67 research outputs found
Rearrangements and Dilatancy for Sheared Dense Materials
Constitutive equations are proposed for dense materials, based on the
identification of two types of free-volume activated rearrangements associated
to shear and compaction. Two situations are studied: the case of an amorphous
solid in a stress-strain test, and the case of a lubricant in tribology test.
Varying parameters, strain softening, shear thinning, and stick-slip motion can
be observed.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
Thick surface flows of granular materials: The effect of the velocity profile on the avalanche amplitude
A few years ago, Bouchaud al. introduced a phenomenological model to describe
surface flows of granular materials [J. Phys. Fr. I, 4, 1383 (1994)]. According
to this model, one can distinguish between a static phase and a rolling phase
that are able to exchange grains through an erosion/accretion mechanism.
Boutreux et al. [Phys. Rev. E, 58, 4692 (1998)] proposed a modification of the
exchange term in order to describe thicker flows where saturation effects are
present. However, these approaches assumed that the downhill convection
velocity of the grains is constant inside the rolling phase, a hypothesis that
is not verified experimentally. In this article, we therefore modify the above
models by introducing a velocity profile in the flow, and study the physical
consequences of this modification in the simple situation of an avalanche in an
open cell. We present a complete analytical description of the avalanche in the
case of a linear velocity profile, and generalize the results for a power-law
dependency. We show, in particular, that the amplitude of the avalanche is
strongly affected by the velocity profile.Comment: 7 figures, accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.
Spatially heterogeneous dynamics in granular compaction
We prove the emergence of spatially correlated dynamics in slowly compacting
dense granular media by analyzing analytically and numerically multi-point
correlation functions in a simple particle model characterized by slow
non-equilibrium dynamics. We show that the logarithmically slow dynamics at
large times is accompanied by spatially extended dynamic structures that
resemble the ones observed in glass-forming liquids and dense colloidal
suspensions. This suggests that dynamic heterogeneity is another key common
feature present in very different jamming materials.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
Exact Solutions of a Model for Granular Avalanches
We present exact solutions of the non-linear {\sc bcre} model for granular
avalanches without diffusion. We assume a generic sandpile profile consisting
of two regions of constant but different slope. Our solution is constructed in
terms of characteristic curves from which several novel predictions for
experiments on avalanches are deduced: Analytical results are given for the
shock condition, shock coordinates, universal quantities at the shock, slope
relaxation at large times, velocities of the active region and of the sandpile
profile.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figure
Stripes ordering in self-stratification experiments of binary and ternary granular mixtures
The self-stratification of binary and ternary granular mixtures has been
experimentally investigated. Ternary mixtures lead to a particular ordering of
the strates which was not accounted for in former explanations. Bouncing grains
are found to have an important effect on strate formation. A complementary
mechanism for self-stratification of binary and ternary granular mixtures is
proposed.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures. submitted for pubication, guess wher
The Role of Friction in Compaction and Segregation of Granular Materials
We investigate the role of friction in compaction and segregation of granular
materials by combining Edwards' thermodynamic hypothesis with a simple
mechanical model and mean-field based geometrical calculations. Systems of
single species with large friction coefficients are found to compact less.
Binary mixtures of grains differing in frictional properties are found to
segregate at high compactivities, in contrary to granular mixtures differing in
size, which segregate at low compactivities. A phase diagram for segregation
vs. friction coefficients of the two species is generated. Finally, the
characteristics of segregation are related directly to the volume fraction
without the explicit use of the yet unclear notion of compactivity.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Size Segregation of Granular Matter in Silo Discharges
We present an experimental study of segregation of granular matter in a
quasi-two dimensional silo emptying out of an orifice. Size separation is
observed when multi-sized particles are used with the larger particles found in
the center of the silo in the region of fastest flow. We use imaging to study
the flow inside the silo and quantitatively measure the concentration profiles
of bi-disperse beads as a function of position and time. The angle of the
surface is given by the angle of repose of the particles, and the flow occurs
in a few layers only near the top of this inclined surface. The flowing region
becomes deeper near the center of the silo and is confined to a parabolic
region centered at the orifice which is approximately described by the
kinematic model. The experimental evidence suggests that the segregation occurs
on the surface and not in the flow deep inside the silo where velocity
gradients also are present. We report the time development of the
concentrations of the bi-disperse particles as a function of size ratios, flow
rate, and the ratio of initial mixture. The qualitative aspects of the observed
phenomena may be explained by a void filling model of segregation.Comment: 6 pages, 10 figures (gif format), postscript version at
http://physics.clarku.edu/~akudrolli/nls.htm
Creep motion in a granular pile exhibiting steady surface flow
We investigate experimentally granular piles exhibiting steady surface flow.
Below the surface flow, it has been believed exisitence of a `frozen' bulk
region, but our results show absence of such a frozen bulk. We report here that
even the particles in deep layers in the bulk exhibit very slow flow and that
such motion can be detected at an arbitrary depth. The mean velocity of the
creep motion decays exponentially with depth, and the characteristic decay
length is approximately equal to the particle-size and independent of the flow
rate. It is expected that the creep motion we have seeen is observable in all
sheared granular systems.Comment: 3 pages, 4 figure
A coarse grained model of granular compaction and relaxation
We introduce a theoretical model for the compaction of granular materials by discrete vibrations which is expected to hold when the intensity of vibration is low. The dynamical unit is taken to be clusters of granules that belong to the same collective structure. We rigourously construct the model from first principles and show that numerical solutions compare favourably with a range of experimental results. This includes the logarithmic relaxation towards a statistical steady state, the effect of varying the intensity of vibration resulting in a so-called `annealing' curve, and the power spectrum of density fluctuations in the steady state itself. A mean-field version of the model is introduced which shares many features with the exact model and is open to quantitative analysi
Possible Stratification Mechanism in Granular Mixtures
We propose a mechanism to explain what occurs when a mixture of grains of
different sizes and different shapes (i.e. different repose angles) is poured
into a quasi-two-dimensional cell. Specifically, we develop a model that
displays spontaneous stratification of the large and small grains in
alternating layers. We find that the key requirement for stratification is a
difference in the repose angles of the two pure species, a prediction confirmed
by experimental findings. We also identify a kink mechanism that appears to
describe essential aspects of the dynamics of stratification.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, http://polymer.bu.edu/~hmakse/Home.htm
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