Capillary cohesion and mechanical strength of polydisperse granular materials

• Published in: The European physical journal. E, Soft matter and biological physics Vol. 21; no. 4; pp. 349 - 357
• Main Authors: SOULIE, F, EL YOUSSOUFI, M. S, CHERBLANC, F, SAIX, C
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Heidelberg Springer 01-12-2006; EDP Sciences: EPJ
• Subjects: Condensed Matter; Cross-disciplinary physics: materials science; rheology; Engineering Sciences; Exact sciences and technology; Granular solids; Material form; Materials science; Mathematical Physics; Mechanics; Mechanics of materials; Physics; Porous materials; granular materials; Rheology; Soft Condensed Matter; Specific materials; Cohesion; Capillarity; Particle interactions; Granular materials; Compressive testing; Digital simulation; Liquid column; Modelling; Experimental study
• ISSN: 1292-8941; 1292-895X
• DOI: 10.1140/epje/i2006-10076-2

We investigate the macroscopic mechanical behaviour of wet polydisperse granular media. Capillary bonding between two grains of unequal diameters is described by a realistic force law implemented in a molecular-dynamics algorithm together with a protocol for the distribution of water in the bulk. Axial-compression tests are simulated for granular samples at different levels of water content, and compared to experiments performed in similar conditions. We find good agreement between numerical and experimental data in terms of the rupture strength as a function of water content. Our results show the importance of the distribution of water for the mechanical behaviour.