A method is proposed for calculating
the shear viscosity of a liquid
from finite-size effects of self-diffusion coefficients in Molecular
Dynamics simulations. This method uses the difference in the self-diffusivities,
computed from at least two system sizes, and an analytic equation
to calculate the shear viscosity. To enable the efficient use of this
method, a set of guidelines is developed. The most efficient number
of system sizes is two and the large system is at least four times
the small system. The number of independent simulations for each system
size should be assigned in such a way that 50%–70% of the total
available computational resources are allocated to the large system.
We verified the method for
250 binary and 26 ternary Lennard-Jones systems, pure water, and an
ionic liquid ([Bmim][Tf2N]). The computed shear viscosities
are in good agreement with viscosities obtained from equilibrium Molecular
Dynamics simulations for all liquid systems far from the critical
point. Our results indicate that the proposed method is suitable for
multicomponent mixtures and highly viscous liquids. This may enable
the systematic screening of the viscosities of ionic liquids and deep
eutectic solvents.
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