The elastic response of a cohesive aggregate—a discrete element model with coupled particle interaction

A model is presented for the deformation of a cohesive aggregate of elastic particles that incorporates two important effects of large-sized inter-particle junctions. A finite element model is used to derive a particle response rule, for both normal and tangential relative deformations between pairs of particles. This model agrees with the Hertzian contact theory for small junctions, and is valid for junctions as large as half the nominal particle size. Further, the aggregate model uses elastic superposition to account for the coupled force–displacement response due to the simultaneous displacement of all of the neighbors of each particle in the aggregate. A particle stiffness matrix is developed, relating the forces at each junction to the three displacement degrees of freedom at all of the neighboring-particle junctions. The particle response satisfies force and moment equilibrium, so that the model is properly posed to allow for rigid rotation of the particle without introducing rotational degrees of freedom. A computer-simulated sintering algorithm is used to generate a random particle packing, and the stiffness matrix is derived for each particle. The effective elastic response is then estimated using a mean field or affine displacement calculation, and is also found exactly by a discrete element model, solving for the equilibrium response of the aggregate to uniform-strain boundary conditions. Both the estimate and the exact solution compare favorably with experimental data for the bulk modulus of sintered alumina, whereas Hertzian contact-based models underestimate the modulus significantly. Poisson's ratio is, however, accurately determined only by the full equilibrium discrete element solution, and shown to depend significantly on whether or not rigid particle rotation is permitted in the model. Moreover, this discrete element model is sufficiently robust, so it can be applied to problems involving non-homogeneous deformations in such cohesive aggregates.     

考虑等效曲率的超二次曲面单元非线性接触模型

基于连续函数包络的超二次曲面单元可有效地描述自然界和工业生产中的非球体颗粒形态, 并通过非线性迭代方法精确计算单元间的接触力. 对于具有复杂几何形态的超二次曲面单元, 线性接触模型不能准确地计算不同接触模式下的作用力. 考虑超二次曲面单元相互作用时不同颗粒形状及表面曲率的影响, 本文发展了相应的非线性黏弹性接触模型. 该模型将不同接触模式下的法向刚度和黏滞力统一表述为单元间局部接触点处等效曲率半径的函数; 切向接触作用则借鉴基于Mohr-Coulomb摩擦定律的球体单元非线性接触模型的计算方法. 为检验超二次曲面单元接触模型的可靠性, 对球形颗粒间的法向碰撞、椭球体颗粒间的斜冲击过程、圆柱体的静态堆积和椭球体的动态卸料过程进行离散元模拟, 并与有限元数值结果及试验结果进行对比验证. 计算表明, 考虑接触点处等效曲率半径的超二次曲面非线性接触模型可准确地计算单元间的接触碰撞作用, 并合理地反映非球形颗粒体系的运动规律. 在此基础上进一步分析了不同长宽比和表面尖锐度对卸料过程中颗粒流动特性的影响, 为非球形颗粒材料的流动特性分析提供了一种有效的离散元方法.      

孤立波与半无限复合材料体耦合作用研究

基于一维颗粒链中产生的高度非线性孤立波,研究孤立波与半无限复合材料体的耦合作用。根据赫兹定律推导了一维颗粒链中颗粒间相互作用的运动微分方程,建立了颗粒链与半无限复合材料体的接触模型。对于颗粒与复合材料的接触,采用已有文献中修正后的赫兹定律,研究了高度非线性孤立波与半无限复合材料体的耦合力学作用机理,推导了颗粒链与半无限复合材料体的相互耦合运动微分方程组,通过数值计算,得到了各颗粒的内力、速度、位移曲线。分析了材料属性对回弹孤立波出现的时间、幅值的影响。结果表明:随着纤维方向弹性模量的增大,次级回弹波出现的时间和波幅都逐渐增大,随着垂直纤维方向弹性模量的增大,次级回弹波出现的时间先减小后增大,次级回弹波的幅值逐渐减小直至消失。     

