scholarly journals An expression for the angle of repose of dry cohesive granular materials on Earth and in planetary environments

2021 ◽  
Vol 118 (38) ◽  
pp. e2107965118
Author(s):  
Filip Elekes ◽  
Eric J. R. Parteli

The angle of repose—i.e., the angle θr between the sloping side of a heap of particles and the horizontal—provides one of the most important observables characterizing the packing and flowability of a granular material. However, this angle is determined by still poorly understood particle-scale processes, as the interactions between particles in the heap cause resistance to roll and slide under the action of gravity. A theoretical expression that predicts θr as a function of particle size and gravity would have impact in the engineering, environmental, and planetary sciences. Here we present such an expression, which we have derived from particle-based numerical simulations that account for both sliding and rolling resistance, as well as for nonbonded attractive particle–particle interactions (van der Waals). Our expression is simple and reproduces the angle of repose of experimental conical heaps as a function of particle size, as well as θr obtained from our simulations with gravity from 0.06 to 100 times that of Earth. Furthermore, we find that heaps undergo a transition from conical to irregular shape when the cohesive to gravitational force ratio exceeds a critical value, thus providing a proxy for particle-scale interactions from heap morphology.

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Shengqiang Jiang ◽  
Chunyan Duan ◽  
Yixuan Ye ◽  
Chao Tang ◽  
Xiaodong Chen

Powder fluidity is one of the important factors affecting the smoothness of selective laser sintered parts and the mechanical properties of sintered parts. In this paper, the angle of repose (AOR) and angle of internal friction of nylon PA3200 powder were measured by a powder comprehensive tester and a direct shear tester to evaluate the flow properties of the powder particles. Based on the discrete element method (DEM), the rolling resistance contact model and the van der Waals force model were used to describe the interaction forces between the powder particles. The rolling resistance coefficient and friction coefficient within the contact model were calibrated by the results of the AOR experiments. Based on the orthogonal experimental method, the particle size and particle size distribution (PSD) (such as uniform distribution and Gaussian distribution) were selected as the influencing factors, and the effect of particle size and PSD on the fluidity of nylon PA3200 powder was studied by numerical simulation. The results show that the PSD has a stronger influence on the AOR than particle size, and the fluidity of uniform distribution is better than that of the Gaussian distribution.


2008 ◽  
Vol 130 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Piroz Zamankhan

Large scale, three dimensional computer simulations of a dense aggregative bed were performed to provide insight into the physics behind bubble formation in vertically vibrated granular materials in a shaker. As the shaker acceleration exceeds a critical value, turbulent fluctuations proportional to the particle size were produced to promote fractures at the interface between the gas and particles suspended in the gas near the bottom of the shaker. As the wave fronts pass, the solid fractures took the form of sharply defined regions of very low solids fraction (air cavities) that rose through the bed with a speed that depends on their size. The nucleation of bubbles is found to be of the heterogeneous type.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (14) ◽  
pp. 6278
Author(s):  
Mengmeng Wu ◽  
Jianfeng Wang

The inhomogeneous distribution of contact force chains (CFC) in quasi-statically sheared granular materials dominates their bulk mechanical properties. Although previous micromechanical investigations have gained significant insights into the statistical and spatial distribution of CFC, they still lack the capacity to quantitatively estimate CFC evolution in a sheared granular system. In this paper, an artificial neural network (ANN) based on discrete element method (DEM) simulation data is developed and applied to predict the anisotropy of CFC in an assembly of spherical grains undergoing a biaxial test. Five particle-scale features including particle size, coordination number, x- and y-velocity (i.e., x and y-components of the particle velocity), and spin, which all contain predictive information about the CFC, are used to establish the ANN. The results of the model prediction show that the combined features of particle size and coordination number have a dominating influence on the CFC’s estimation. An excellent model performance manifested in a close match between the rose diagrams of the CFC from the ANN predictions and DEM simulations is obtained with a mean accuracy of about 0.85. This study has shown that machine learning is a promising tool for studying the complex mechanical behaviors of granular materials.


2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 041-048
Author(s):  
Benson Chinweuba Udeh

This study is on the production of quicklime from Ashaka limestone through calcination process. Effects of temperature, particle size and time on quicklime yield were determined. The experiment was carried out at temperatures of 800, 900, 1000, 1100 and 1200 0C, particle sizes of 80mm, 90mm, 100mm, 300mm and 425mm and times of 0.5hr, 1hr, 2hrs, 3hrs and 4hrs. Analyses of the results showed that quicklime was successfully produced from Ashaka limestone through the calcination process. Quadratic model adequately described the relationship between quicklime yield and calcination factors of temperature, particle size and time. Recorded model F-value of 134.35 implies that the model is significant. The predicted R² of 0.9597 is in reasonable agreement with the adjusted R² of 0.9844; the difference is less than the critical value of 0.2. Optimum yield of 73.48% was obtained at optima operating conditions; temperature of 1000 0C, particle size of 90 µm and time of 3 hrs.


2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (9) ◽  
pp. 190374 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yongjun Wang ◽  
Xiaoming Zhang ◽  
Hemeng Zhang ◽  
Kyuro Sasaki

This study investigates the effects of temperature gradient and coal particle size on the critical self-ignition temperature T CSIT of a coal pile packed with low-rank coal using the wire-mesh basket test to estimate T CSIT based on the Frank–Kamenetskii equation. The values of T CSIT , the temperature gradient and the apparent activation energy of different coal pile volumes packed with coal particles of different sizes are measured. The supercriticality or subcriticality of the coal is assessed using a non-dimensional index I HR based on the temperature gradient at the temperature cross-point between coal and ambient temperatures for coal piles with various volumes and particle sizes. The critical value I HRC at the boundary between supercriticality and subcriticality is determined as a function of pile volume. The coal status of supercritical or subcritical can be separated by critical value of I HR as a function of pile volume. Quantitative effects of coal particle size on T CSIT of coal piles are measured for constant pile volume. It can be concluded that a pile packed with smaller coal particles is more likely to undergo spontaneous combustion, while the chemical activation energy is not sensitive to coal particle size. Finally, the effect of coal particle size on T CSIT is represented by the inclusion of an extra term in the equation giving T CSIT for a coal pile.


2021 ◽  
Vol 377 ◽  
pp. 666-675
Author(s):  
Ragunanth Venkatesh ◽  
Miha Brojan ◽  
Igor Emri ◽  
Arkady Voloshin ◽  
Edvard Govekar

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