Granular column collapses result in an array of flow phenomena and deposition morphologies, the understanding of which brings insights into studying granular flows in both natural and engineering systems. Guided by experiments, we carried out computational studies with the discrete element method (DEM) to identify fundamental links between the macro-scale behavior and micro-scale properties of granular columns. A physics-based non-dimensional number combining particle and bulk properties of the column, $α_{\textrm{eff}}$, was found to determinate three collapse regimes (quasi-static, inertial, and liquid-like), revealing universal trends of flow regimes and deposition morphologies under different conditions. This non-dimensional number represents physically the competing inertial and frictional effects that govern the behavior of the granular column collapse, including energy conversion and dissipation. The finding is important for understanding quantitatively the flow of granular materials and their deposits.
Deposition of smaller granular particles on a larger nucleus particle has been simulated in two-dimension using molecular dynamics method. Variation of sequences of velocity of deposited particles is conducted and reported in this work. The sequences obey a normal distribution function of velocity with the same parameters. It has been observed that for velocity in range of 0 to 0.02 the densest deposited site (15-17 % number of grains) is located at about angle π/4 where location of injection point is π/4. And the less dense is about π/4 + π/2. Different sequences give similar result.
Simulation results are presented on the collapse of granular columns composed of rod-like particles. Columns can be stable and free-standing if either the friction coefficient is large enough, or the rods long enough. Destabilizing gravitational forces are counteracted by increased frictional forces between the rods. Different to columns made of spherical particles this is possible, because rod contacts can slide along the rod axes to generate the necessary "frictional cohesion".
We investigate the dynamics of granular columns of point particles that interact via long-range hydrodynamic interactions and fall under the action of gravity. We investigate the influence of inertia using the Green's function for the Oseen equation. The initial conditions (density and aspect ratio) are systematically varied. Our results suggest that universal self-similar laws may be sufficient to characterize the temporal and structural evolution of the granular columns. A characteristic time above which an instability is triggered (which may enable the formation of clusters) is also retriev…
We investigate granular column collapses with different column cross-sections and associate the cross-section shape influence with a finite-size analysis. Previous research, confined to initially circular configurations, reviewed the importance of granular column collapse studies and concluded that the run-out distance scales with the initial aspect ratio. In this work, granular columns with three different types of initial column cross-sections (square, equilateral triangular, and rectangular cross-sections) are simulated using the discrete element method (DEM). We explore how non-circular cr…
We report sets of precise and reproducible measurements on the static pressure at the bottom of a granular column. We make a quantitative analysis of the pressure saturation when the column height is increased. We evidence a great sensitivity of the measurements with the global packing fraction and the eventual presence of shear bands at the boundaries. We also show the limit of the classical Janssen model and discuss these experimental results under the scope of recently proposed theoretical frameworks.
The dynamical behavior of the column that made up binary granular beads is investigated systematically by tracking the displacement of particles in the collapse process. An experimental setup is first devised to control the quasi-static collapse of a granular column, and then observe the trajectories of tracer particles by using an industrial camera controlled by the image acquisition program. It is found that there exist two zones in column: a sliding region in which particles are moving in a layered structure; a static region within which particles are stationary. According to this analytica…
We study experimentally the distribution of local stresses in a granular material confined inside a vertical cylinder. We use an image correlation technique to measure the displacement field of the container induced by the forces exerted by the grains on the inner wall. We describe an optimization procedure based on the linear theory of elastic shells to deduce the distribution of these forces from the measured displacement field. They correspond to the stress field of the granular material close to the container's inner wall. We first confirm the validity of Janssen's description for various …
We study the structural properties of two-dimensional granular packings prepared by random deposition from a source line. We consider a class of random ballistic deposition models based on single-particle relaxation rules controlled by a critical angle, and we show that these local rules can be formulated as rolling friction in the framework of dynamic methods for the simulation of granular materials. We find that a packing prepared by random deposition models is generically unstable, and undergoes dynamic rearrangements. As a result, the dynamic method leads systematically to a higher solid f…