A hysteretic model of localized frictional contacts with instrumental stiffness

The steady-state dynamic response of a single-degree-of-freedom system comprising both a hysteretic element and a spring is considered. The Hertz–Cattaneo–Mindlin theoretical framework for modeling of local tangential contact with friction is applied in conjunction with the Masing model of hysteresis to describe the hysteretic behavior of the multiple localized frictional contact interface. The steady-state tangential displacement amplitude of a rigid body under harmonic tangential force excitation is approximately determined by means of the equivalent linearization technique, based on the harmonic balance principle. A special attention is paid to the evaluation of the frictional damping and the determination of the backbone curve of the Masing model from the dissipation-amplitude relation.

     

考虑粗糙结合面弹塑性接触的黏滑摩擦建模

提出一种同时考虑粗糙面上微凸体弹性变形和塑性接触的切向黏滑摩擦建模方法.采用Hertz弹性理论和Mindlin解描述弹性接触微凸体的切向载荷和相对变形的关系;采用AF(Abbott-Firstone)塑性理论和Fuji moto模型描述塑性接触微凸体切向载荷和相对变形的关系.再利用GW(Greenwood-Williamson)模型统计分析方法建立粗糙表面切向载荷和相对变形之间的关系.将模型与仅考虑微凸体弹性接触情况的模型进行对比,并研究了不同塑性指数对切向载荷和相对变形关系的影响.结果表明:与完全弹性接触模型相比,论文模型引入了塑性接触理论,能够更好地描述粗糙表面切向载荷和相对变形关系,并且考虑不同接触条件下弹性变形微凸体和塑性变形微凸体对切向接触载荷的贡献,在微滑移阶段,主要由弹性接触变形影响,而在进入宏观滑移阶段之后,切向行为主要由塑性变形影响.界面切向载荷由黏着和滑移接触作用共同决定,随着切向变形的增加,滑移接触力逐渐增加,而黏着接触力先增加后减少,反映了界面由微滑移逐渐向宏滑移演化的过程.随着塑性指数的增加,粗糙面上发生塑性接触的微凸体数目逐渐增加,切向黏滑行为主要受到塑性接触特征的控制.     

柔性梁斜碰撞问题的非线性动力学建模和实验研究

本文研究柔性梁点面斜碰撞问题。用Hertz接触模型处理法向撞击力,分别用Hertz切向接触模型和Coulomb摩擦力模型处理粘滞状态和滑动状态的摩擦力。从精确的应变与位移的关系出发,用绝对节点坐标法建立了柔性梁的动力学方程。为了准确地处理斜碰撞切向运动的复杂状态,提出滑动-粘滞切换的准则,在此基础上,设计了斜碰撞实验,数值对比了法向撞击力和法向速度的时间历程的仿真计算结果与实验结果,验证了Hertz理论在斜碰撞情况下的正确性。另一方面切向速度的实验与理论的结果对照表明滑动-粘滞切换准则的有效性。     

