ASTM - D4212-99 Viscosity Zahn Cup
ASTM - D4212-99 Viscosity Zahn Cup
ASTM - D4212-99 Viscosity Zahn Cup
Thi!õ !õtandardi!õi!õ!õuedunder lhe fixed de!õignationD 4212; lhe nurnber inunediately following the de!!ignation indicate.-;the year of
original oooption or, in lhe ca!õeof revi!õion,lhe year of Ia!õtrevi!õion.A nurnber in parenthe!õe!õ
indicate!õthe year of la!õtreapprovaL A
!õuper!õCript
ep!õilon(~) indicate!õan editorial change !õincelhe Ia!õtrevi!õionor reapprovaL
Copyr~ht C) ASTM, 100 E!arr HarDor urlve, VVest LonsnonOCken, t'A ,~""""""" unl1ea ::>lales.
~~I~D 4212
0.8 (20)
DIMENSIONS IN INCHES
(MILLIMETERS IN PARENTHESES)
NOTEl-Dimensions are approximate only and may vary wilh lhe manufacturer and trom batch to batch
FIG. 1 Zahn Cup Nominal Dimensions
I'
rl.._~ionshipwhat.~oeverwith a No. 2 Shell cup- 6.2.1 Nominal Shell cuporifice diametersare.listedin Table
X2.1. Cup Nos. I thrOUgh2V2are recommendedfor use with
6.1.1 Nominal Zahncuporifice diametersare listed in Table
reducedrotogravureinks; No. 2 is for use with flexographic
X2.1. CupNo. 1 withthe smallestorifice is used for determin-
ing the viscosityof thin-bodiedmateriais.CupNo. 2 is for use inks; Nos. 3 thrOUgh 4 are used for industrial enaloels,
with clears, lacquers,enamels,and press-sideadjustmentof lacquers,flexographic,andgravureinks; Nos. 5 and 6 areused
flexographicinks; cups Nos. 3 and 4 are for usé with more forheavy materials.
viscous paints and inks (No. 3 for manufacturingof flexo- 6.3 Calibration Thermometer-ASTM Saybolt Viscosit,y
graphic inks); and cup No. 5 is used for silk screeninks. Thermometer17Phaving a range of 66 to 800Pand subdivi-
6.2 Shell ViscosityCup4-No. I throughNo. 6 Shell vis- sions of O,2°P,or 17C having a range of 19 to 27°C and
cosity cups made of stainlesssteel with a capacity of 23 mL subdivisionsofO.1°C, both conformingto the requirementsof
anda I-in. (25-mm)long capillary in the bottomandconform- SpecificationE I. Thermometershaving subdivisions other
ing to the dimensionsshownin Fig. 2. than thesemay be used dependingon the sensitivit,yof the
materialto be tested,the demandsof the application,and the
agreementbetweenthe purchaserand seller.
.Shell cups mar be obtained Erom lhe Norcross Corp., 255 Newtonville Ave.,
Newton, MA 02158. This committee is not aware of any olher source for fiow cups
6.4 Timer-Any timing device may be usedprovided that
having properties similar enough to lhe Shell cup to be included in Ihis testmethod. the readingscan be taken with a discriminationof 0.1 s or
If you have knowledge of a cup that should be considered,plea.'ieprovide details to better.
ASTM Headquarters.Your commentswill receive careful consideration at a meeting
of lhe responsible technical committee,' which you mar attend.
~~r~ D 4212
"""'
Procedure
8. Temperatureor Testing
10.1 Choosethe provercup so thatthe time of eftlux will be
8.1 Measurementsshould be made at 77°P (25°C) unless
between 20 and 80 s. SeeTable 1 for viscosityrangesfor the
otherwisespecified.Temperaturedrift during the testshouldbe
kept to a minimum. The viscosities of paints and related various curso
materiaisare highly dependenton temperature.Differencesin NOTE3-The formulas used in this test method to describe lhe
temperaturebetween measurementscan give substantia1ly conversionfrom Zahn second" to stokes are linear,lhe actual cup response
differentviscosities(up to 5 % per °P). Por careful work, the is not The range of 20 to 80 s covers lhe most linear portion of eachcup.
