Edinburgh Napier University

  This paper discusses the differences between the results of various measurements of the effective tensile strength (F c ) of liquids in experiments involving a pulse of tension (‘negative pressure’) created by the reflection of a pressure pulse at a boundary. Using a modified ‘bullet-piston’ (B-P) pulse reflection apparatus, measurements presented herein show that degassed, deionized water is capable of sustaining tensions an order of magnitude greater than previously reported in B-P work. Results are also reported for a series of Newtonian silicone oils which show a similar dependence of F c on the shear viscosity (μ) as a previous study though the absolute values of F c are greater.