Defining a “temperature” for granular materials would allow them to be described with an equation of state. Read More »
Although a loose collection of beads doesn’t transmit normal sound waves, it transmits isolated mechanical pulses that refract and reflect at an interface much like ordinary waves. Read More »
Experiments with a granular system have confirmed a temperature-like variable that could lead to an equation of state for this class of materials. Read More »
Experiments on a bed of plastic beads reveal a temperature-dependent stiffening over time, which appears to be related to molecular-scale deformations. Read More »
A reformulation of the statistical mechanics of granular materials replaces the volume of the material with a function related to its structure. Read More »
Experiments on soft granular materials have allowed researchers to derive a rheological description for these materials by extending an established framework valid for hard granular materials. Read More »
Grain in a silo is supported to some extent by static friction with the walls, which couldn’t happen in a water-filled silo. But a similar granular material can behave more like water. Read More »
Simulations of porous materials exhibit internal stress patterns like those in granular materials, despite the fact that these two systems are practically “negative images” of each other. Read More »
A specially designed layer of granular material can provide improved protection against sudden impacts, a theorist predicts. Read More »
The flow properties of foams may not be that different from those of granular materials. Read More »
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