In addition, below 20 s, tUrbulent flow mar cause additional inconsisten-
temperatureshould be taken in the efilux stream, but for
cies. Above 80 s, factors mat mar impact on lhe precision include; loss of
!~ess contrai (such as monitoring a dip tank), this is not solvent (and therefore varying viscosity), "skinning" ofthe liquid ill lhe
n""essary. cup, intermittent flow.
8.2 A temperaturecorrectioncurve may be constructedfor
10.2 ImmerseLhecup in the container,which may be a can
eachliquid byplotting viscosity (seconds)againsttemperature or beaker,but is more likely to be a thinning or mixing tank or
over the expected temperaturerange. With this curve, a
even a resin reactor. Stir or agitarethe fluid well to give
viscosity determined at one measuredtemperat.uremay be
uniform temperatureand density. Allow the cup to remain in
convertedquickly to a viscosity at anothertemperature.
the fluid for 1 to 5 min to attainthermalequilibrium. (Because
NOTE2-When dip cups areused for original purposes,thatis thinning of their grearermass,Shell cups shouldremain in the fluid for
or monitoring of materials in tanks, coaters, etc., temperature is not the full 5 min.)
important This is becau...elhe key to good operation i... to maintain lhe
fluidwithin a ceJ1ainrange of dip cup-secondsregardlessof lhe tempera-
TABLE 1 Approximate Viscoslty Ranges, cST (mma/s) (Roughly
ture of lhe fluido Correspondingto 20 to 80,sFlow Time)
9. Checking and Calibration or l:ups
9.1 Cupsshould be checkedin accordancewith lhe proce-
duredescribedin AppendixX2. The frequencyoí this depends
upon lhe amount oí use and CaTethat lhe individual cup
receives,and lhe leveI oí precisionrequired. ~UU-l~UU
9.2 Cups mar be calibrated with standardfluids according 400-1800
to lhe procedure in Appendix X3. However, becauselhe
viscosity oí standardfluids can vary significantly with tem- "The Iower limlt for lhe zahn NO. 1 cup iS 35 S mlher than 2U S.
10.
~~J~D 4212
4
~~I~D 4212
APPENDIXES
(Nonmandatory Jnformation)
Xl.l Zahn cups were designed (and manufactured by Xl.2 Zahn cup patentshave expired and Zahn-typecups
General Electric) as simple flow property devices for use in dip are available from severa!sources:Each manufacturermates
tanks, flow coar reservoirs, etc. They were not designed to be cups that are somewhatdifferent from thosemadeby others.
viscometers or to be used as such. Zahn cup use usually Considerablebatch-to-batchdifferencehas beennoted in lhe
involves thinning or maintaining a coating, adhesive, or ink at past from some manufacturers.Cup variations are not a
a certain consistency (so many Zahn-seconds) regardless of problem for consistentcontrai of a bath or tank as Iong as
temperature. This is the beauty of dip cups. The operator appropriatecomparisonsaremadewith old cups,if required,to
knows that bis or heI tank, bath, or coareI runs well over a maintain continuity of data. However, cup differencescan
certain range of Zahn"seconds whether the plant temperature is cause great difficulty if cups are used to ser producer-user
50°F or 100°F.The operator does whatever is necessary to keep specifications.Comparisons under such conditions require
the fluid within the range. ln such an application the viscosity considerableattentionto detail and practicedexpertise.
at 25.0°C (77.0°F) is not important
,,-~
X2.l The viscosityversuseft1uxtime fonnulas published TABLE X2.1 Viscosity Standards Recommended for Checking
here are in wide use, however, not alI Zahn-typecups are Cups
designed to comply with these fonnulas. Techniques for Cup Number Approximate Oi! Viscosity
Nominal Orifice Diameter.
at 77°F (25°C), cST
ensuring continued calibration of cups that do not claim (mm)
(mm2/s)
compliancewith thesefonnulasinclude; comparisonof current Zahn
flow times for a standardfluid againstthe original flow time, 1 2.0 20
and comparisonagainsta verified standardcup. The saroe 2 2.7 120
3 3.8 480
calibration verification methodsof comparinga cup against 4 4.3 480
one in known conditionappliedto Zahn-typecupscanbe used 5 5.3 900, 1600
with Shellcups.
