Strong dynamical effects during stick-slip adhesive peeling

We consider the classical problem of the stick-slip dynamics observed when peeling a roller adhesive tape at a constant velocity. From fast imaging recordings, we extract the dependencies of the stick and slip phases durations with the imposed peeling velocity and peeled ribbon length. Predictions of Maugis and Barquins [in Adhesion 12, edited by K.W. Allen, Elsevier ASP, London, 1988, pp. 205--222] based on a quasistatic assumption succeed to describe quantitatively our measurements of the stick phase duration. Such model however fails to predict the full stick-slip cycle duration, revealing strong dynamical effects during the slip phase.Comment: Soft Matter 201

Instabilité de Stick-Slip lors du pelage d'un adhésif

This thesis presents a mainly experimental study of the stick-slip instability during the peeling of adhesive tape.We developed different experimental set-ups, allowing us to observe directly the jerky dynamics during peeling. The experiments are conducted at an imposed velocity and different geometries: the adhesive is peeled directly from a roller, or from a flat substrate at a fixed angle. On the one hand, we highlight the existence of strong dynamical effects, which cannot be understood with the existing theoretical models. On the other hand, we show the crucial effect of the peeling angle on the instability, which is strongly reduced at large angles (both its amplitude and range of existence decrease). Besides, a new theoretical approach, taking into account the ribbon inertia, can allow us to understand partially the experimental observations.Finally, we show that the stick-slip instability is multi-scale: a secondary instability can occur at spatial and temporal scales smaller than the usually observed stick-slip. While the main instability is due to variations of the stretching elastic energy, this secondary instability is driven by the release of the bending energy stored in the ribbon.Cette thèse de doctorat présente une étude essentiellement expérimentale de l'instabilité de stick-slip lors du pelage d'adhésifs.Nous avons développé différents dispositifs expérimentaux permettant d'observer directement la dynamique de rupture saccadée du pelage. Les expériences sont réalisées à vitesse imposée dans différentes géométries : l'adhésif est pelé directement depuis son rouleau, ou depuis un substrat plan à angle imposé. D'une part, nous avons mis en évidence d'importants effets dynamiques, que les modèles théoriques actuels ne permettent pas d'expliquer. D'autre part, nous avons montré l'effet crucial de l'angle de pelage sur l'instabilité, qui est fortement réduite (en amplitude et en gamme d'existence) pour de grands angles. De plus, une nouvelle approche théorique, prenant en compte l'inertie du ruban, permet de comprendre en partie ces résultats expérimentaux.Enfin, nous démontrons que l'instabilité de stick-slip est multi-échelle, en mettant en évidence la présence d'une instabilité secondaire, à des échelles temporelles et spatiales plus faibles que le stick-slip observé habituellement. Alors que l'instabilité principale est causée par des variations d'énergie élastique d'élongation, cette instabilité secondaire est pilotée par un relâchement de l'énergie de courbure du ruban

Morphodynamics of Fluid-Fluid Displacement in Three-Dimensional Deformable Granular Media

We study experimentally the displacement of one fluid by another in a granular pack to uncover relationships between fluid invasion and medium deformation. We develop an experimental setup that allows us to reconstruct the coupled invasion-deformation dynamics in 3D. We simultaneously characterize the fluid invasion pattern and document a transition from fluid-fluid displacement in pores to the formation of conduits by grain motion. We rationalize the findings in terms of a simple poromechanics model that indeed captures this transition as a result of the balance between viscous and frictional forces. These results contribute to elucidating the role of three dimensionality in the timing, mode, and morphology of fluid-fluid displacement and injection-induced deformation in porous media.United States. Department of Energy (Grant DE-SC0018357

Multiscale Stick-Slip Dynamics of Adhesive Tape Peeling

Using a high-speed camera, we follow the propagation of the detachment front during the peeling of an adhesive tape from a flat surface. In a given range of peeling velocity, this front displays a multiscale unstable dynamics, entangling two well-separated spatiotemporal scales, which correspond to microscopic and macroscopic dynamical stick-slip instabilities. While the periodic release of the stretch energy of the whole peeled ribbon drives the classical macro-stick-slip, we show that the micro-stick-slip, due to the regular propagation of transverse dynamic fractures discovered by Thoroddsen et al. [Phys. Rev. E 82, 046107 (2010)], is related to a high-frequency periodic release of the elastic bending energy of the adhesive ribbon concentrated in the vicinity of the peeling front.Comment: to appear in Physical Review Letters (2015

Flowers in flour: avalanches in cohesive granular matter.

