Shear Thickening Fluid-Based Protective Structures Against High Velocity Impacts

Abstract

Shear thickening fluid (STF) constitutes a special class of non-Newtonian fluids, which exhibit a transition from low to high viscosity state under shear forces. Due to this unique characteristic of STF, this fluid is extensively used in shock, impact, and vibration mitigation applications. In the last few decades, STF has been integrated into personal protection equipment such as helmets, hip protection pads, and puncture resistant gloves. There is an extensive literature available on STF characterization at low strain rates; however, there is a limited literature about the high strain rate response of STF. To fill this gap, this chapter presents a thorough review on STF-based protective structures against high velocity impacts as well as emphasizing the essential properties in an STF to make it suitable for such applications.