Frictional contact of two rotating elastic disks

We study the problem of constrained uniform rotation of two precompressed elastic disks made of different materials with friction forces in the contact region taken into account. The exact solution of the problem is obtained by the Wiener-Hopf method.An important stage in the study of rolling of elastic bodies is the Hertz theory [1] of contact interaction of elastic bodies with smoothly varying curvature in the contact region under normal compression. Friction in the contact region is assumed to be negligible. If there are tangential forces and the friction in the contact region is taken into account, then the picture of contact interaction of elastic bodies changes significantly. Although the normal contact stress distribution strictly follows the Hertz theory for bodies with identical elastic properties and apparently slightly differs from the Hertz diagram for bodies made of different materials, the presence of tangential stresses results in the splitting of the contact region into the adhesion region and the slip region. This phenomenon was first established by Reynolds [2], who experimentally discovered slip regions near points of material entry in and exit from the contact region under constrained rolling of an aluminum cylinder on a rubber base. The theoretical justification of the partial slip phenomenon in the contact region, discovered by Reynolds [2], can be found in Carter [3] and Fromm [4]. Moreover, Fromm presents a complete solution of the problem of constrained uniform rotation of two identical disks. Apparently, Fromm was the first to consider the so-called “clamped” strain and postulated that slip is absent at the point at which the disk materials enter the contact region.Ishlinskii [5, 6] gave an engineering solution of the problem on slip in the contact region under rolling friction. Considering the problem on a rigid disk rolling on an elastic half-plane, we model this problem by an infinite set of elastic vertical rods using Winkler-Zimmermann type hypotheses. Numerous papers of other authors are surveyed in Johnson’s monograph [7].The exact solution of the problem on the constrained uniform rotation of precompressed rigid and elastic disks under the assumptions of Fromm’s theory is contained in the papers [8, 9]. In the present paper, we generalize the solution obtained in [8, 9] to the case of two elastic disks made of different materials.     

Transient rolling friction model for discrete element simulations of sphere assemblies

The rolling resistance between a pair of contacting particles can be modeled with two mechanisms. The first mechanism, already widely addressed in the DEM literature, involves a contact moment between the particles. The second mechanism involves a reduction of the tangential contact force, but without a contact moment. This type of rotational resistance, termed creep-friction, is the subject of the paper. Within the creep-friction literature, the term “creep” does not mean a viscous mechanism, but rather connotes a slight slip that accompanies rolling. Two extremes of particle motions bound the range of creep-friction behaviors: a pure tangential translation is modeled as a Cattaneo–Mindlin interaction, whereas prolonged steady-state rolling corresponds to the traditional wheel–rail problem described by Carter, Poritsky, and others. DEM simulations, however, are dominated by the transient creep-friction rolling conditions that lie between these two extremes. A simplified model is proposed for the three-dimensional transient creep-friction rolling of two spheres. The model is an extension of the work of Dahlberg and Alfredsson, who studied the two-dimensional interactions of disks. The proposed model is applied to two different systems: a pair of spheres and a large dense assembly of spheres. Although creep-friction can reduce the tangential contact force that would otherwise be predicted with Cattaneo–Mindlin theory, a significant force reduction occurs only when the rate of rolling is much greater than the rate of translational sliding and only after a sustained period of rolling. When applied to the deviatoric loading of an assembly of spheres, the proposed creep-friction model has minimal effect on macroscopic strength or stiffness. At the micro-scale of individual contacts, creep-friction does have a modest influence on the incremental contact behavior, although the aggregate effect on the assembly's behavior is minimal.     

CFD-DEM simulation of the hole cleaning process in a deviated well drilling: The effects of particle shape

We investigate the effect of particle shape on the transportation mechanism in well-drilling using a three-dimensional model that couples computational fluid dynamics (CFD) with the discrete element method (DEM). This numerical method allows us to incorporate the fluid–particle interactions (drag force, contact force, Saffman lift force, Magnus lift force, buoyancy force) using momentum exchange and the non-Newtonian behavior of the fluid. The interactions of particle−particle, particle−wall, and particle−drill pipe are taken into account with the Hertz–Mindlin model. We compare the transport of spheres with non-spherical particles (non-smooth sphere, disc, and cubic) constructed via the multi-sphere method for a range of fluid inlet velocities and drill pipe inclination angles. The simulations are carried out for laboratory-scale drilling configurations. Our results demonstrate good agreement with published experimental data. We evaluate the fluid–particle flow patterns, the particle velocities, and the particle concentration profiles. The results reveal that particle sphericity plays a major role in the fluid–solid interaction. The traditional assumption of an ideal spherical particle may cause inaccurate results.     