We report a time-resolved study of the dynamics associated with the slow compaction of a granular column submitted to thermal cycles. The column height displays a complex behavior: for a large amplitude of the temperature cycles, the granular column settles continuously, experiencing a small settling at each cycle; By contrast, for small-enough amplitude, the column exhibits a discontinuous and intermittent activity: successive collapses are separated by quiescent periods whose duration is exponentially distributed. We then discuss potential mechanisms which would account for both the compacti…
In this letter, we focus on the size effect of granular column collapses, which are potentially connected to the dynamics of complex geophysical flows, even if the link between microscopic structures of granular assemblies and their macroscopic behaviors is still not well understood. Using the sphero-polyhedral discrete element method (DEM), we show that the column radius/grain size ratio has a strong influence on the collapse behavior. A finite-size analysis, which is inspired by a phase transition around an inflection point, is performed to obtain a general scaling equation with critical exp…
The transmission rules of interparticle forces between granular particles were analyzed, and a discrete packing model was proposed to calculate the static pressure at the bottom of granular material confined in a vertical column. The mechanical analysis and numerical simulation results indicate that the silo effect is caused by the frictional contacts between border particles and inner walls, the static pressure at the bottom depends on the external load initially, and then tends to a saturation pressure (Pn) in an exponential form. The saturation pressure (Pn) is positive linear related to th…
We simulate via a Discrete Element Method the tapping of a narrow column of disk under gravity. For frictionless disks, this system has a simple analytic expression for the density of states in the Edwards volume ensemble. We compare the predictions of the ensemble at constant compactivity against the results for the steady states obtained in the simulations. We show that the steady states cannot be properly described since the microstates sampled are not in correspondence with the predicted distributions, suggesting that the postulates of flat measure and ergodicity are, either or both, inval…
As deposits accumulate in a granular filter, pressure drop across the filter bed required to maintain a constant fluid flow rate may increase. Two pressure drop increase patterns had been observed. In slow sand filters pressure drop remains unchanged for a certain period of time then increases exponentially with the volume of filtrate; in granular aerosol filters pressure drop increases linearly with the amount of deposits from the beginning of the filtration process. New concepts of homogeneous and heterogeneous depositions were introduced in this paper. A statistical model based on these new…
Loose granular structures stabilized against gravity by an effective cohesive force are investigated on a microscopic basis using contact dynamics. We study the influence of the granular Bond number on the density profiles and the generation process of packings, generated by ballistic deposition under gravity. The internal compaction occurs discontinuously in small avalanches and we study their size distribution. We also develop a model explaining the final density profiles based on insight about the collapse of a packing under changes of the Bond number.
We study the geometrically induced cohesion of ensembles of granular "u-particles" which mechanically entangle through particle interpenetration. We vary the length-to-width ratio $l/w$ of the u-particles and form them into free-standing vertical columns. In laboratory experiment we monitor the response of the columns to sinusoidal vibration (frequency $f$, peak acceleration $Γ$). Column collapse occurs in a characteristic time, $τ$, which follows the relation $τ= f^{-1} \exp(Δ/ Γ)$. $Δ$ resembles an activation energy and is maximal at intermediate $l/w$. Simulation reveals that optimal streng…
We find the collapse of columns of granular rods to show range of behaviors that depends on particle aspect ratio (length $L$ to diameter $d$) and initial pile geometry (height/radius). For all aspect ratios $L/d$ below 24 there exists a critical height at $L/4$ below which the pile acts as a solid, maintaining its initial shape, and a second critical height at $3L/4$ above which the pile always collapses like an ordinary granular material. Separating the critical heights is a transition region in which the probability of collapse increases linearly from 0 to 1. This behavior is independent of…
Using a specially designed experimental set up, we have studied the so-called continuous to intermittent flow transition in sand piles confined in a Hele-Shaw cell where the deposition height of the sand can be controlled. Through systematic measurements varying the height and the input flow, we have established, for the first time, how the size of the pile at which the transition takes place depends on the two parameters studied. The results obtained allows to explain, at least semi-quantitatively, the observations commonly reported in the literature, carried out in experiments where the depo…
For a fundamental understanding of terrain relaxation occurring on sloped surfaces of terrestrial bodies, we analyze the crater shape produced by an impact on an inclined granular (dry-sand) layer. Owing to asymmetric ejecta deposition followed by landsliding, the slope of the impacted inclined surface can be relaxed. Using the experimental results of a solid projectile impact on an inclined dry-sand layer, we measure the distance of centroid migration induced by asymmetric cratering. We find that the centroid migration distance $x_\mathrm{mig}$ normalized to the crater minor-axis diameter $D_…
