Aggregation kinetics of a concentrated colloidal suspension under oscillatory flow

The aggregation behavior of an attractive colloidal silica suspension under oscillatory flow is studied using rheological measurement. We show that the competition between the aggregation of the particles and the aggregate breakup under external stress leads to a non-monotonous evolution of the elastic modulus with time. Remarkably, under certain conditions, the elasticity is not an increasing function of time but exhibits a maximum. The value of the maximum of the elastic modulus depends on the applied shear amplitude and the ionic strength of the suspension. Scaling laws that describes the evolutions of the elastic modulus as a function of the salinity and of the deformation amplitude are proposed and discussed.