Cost-effective production of density-controllable monodisperse spheres for experiments in fluids

Cost-effective production method for making density-controllable monodisperse spheres is demonstrated. A sodium alginate aqueous solution containing gelatin is emulsified with canola oil. The droplet surface is covered with a calcium alginate membrane by dropping the emulsion into a calcium lactate aqueous solution. The content of the canola oil can control the sphere's density. To demonstrate the applicability of the spheres to experimental research, rheological measurements of the suspensions of the spheres were performed. The effective viscosity agrees with the theoretical formula at volume fractions of 0.7%–11.7%. The demonstration highlights that the spheres can function as neutrally buoyant solid particles in studies for the physics of fluids.