It is very common in science for methods and procedures, as well as tests, to be named after the scientist or researcher involved in the development of the specific application. This the way that the Mooney viscosity test was named, as well as the specific testing equipment that is used in the process.
The History
Melvin Mooney was an American scientist that was an early pioneer in the area of rheology. He was also a physicist, earning his Ph.D. in physics in 1923 from the University of Chicago.
After graduating, he went on to work for the United States Rubber Company. Here he developed the Mooney viscometer which is used in the Mooney viscosity test. During the same period of time, he also assisted in developing a new law, the Mooney-Rivlin law, which described hyperelastic stress-strain in rubber.
The Mooney Viscometer
The basics of the Mooney viscosity test using the Mooney viscometer include heating the rubber or elastomer through heated dies. The equipment also uses a rotating spindle.
The rubber, in sheet form, is cut in rounds from sheets that are no less than six and no more than 8 millimeters thick. There is a hole punched in the middle of these 45mm rounds. The rounds are then slid onto a rotator shaft, and the shaft is heated, with the torque measured throughout a timed spin. By timing this and knowing the torque vulcanization rate of the rubber or elastomer can be determined.
The results are provided in MU or Mooney Units, and it will be important to consider the temperature range that the viscometer is able to obtain as well as the rotor speed, size the motor drive.
Most of the new Mooney viscometers are completely controlled by microprocessors allowing for very accurate temperature and rotor speed control and torque readings throughout the various stages of the test.
