a nonlinear fluid (1.6≤ n≤2.1) for homologous temperatures T/ Tm<0.70, and an approximately Newtonian fluid (1.0≤ n≤1.3) for T/ Tm≥0.70. The decrease in the stress exponent n is probably associated with the α- β phase transition of paraffin. Effective viscosity values are strongly temperature dependent, varying by nine orders of magnitude from 10 10 to 10 Pa s in the temperature range between 30 and 52°C. The rheological properties of paraffin make this material useful for modelling crustal rheology and tectonic processes, when linear dimensions and time scale down by a factor of 10 6 and 10 11, respectively.
- Publication:
-
Journal of Structural Geology
- Pub Date:
- April 1999
- DOI:
- 10.1016/S0191-8141(99)00040-1
- Bibcode:
- 1999JSG....21..413R