Common Liquid Viscosity Chart

Our viscosity chart can help you get an idea of how thick your product is. While these are only average estimates, it is useful to have an idea of the viscosity of your product when working with one of our filling system experts. It can also be a great resource when trying to find an appropriate filling pump to be used with your system. If you do not see your product listed, or are unsure of its viscosity, one of our filling system experts would be more than glad to provide assistance.

Approximate Viscosities of Common Materials
(At Room Temperature-70°F)
MaterialViscosity in Centipoise
Water1 cps
Milk3 cps
SAE 10 Motor Oil85-140 cps
SAE 20 Motor Oil140-420 cps
SAE 30 Motor Oil420-650 cps
SAE 40 Motor Oil650-900 cps
Castrol Oil1,000 cps
Karo Syrup5,000 cps
Honey10,000 cps
Chocolate25,000 cps
Ketchup50,000 cps
Mustard70,000 cps
Sour Cream100,000 cps
Peanut Butter250,000 cps
Click Here To Download More Viscosities Of Common Liquids

Viscosity

Viscosity is the measurement of a fluid's internal resistance to flow. This is typically designated in units of centipoise or poise but can be expressed in other acceptable measurements as well. Some conversion factors are as follows:

  • 100 Centipoise = 1 Poise
  • 1 Centipoise = 1 mPa s (Millipascal Second)
  • 1 Poise = 0.1 Pa s (Pascal Second)
  • Centipoise = Centistoke x Density

Newtonian materials are referred to as true liquids since their viscosity or consistency is not affected by shear such as agitation or pumping at a constant temperature. Water and oils are examples of Newtonian liquids.

Thixotropic materials reduce their viscosity as agitation or pressure is increased at a constant temperature. Ketchup and mayonnaise are examples of thixotropic materials. They appear thick or viscous but actually pump quite easily.

Paste viscosity is a vague term the viscosity of many materials but needs further definition to design a machine. Some paste viscosity materials will seek their own level or flow slowly and the shorter the time it takes, the easier they are to pump. Others do not seek their own level or flow at all and require pressure to move them from the supply container (cartridges. pails or drums) to the metering pump. These materials require special consideration regarding their feeding into metering pumps to assure the metering pump does not cavitate or to prevent air from being introduced into the material.

One way to differentiate between easy and difficult to flow pastes is to obtain Brookfield viscosities using the same spindle at two different rotational speeds, usually a tenfold difference (e.g. 1 RPM and 10 RPM). This will provide a"thixotropic index" for the particular material. The higher the difference in viscosity at the two speeds, the more thixotropic the material is and easier to pump.

To reduce the viscosity of paste materials to allow easier pumping, heat is often applied. The following graph illustrates how a typical filled epoxy resin reduces in viscosity as it is heated.

viscosity and heated

Solid materials at room temperature that are designed to be melted to allow pumping require heating above their melt point before they become a liquid. Maintaining heat on this material throughout the metering system (feed tank, pump, material supply hose, mixer, etc.) is normally

critical to preventing this material from resolidifying somewhere in the system. A heated cabinet that encapsulates all wetted components of the machine is typically employed instead of just heat blanketing the various components.

Typically, the closer the "A" and "B" materials are in viscosity, the easier they will be to mix. The most difficult materials will have a high viscosity "taffy-like" consistency for one-component with a water thin viscosity as the other component.

Viscosity Conversion Chart

The following viscosities are based on materials with a specific gravity of one.

Centipoise (CPS) or Millipascal (mPas)Poise (P)Centistokes (CKS)Stokes (S)Saybolt Universal (SSU)
10.0110.0131
20.0220.0234
40.0440.0438
70.0770.0747
100.1100.160
150.15150.1580
200.2200.2100
250.24250.24130
300.3300.3160
400.4400.4210
500.5500.5260
600.6600.6320
700.7700.7370
800.8800.8430
900.9900.9480
10011001530
1201.21201.2580
1401.41401.4690
1601.61601.6790
1801.81801.8900
200220021000
2202.22202.21100
2402.42402.41200
2602.62602.61280
2802.82802.81380
300330031475
3203.23203.21530
3403.43403.41630
3603.63603.61730
3803.83803.81850
400440041950
4204.24204.22050
4404.44404.42160
4604.64604.62270
4804.84804.82380
500550052480
5505.55505.52660
600660062900
700770073380
800880083880
900990094300
1000101000104600
1100111100115200
1200121200125620
1300131300136100
1400141400146480
1500151500157000
1600161600167500
1700171700178000
1800181800188500
1900191900199000
2000202000209400
2100212100219850
22002222002210300
23002323002310750
24002424002411200
25002525002511600
30003030003014500
35003535003516500
40004040004018500
45004545004521000
50005050005023500
55005555005526000
60006060006028000
65006565006530000
70007070007032500
75007575007535000
80008080008037000
85008585008539500
90009090009041080
95009595009543000
150001501500015069400
200002002000020092500
3000030030000300138500
4000040040000400185000
5000050050000500231000
6000060060000600277500
7000070070000700323500
8000080080000800370000
9000090090000900415500
10000010001000001000462000
12500012501250001250578000
15000015001500001500694000
17500017501750001750810000
20000020002000002000925000

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