We present new experimental results on the mechanical behavior of static granular assemblies confined in a vertical column. Our measurements confirm, for the first time, the universal Janssen's scaling for the stress saturation curve. We show consequently, in the context of isotropic elasticity, a relation between the Poisson ratio and granular packing fraction. Moreover, using a systematic study of the overshoot effect created by a top mass equal to the saturation mass, we show behaviors reproduced qualitatively by isotropic elastic materials but in the case of a granular assembly of a specta…
When grains are added to a cylinder, the weight at the bottom is smaller than the total weight of the column, which is partially supported by the lateral walls through wall/grain frictional forces. This is known as the Janssen effect. Via a combined experimental and numerical investigation, here we demonstrate a reverse Jansen effect whereby the fraction of the weight supported by the base overcomes one. We characterize the dependence of this phenomenon on the various control parameters involved, rationalize the physical process responsible for the emergence of the compressional frictional for…
The behaviour of a vertically vibrated granular bed is reminiscent of a liquid in that it exhibits many phenomena such as convection and Faraday-like surface waves. However, when the lateral dimensions of the bed are confined such that a quasi-one-dimensional geometry is formed, the only phenomena that remain are bouncing bed and the granular Leidenfrost effect. This permits the observation of the granular Leidenfrost state for a wide range of energy injection parameters, and more specifically allows for a thorough characterisation of the low-frequency oscillation (LFO) that is present in this…
This paper investigates the effect of initial volume fraction on the runout characteristics of collapse of granular columns on slopes in fluid. Two-dimensional sub-grain scale numerical simulations are performed to understand the flow dynamics of granular collapse in fluid. The Discrete Element (DEM) technique is coupled with the Lattice Boltzmann Method (LBM), for fluid-grain interactions, to understand the evolution of submerged granular flows. The fluid phase is simulated using Multiple- Relaxation-Time LBM (LBM-MRT) for numerical stability. In order to simulate interconnected pore space in…
Results on a generalized magnetically controlled ballistic deposition (MBD) model of granular piles are reported in order to search for the effect of "spin flip" probability q in building a granular pile. Two different regimes of spin cluster site distributions have been identified, a border line $q_c(βJ)$ where J is the interaction potential strength.
In this letter, we report results on the effect of temperature variations on a granular assembly through Molecular Dynamic simulations of a 2D granular column. Periodic dilation of the grains are shown to perfectly mimic such thermal cycling, and allows to rationalize the link between the compaction process, the local grains dynamics and finite size effects. Here we show that the individual grain properties, namely their roughness and elastic modulus define a minimal cycling amplitude of temperature ΔTc below which the dynamics is intermittent and spatially heterogeneous while confined into lo…
We identify arches in a bed of granular disks generated by a molecular dynamic-type simulation. We use the history of the deposition of the particles to identify the supporting contacts of each particle. Then, arches are defined as sets of mutually stable disks. Different packings generated through tapping are analyzed. The possibility of identifying arches from the static structure of a deposited bed, without any information on the history of the deposition, is discussed.
We present a continuum approach to model segregation of size-bidisperse granular materials in unsteady bounded heap flow as a prototype for modeling segregation in other time varying flows. In experiments, a periodically modulated feed rate produces stratified segregation like that which occurs due to intermittent avalanching, except with greater layer-uniformity and higher average feed rates. Using an advection-diffusion-segregation equation and characterizing transient changes in deposition and erosion after a feed rate change, we model stratification for varying feed rates and periods. Feed…
Using an event-driven molecular dynamics simulation, we show that simple monodisperse granular beads confined in coupled columns may oscillate as a new type of granular clock. To trigger this oscillation, the system needs to be driven against gravity into a density-inverted state, with a high-density clustering phase supported from below by a gas-like low-density phase (Leidenfrost effect) in each column. Our analysis reveals that the density-inverted structure and the relaxation dynamics between the phases can amplify any small asymmetry between the columns, and lead to a giant oscillation. T…
We find that a column of glass beads exhibits a well-defined transition between two phases that differ in their resistance to shear. Pulses of fluidization are used to prepare static states with well-defined particle volume fractions $ϕ$ in the range 0.57-0.63. The resistance to shear is determined by slowly inserting a rod into the column of beads. The transition occurs at $ϕ=0.60$ for a range of speeds of the rod.