X2.2 Monitoring Cup Characteristics-A useful checki.'1g ,
SheJl
2
1.8
2.4
9
9, 20
technique is to measure lhe efilux time for a new cup with a 2'12 2.7 35
given standard fluid, then check lhe cup periodically with lhe 3 3.1 35, 120
3Vo 3.5 120
same oil atthe same temperature to determine if lhe emux time
4 3.8 120
has changed. If lhe time changes more than 20 % (or more than 5 4.6 120, 480
I'. process toleranc~ permits), lhe cup should be replaced. If 6 5.8 480
tht; change is small, it mar be appropriateto use lhe cup as is,
or by applying a correction factor to subsequent efilux times,
depending on lhe degree of precision required. The correction have a rendency to contaminarecups and containers and to change lhe
factor is equal to original standard-fluidefilux time divided by dminage characreristics of cups (especially cups with capillaries).
lhe current one. Recommended viscosities for standard fluids
for such tests are given in Table X2.I. X2.4 Comparing Cups-It sometimes is necessaryto
compareone Zahn-type cup with anotherin order to settle a
X2.3 The viscosity of many standard fluids is very sensitive dispute,determinewhethera new cupwillgive similar timesto
to temperature variations, therefore, the temperaUlre of the an old one,etc. The most usualtechniqueis to dip both cups
fluid must.be controlled c1ose1yduring calibration testing. It is into lhe samecontainerof standardfluid at lhe sametime and
recornrnended that the fluid (and the cup) be he1d at the test oncelhe temperatureof bothcupshas stabilized,pull themout
temperaUlre for at 1east 15 mio prior to testing. together,timing both of them. The efilux times are compared
NOTEX2.1-Silicone fiuid viscosicy standardsare not recommended. and a correction factor can be calculated.Sometimespaiot or
Although they exhibic very licde viscosicy change with remperacure,they anothermaterial is substitutedfor lhe oil.
5
~~J~D 4212
X3.I Selectlhe appropriatestandardoil for lhe cup to be TABLE X3;1 ConstantsA for Use with Viscosity Formulas
checked(seeTable X2.I). Cup K c
X3.2 Bring lhe cup and lhe standardfluid to a constant Zahn
1 1.1 29
temperatureas close as possible to 77.0oP(25.0°C). Some 2 3.5 14
fluids soId as viscositystandardscan vary in viscosity by 2 to 3 11.7 7.5
4 14.8 5
18% perde~ee centigrade,higherviscositiestypicalIy having 5 23 O
lhe highercateof change.Determinelhe time of efilux to lhe Shell
nearest0.2 s usinglhe proceduredetailedin Section10.Record 1 0.226 13
lhe temperatureof lhe efilux stream.If it is not 77°P,correctlhe 2 0.576 5
21/2 0.925 3
viscosity of lhe standard fluid to lhe actual temperature. 3 1.51 2
Temperatureversus viscosity data is available from most. 31/2 2.17 1.5
4 3.45 1
suppliersof viscosity standards. 5 6.5 1
X3.3 Convert lhe time of flow in secondsto kinematic 6 16.2 0.5
viscosity as follows: Acup constants from Patton. T. C., Paint Flow and Pigment Dispe/Sion,second
edition. John Wiley & Sons, New Vori<. 1979, p. 82.
V= K(t -c) (X3.1)
where: literature.5,6
No equationsfor Shellcupshave beenpublished.
V = kinematic viscosity,cST (rnrn2/s)
t = eft1uxtime, s, and, X3.4 Calculatelhe correction factor by dividing lhe true
K, c = appropriateconstants(from TableX3.1). kinematic viscosity of lhe standardfiuid by lhe kinematic
X3.3.1 Theseequationsrepresentlinear or relatively linear viscositycalculatedfrom lhe eftlux time. This factor n1aYthen
portionsof the overall viscosity-timecurvesfor the cups.The be used to correct viscosityreadingstaken with lhe cup. The
linear equationshave been chosenbecauseit is much more product of lhe factor and an eftlux time gives a corrected
straightforward to rnake time corrections based on linear viscosity in Zahn or Shell seconds.
equationsthan on nonlinear ones and they are adequatefor
mostapplications.Zahn cup nonlinearequationsthat better fit SEuverard, M.. ASTM BuLletin. Vo1 162, No. 67, Oclober 1950.
viscosity curves for some cups better may be found in the 6 Pien:e, P. E., JoumaL (if Paint Technou)g)'.Vo142. Ko. 533. 1969,p. 383.
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