Soft magnetorheological polymer gels with controllable rheological properties

A series of magnetorheological (MR) gels consisting of plastic polyurethane matrix swollen by nonvolatile solvent in different weight fractions and carbonyl iron particles were prepared. Their magnetorheological properties, both under oscillatory and rotational shear rheometry, were systematically tested. The results demonstrate that except for the significant influence on the magnetorheological performance, the state of these MR gels can also be easily switched from solid-like (the solvent content is less than 10 wt%) to liquid-like (the solvent content exceeds 25 wt%) by adjusting the solvent content. The huge differences in magnetorheological properties of different MR gels (for example, the G′ of MR gels without solvent is three orders of magnitude larger than that of MR gels with 45 wt% of solvent in the absence of a magnetic field) and movements of iron particles in the presence of a magnetic field were analyzed, which are helpful in thoroughly understanding the mechanical–magnetic coupling mechanism between the magnetic particles and the polymer matrix and promoting the application of MR polymer gels. In addition, the stability of MR gels was also investigated. A gravity yield parameter was introduced to quantitatively describe the relationship between particle sedimentation and material characteristics. When the solvent content is lower than 25 wt% or the gravity yield parameter is larger than 0.865, the particle settling phenomenon can be effectively avoided. (paper)