Dynamic coupling of fluid and structural mechanics for simulating particle motion and interaction in high speed compressible gas particle laden flow

In this work, structural finite element analyses of particles moving and interacting within high speed compressible flow are directly coupled to computational fluid dynamics and heat transfer analyses to provide more detailed and improved simulations of particle laden flow under these operating conditions. For a given solid material model, stresses and displacements throughout the solid body are determined with the particle–particle contact following an element to element local spring force model and local fluid induced forces directly calculated from the finite volume flow solution. Plasticity and particle deformation common in such a flow regime can be incorporated in a more rigorous manner than typical discrete element models where structural conditions are not directly modeled. Using the developed techniques, simulations of normal collisions between two 1 mm radius particles with initial particle velocities of 50–150 m/s are conducted with different levels of pressure driven gas flow moving normal to the initial particle motion for elastic and elastic–plastic with strain hardening based solid material models. In this manner, the relationships between the collision velocity, the material behavior models, and the fluid flow and the particle motion and deformation can be investigated. The elastic–plastic material behavior results in post collision velocities 16–50% of their pre-collision values while the elastic-based particle collisions nearly regained their initial velocity upon rebound. The elastic–plastic material models produce contact forces less than half of those for elastic collisions, longer contact times, and greater particle deformation. Fluid flow forces affect the particle motion even at high collision speeds regardless of the solid material behavior model. With the elastic models, the collision force varied little with the strength of the gas flow driver. For the elastic–plastic models, the larger particle deformation and the resulting increasingly asymmetric loading lead to growing differences in the collision force magnitudes and directions as the gas flow strength increased. The coupled finite volume flow and finite element structural analyses provide a capability to capture the interdependencies between the interaction of the particles, the particle deformation, the fluid flow and the particle motion.     

机械结合面切向接触阻尼计算模型

针对两粗糙表面在法向力和切向力共同作用下相互接触时结合面切向阻尼的问题进行了研究。首先,根据KE模型对单个微凸体在弹性、弹塑性、塑性变形阶段的切向接触行为进行了分析,获得了微凸体在三个变形阶段的黏滑特性;然后,基于GW统计模型建立了一种在微凸体法向弹性、弹塑性和塑性变形机制基础上,考虑微凸体黏滑摩擦行为的机械结合面切向接触阻尼统计模型;最后,分别讨论了机械结合面的法向预载荷、切向激振频率和切向动态位移幅值对机械结合面切向阻尼的影响。研究表明:结合面切向接触阻尼系数随着结合面法向载荷的增大而增大,随着切向激振频率和切向动态位移幅值的增大而减小;在高频率、大幅值下,结合面切向接触阻尼系数几乎与动态位移幅值和激振频率无关。为了验证模型的准确性,构建了动态切向力作用下的结合面切向阻尼试验,其试验结果与理论仿真变化规律与量级基本一致,从而证明了本文所提出的切向阻尼模型的有效性。      

Contact problems for a finitely deformed incompressible elastic halfspace

This paper examines the class of problems related to the interaction between a finitely deformed incompressible elastic halfspace and contacting elements that include smooth, flat rigid indenters with elliptical and circular shapes and a thick plate of infinite extent. The contact between the finitely deformed elastic halfspace and the contacting elements is assumed to be bilateral. The interaction between both the rigid circular indenter and the finitely deformed halfspace is induced by a Mindlin force that acts at the interior of the halfspace regions and by exterior loads. Similar considerations apply for the contact between the flexible plate of infinite extent and the finitely deformed elastic halfspace. The theory of small deformations superposed on large deformations proposed by Green et al. (Proc R Soc Ser A 211:128–155, 1952) is used as the basis for the formulation of the problem, and results of potential theory and integral transform techniques are used to develop the analytical results. In particular, explicit results are presented for the displacement of the rigid elliptical indenter and the maximum deflection of the flexible plate induced by the Mindlin forces, when the finitely deformed halfspace region has a strain energy function of the Mooney–Rivlin form.     