We report on the intermittent dynamics of the free surface of a cohesive granular material during a silo discharge. In absence of cohesion, one observes the formation and the growth of a conical crater whose angle is well-defined and constant in time. When the cohesion is involved, the free surface exhibits a complex dynamics and the crater, resulting from a series of individual avalanches, is no longer axi-symmetric. However, in spite of the intermittent behavior of the free surface, the flow-rate is observed to remain constant throughout the discharge

Intermittent stick-slip dynamics during the peeling of an adhesive tape from a roller

We study experimentally the fracture dynamics during the peeling at a constant velocity of a roller adhesive tape mounted on a freely rotating pulley. Thanks to a high speed camera, we measure, in an intermediate range of peeling velocities, high frequency oscillations between phases of slow and rapid propagation of the peeling fracture. This so-called stick-slip regime is well known as the consequence of a decreasing fracture energy of the adhesive in a certain range of peeling velocity coupled to the elasticity of the peeled tape. Simultaneously with stick-slip, we observe low frequency oscillations of the adhesive roller angular velocity which are the consequence of a pendular instability of the roller submitted to the peeling force. The stick-slip dynamics is shown to become intermittent due to these slow pendular oscillations which produce a quasi-static oscillation of the peeling angle while keeping constant the peeling fracture velocity (averaged over each stick-slip cycle). The observed correlation between the mean peeling angle and the stick-slip amplitude questions the validity of the usually admitted independence with the peeling angle of the fracture energy of adhesives.Comment: Forthcoming in Physical Review

Aggregation of frictional particles due to capillary attraction

Capillary attraction between identical millimeter sized spheres floating at a liquid-air interface and the resulting aggregation is investigated at low Reynolds number. We show that the measured capillary forces between two spheres as a function of distance can be described by expressions obtained using the Nicolson approximation at low Bond numbers for far greater particle sizes than previously assumed. We find that viscous hydrodynamics interactions between the spheres needs to be included to describe the dynamics close to contact. We then consider the aggregates formed when a third sphere is added after the initial two spheres are already in contact. In this case, we find that linear superposition of capillary forces describes the observed approach qualitatively but not quantitatively. Further, we observe an angular dependence of the structure due to a rapid decrease of capillary force with distance of separation which has a tendency to align the particles before contact. When the three particles come in contact, they may preserve their shape or rearrange to form an equilateral triangle cluster - the lowest energy state - depending on the competition between attraction between particles and friction. Using these observations, we demonstrate that a linear particle chain can be built from frictional particles with capillary attraction.Comment: accepted for Physical Review

Repulsion and Attraction between a Pair of Cracks in a Plastic Sheet

We study the interaction of two collinear cracks in polymer sheets slowly growing towards each other, when submitted to uniaxial stress at a constant loading velocity. Depending on the sample’s geometry—specifically, the initial distances d between the two cracks’ axes and L between the cracks’ tips—we observe different crack paths with, in particular, a regime where the cracks repel each other prior to being attracted. We show that the angle θ characterizing the amplitude of the repulsion—and specifically its evolution with d—depends strongly on the microscopic behavior of the material. Our results highlight the crucial role of the fracture process zone. At interaction distances larger than the process zone size, crack repulsion is controlled by the microscopic shape of the process zone tip, while at shorter distances, the overall plastic process zone screens the repulsion interaction.Peer reviewe

Multi-scale stick-slip during the peeling of adhesive tape

We study the stick-slip instability when peeling an adhesive tape from a flat substrate at an imposed driving velocity. Using a high-speed camera mounted on a microscope, we image either the detachment front, or the ribbon profile at microscopic scale, while simultaneously recording acoustic emissions. In a given range of driving velocity, the peeling displays a multi-scale unstable dynamics, with two well-separated spatio-temporal scales, which corresponds to microscopic and macroscopic dynamical stick-slip instabilities. We show that the microscopic stick-slip dynamics -- which presents very different characteristics than the well-known macroscopic instability -- is related to a high-frequency periodic release of the elastic bending energy of the adhesive ribbon concentrated at the vicinity of the peeling front. Moreover, we also show that it corresponds to the recently observed periodic propagation of fast transverse fractures across the tape width in the ultrasonic range

Repulsion and attraction in a couple of cracks

We have performed an experimental study of the interaction of two collinear cracks in different polymer sheets submitted to uniaxial stress at a constant imposed velocity. Depending on the samples geometry and the material used, we could observe that the two cracks interact in different ways. More specifically, we could observe different crack trajectories, with in particular, a repulsive regime, which evolves systematically with the initial vertical crack separation d. We show that the angle characterizing the amplitude of the repulsion - and specifically its evolution with d - depends strongly on the microscopic behavior of the material. We provide a physical interpretation of our results, based on the observation of different shape and size of the fracture process zone in the different samples studied. At interaction distances larger than the process zone size, the microscopic shape of the process zone tip controls the amplitude of the crack repulsion, contrary to the macroscopic mechanical behavior of the material