Experimentally Measuring Rolling and Sliding in Three-Dimensional Dense Granular Packings

Zackery A. Benson, Anton Peshkov, Nicole Yunger Halpern, Derek C. Richardson, and Wolfgang Losert
Phys. Rev. Lett. 129, 048001 – Published 18 July 2022
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Abstract

We experimentally measure a three-dimensional (3D) granular system’s reversibility under cyclic compression. We image the grains using a refractive-index-matched fluid, then analyze the images using the artificial intelligence of variational autoencoders. These techniques allow us to track all the grains’ translations and 3D rotations with accuracy sufficient to infer sliding and rolling displacements. Our observations reveal unique roles played by 3D rotational motions in granular flows. We find that rotations and contact-point motion dominate the dynamics in the bulk, far from the perturbation’s source. Furthermore, we determine that 3D rotations are irreversible under cyclic compression. Consequently, contact-point sliding, which is dissipative, accumulates throughout the cycle. Using numerical simulations whose accuracy our experiment supports, we discover that much of the dissipation occurs in the bulk, where grains rotate more than they translate. Our observations suggest that the analysis of 3D rotations is needed for understanding granular materials’ unique and powerful ability to absorb and dissipate energy.

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  • Received 31 August 2021
  • Revised 20 January 2022
  • Accepted 1 June 2022

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.129.048001

© 2022 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Polymers & Soft MatterNonlinear DynamicsCondensed Matter, Materials & Applied PhysicsStatistical Physics & Thermodynamics

Authors & Affiliations

Zackery A. Benson1,2, Anton Peshkov3, Nicole Yunger Halpern1,4,5,6,7,*, Derek C. Richardson8, and Wolfgang Losert1,2

  • 1Institute for Physical Science and Technology, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742, USA
  • 2Department of Physics, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742, USA
  • 3Department of Physics, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York, USA
  • 4ITAMP, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA
  • 5Department of Physics, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA
  • 6Research Laboratory of Electronics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA
  • 7Center for Theoretical Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA
  • 8Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742, USA

  • *Corresponding author. nicoleyh@umd.edu

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Issue

Vol. 129, Iss. 4 — 22 July 2022

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