This paper deals with the experimental characterization of the collapse of wet granular columns in the pendular state, with the purpose of collecting data on triggering and jamming phenomena in wet granular media. The final deposit shape and the runout dynamics were studied for samples of glass beads, varying particle diameter, liquid surface tension, and liquid amount. We show how the runout distance decreases with increasing water amount (reaching a plateau for $w>1 \%$) and increases with increasing Bond number, while the top and toe angles and the final deposit height increase with increas…
Gravity-driven collapses involving large amounts of dense granular material, such as landslides, avalanches, or rockfalls, in a geophysical context, represent significant natural hazards. Understanding their complex dynamics is hence a key concern for risk assessment. In the present work, we report experiments on the collapse of quasi-two-dimensional dry granular columns under the effect of gravity, where both the velocity at which the grains are released and the aspect ratio of the column are varied to investigate the dynamics of the falling grains. At high release velocity, classical power l…
Static granular packs have been studied in the last three decades in the frame of a modified equilibrium statistical mechanics that assumes ergodicity as a basic postulate. The canonical example on which this framework is tested consists in the series of static configurations visited by a granular column subjected to taps. By analyzing the response of a realistic model of grains, we demonstrate that volume and stress variables visit different regions of the phase space at low tap intensities in different realizations of the experiment. We show that the tap intensity beyond which sampling by ta…
For fundamentally characterizing the effect of hierarchical structure in granular matter, a set of compression-relaxation tests for dust particles and glass beads confined in a cylindrical cell was performed. Typical diameter of both grains is approximately 1~mm. However, dust particles are produced by binding tiny ($\sim 5$~{\textmu}m) glass beads. The granular columns were compressed with a piston until reaching a maximum load force of 20~N with a constant compression rate $v$ ($0.17 \leq v \leq 2000$~{\textmu}m~s$^{-1}$). After that, the piston was stopped and the relaxation process was qua…
The Beverloo scaling for the gravity flow of granular materials through orifices has two distinct universal features. On the one hand, the flow rate is independent of the height of the granular column. On the other hand, less well-known yet more striking, the flow rate is fairly insensitive to the material properties of the grains (density, Young's modulus, friction coefficient, etc.). We show that both universal features are lost if work is done on the system at a high rate. In contrast to viscous fluids, the flow rate increases during discharge if a constant pressure is applied to the free s…
We studied experimentally the effect of grain size and maximum load on the compaction and subsequent relaxation of a granular column when it is subjected to vertical uniaxial compression. The experiments were performed using two different types of grains: 1) solid glass beads, and 2) porous beads that consist of agglomerates of glass powder. We found that the compression force increases non-linearly with time, with sudden drops for the case of glass beads and periodic undulations for dust particles. Whereas the grain size effect is small in the average force load, the fluctuations become large…
We investigate the flow and jamming through small apertures of a column of granular disks via a pseudo-dynamic model. We focus on the effect that the preparation of the granular assembly has on the size of the avalanches obtained. Ensembles of packings with different mean packing fractions are created by tapping the system at different intensities. Surprisingly, packing fraction is not a good indicator of the ability of the deposit to jam a given orifice. Different mean avalanche sizes are obtained for deposits with the same mean packing fraction that were prepared with very different tap inte…
A generalized so called magnetically controlled ballistic rain-like deposition (MBD) model of granular piles has been numerically investigated in 2D. The grains are taken to be elongated disks whence characterized by a two-state scalar degree of freedom, called ''nip'', their interaction being described through a Hamiltonian. Results are discussed in order to search for the effect of nip flip (or grain rotation from vertical to horizontal and conversely) probability in building a granular pile. The characteristics of creation of + (or $-$) nip's clusters and clusters of holes (missing nips) ar…
Architectural structures such as masonry walls or columns exhibit a slender verticality, in contrast to the squat, sloped forms obtained with typical unconfined granular materials. Here we demonstrate the ability to create freestanding, weight-bearing, similarly slender and vertical structures by the simple pouring of suitably shaped dry particles into a mold that is subsequently removed. Combining experiments and simulations we explore a family of particle types that can entangle through their non-convex, hooked shape. We show that Z-shaped particles produce granular aggregates which can eith…
