Study On The Modified Barrier Surfaces Of A Modeling Cylindrical Electrorheological Clutch Device

This paper investigated the electrorheological(ER) characteristics of two suspensions of starch particles(A) and aluminosilicate particles(B) in silicone oil respectively, and also their transmitting properties on a simulated device of Cylindrical ER Clutch(ERC) by comparison, only to show that A is a kind of electrorheological fluid(ERF) with definite plastic yield-point and can be subjected to a narrow voltage range on ERC, while B is a kind of pseudo-plastic ERF and can be subjected to a wilder voltage range on ERC. Then by using aluminosilicate electrorheological fluid on the modeling device, experiments were carried out to uncover the variations of transmitting properties of four kinds of barriers surfaces with strips at inner surface , outer surface , neither and both surfaces under the same conditions , only to show that barriers surface with strips at both surfaces showed the best transmitting property on the ERC. Their possible mechanisms were also discussed and the high efficiency of the modified driving surface (inner cylinder) of the ERC is the main reason of the improved-efficiency of the ERC's transmitting property. To get the optimum barriers surface arrangement under the same condition, continuous studies were put primarily on the effects and changing rules of ERC's transmitting property with the variations of strips row number, the strips length and strips arrangement. It is indicated that:(l) the variations of the strips row number only have effect onthe transmitting process. With the increase of the row number n in a range, the transmitting torque of ERC is enhanced, but then begin to reverse when n reaches eight. So number eight was proved to be the optimum row number for the model device; (2) the variations of strips length only have effect on the transmitting process. With the strips length varied from 0 to the full length of transmitting cylinder, the transmitting torque of ERC is continuously enhanced; (3) the variations of strips arrangement only have complicated effects on the transmitting process. Of all the examined four barriers surfaces in Fig. 5 to Fig. 12 under the same conditions, the barriers arrangement mixed with strips of different lengths in the d figures of Fig. 5-12 exhibited the best enhanced torque.