Shear-thickening induced by Faraday waves in dilute wormlike micelles

Abstract

We investigate the effect of surface waves generated by the Faraday instability on a shear-thickening surfactant solution under vertical vibrations. We show that a prolonged oscillation of the surface above the instability onset leads to an increase of the fluid viscosity. This phenomenon is evidenced by comparing the time needed for the instability to develop in the fluid at rest and once the fluid has been shaken above onset: pre-shaking may delay the instability by two orders of magnitude. A simple model based on a time-dependent viscosity is proposed which accounts quantitatively for the experimental observations.