We investigate, at a laboratory scale, the collapse of cylindrical shells of radius $R$ and thickness $t$ induced by a granular discharge. We measure the critical filling height for which the structure fails upon discharge. We observe that the silos sustain filling heights significantly above an estimation obtained by coupling standard shell-buckling and granular stress distribution theories. Two effects contribute to stabilize the structure: (i) below the critical filling height, a dynamical stabilization due to granular wall friction prevents the localized shell-buckling modes to grow irreve…
We revisit the problem of compaction of a column of granular matter exposed to discrete taps. We accurately control the vertical motion of the column, which allows us to vary the duration T and the amplitude A of single-cycle sinusoidal taps independently. We find that the density of the material at the reversible branch depends both on A and T. By comparing the densities on the reversible branches obtained for a range of values of T, we find that we can collapse all data when plotted as function of A/T, which scales similar to both the liftoff velocity and the time of flight of the packing. W…
Pebble-bed nuclear reactor technology, which is currently being revived around the world, raises fundamental questions about dense granular flow in silos. A typical reactor core is composed of graphite fuel pebbles, which drain very slowly in a continuous refueling process. Pebble flow is poorly understood and not easily accessible to experiments, and yet it has a major impact on reactor physics. To address this problem, we perform full-scale, discrete-element simulations in realistic geometries, with up to 440,000 frictional, viscoelastic 6cm-diameter spheres draining in a cylindrical vessel …
We present experimental results on slow flow properties of a granular assembly confined in a vertical column and driven upwards at a constant velocity V. For monodisperse assemblies this study evidences at low velocities ($1<V<100 μm/s$) a stiffening behaviour i.e. the stress necessary to obtain a steady sate velocity increases roughly logarithmically with velocity. On the other hand, at very low driving velocity ($V<1 μm/s$), we evidence a discontinuous and hysteretic transition to a stick-slip regime characterized by a strong divergence of the maximal blockage force when the velocity goes to…
In this letter, we investigate the transient rheological behavior of immersed granular flows using both experiments of submerged granular column collapses and corresponding numerical simulations. The simulations are performed with the lattice-Boltzmann method (LBM) coupled with the discrete element method (DEM) and provide a significant amount of data of the stress and deformation conditions at different positions and times during the granular collapse. We derive a new dimensionless number $\mathcal{G}$ that can unify the rheology of transient granular flows in different regimes for all the si…
The kinematic flow pattern in slow deformation of a model dense granular medium is studied at high resolution using \emph{in situ} imaging, coupled with particle tracking. The deformation configuration is indentation by a flat punch under macroscopic plane-strain conditions. Using a general analysis method, velocity gradients and deformation fields are obtained from the disordered grain arrangement, enabling flow characteristics to be quantified. The key observations are the formation of a stagnation zone, as in dilute granular flow past obstacles; occurrence of vortices in the flow immediatel…
In this article, we present a predictive model for the amplitude of impulse waves generated by the collapse of a granular column into a water layer. The model, which combines the spreading dynamics of the grains and the wave hydrodynamics in shallow water, is successfully compared to a large dataset of laboratory experiments, and captures the influence of the initial parameters while giving an accurate prediction. Furthermore, the role played on the wave generation by two key dimensionless numbers, i.e., the global Froude number and the relative volume of the immersed deposit, is rationalized.…
The variation of metallic particle size and sample porosity significantly alters the dynamic mechanical properties of high density granular composites processed using a cold isostatically pressed mixture of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), aluminum (Al) and tungsten (W) powders. Quasi-static and dynamic experiments are performed with identical constituent mass fractions with variations in the size of the W particles and pressing conditions. The relatively weak polymer matrix allows the strength and fracture modes of this material to be governed by the granular type behavior of agglomerated meta…
Basal force fluctuations and granular rheology: Linking macroscopic descriptions of granular flows to bed forces with implications for monitoring signals
