Mechanical degradation of water-soluble acrylamide copolymer under a turbulent flow: Effect of molecular weight and temperature

An experimental study of the turbulent drag reduction (DR) performance of water-soluble poly(acrylamide-co-acrylic acid) copolymers with two different molecular weights in a rotating disk apparatus is reported. The DR efficiency of very dilute polymer solutions was measured to relate their DR activity to molecular parameters, such as molecular weight, concentration, temperature, and rotational speed of the disk. Experimental results show that polymers with high molecular weights and high concentrations exhibit a persistent DR activity to mechanical degradation under a turbulent flow.

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