Mindlin??s Problem for a Halfspace Indented by a Flexible Plate

The paper deals with a contact problem for an isotropic elastic halfspace indented by a flexible circular plate and simultaneously subjected to a Mindlin-type axial force. The approach adopted is to solve the contact problem for the flexible circular plate and the elastic halfspace; this serves as the auxiliary solution to examine, via the Maxwell-Betti reciprocal theorem, the influence of the internal Mindlin force. The contact between the flexible plate and the elastic halfspace is solved using a variational approach. The net displacement of the flexible circular plate and the internal Mindlin force can be evaluated in analytical form. The result has applications to the in situ evaluation of the deformability characteristics of geologic media.     

基于扩展多面体的离散单元法及其作用于圆桩的冰载荷计算

对于具有复杂几何形态的多面体单元,线性接触模型不能准确地计算不同接触模式下的作用力,且接触变形和作用力方向也不易判断.基于闵可夫斯基和(Minkowski sum)方法的扩展多面体单元能够准确描述非规则颗粒单元的几何形态,并可精确计算单元间的接触碰撞作用.该方法具有接触判断简单、计算效率高的特点.它将基本多面体和扩展球体相叠加以形成具有光滑棱边和角点的扩展多面体单元.考虑扩展多面体单元相互作用过程中角点、棱边和平面之间的不同接触模式,发展了相应的非线性黏弹性接触模型. 该接触模型将不同接触模型下的法向刚度统一表述为单元接触中接触点处等效曲率半径的函数;黏滞力和切向弹性力接触模型则借鉴球体单元非线性接触模型的处理方法. 为检验扩展多面体的可靠性,对碎冰区冰块对圆桩结构的冰载荷进行了离散元分析. 采用沃洛诺伊(Voronoi)切割算法获得了碎冰的初始随机分布状态,并考虑了海冰在运动过程中的海水浮力和拖曳力.计算表明该扩展多面体单元可描述海冰在海流拖曳下的运动过程以及圆桩结构的动冰力特性.在此基础上进一步分析了冰速和冰块尺寸对圆桩冰力的影响,并确定了冰力在圆桩上的分布规律. 最后,讨论了目前扩展多面体单元在计算冰载荷方面的局限性和改进方法.      

A nonlocal contact formulation for confined granular systems

We present a nonlocal formulation of contact mechanics that accounts for the interplay of deformations due to multiple contact forces acting on a single particle. The analytical formulation considers the effects of nonlocal mesoscopic deformations characteristic of confined granular systems and, therefore, removes the classical restriction of independent contacts. This is in sharp contrast to traditional contact mechanics theories, which are strictly local and assume that contacts are independent regardless the confinement of the particles. For definiteness, we restrict attention to elastic spheres in the absence of gravitational forces, adhesion or friction. Hence, a notable feature of the nonlocal formulation is that, when nonlocal effects are neglected, it reduces to Hertz theory. Furthermore, we show that, under the preceding assumptions and up to moderate macroscopic deformations, the predictions of the nonlocal contact formulation are in remarkable agreement with detailed finite-element simulations and experimental observations, and in large disagreement with Hertz theory predictions—supporting that the assumption of independent contacts only holds for small deformations. The discrepancy between the extended theory presented in this work and Hertz theory is borne out by studying periodic homogeneous systems and disordered heterogeneous systems.     

An elasto-plastic model for granular materials with microstructural consideration

In this paper, we have extended the granular mechanics approach to derive an elasto-plastic stress–strain relationship. The deformation of a representative volume of the material is generated by mobilizing particle contacts in all orientations. Thus, the stress–strain relationship can be derived as an average of the mobilization behavior of these local contact planes. The local behavior is assumed to follow a Hertz–Mindlin’s elastic law and a Mohr–Coulomb’s plastic law. Essential features such as continuous displacement field, inter-particle stiffness, and fabric tensor are discussed. The predictions of the derived stress–strain model are compared to experimental results for sand under both drained and undrained triaxial loading conditions. The comparisons demonstrate the ability of this model to reproduce accurately the overall mechanical behavior of granular media and to account for the influence of key parameters such as void ratio and mean stress. A part of this paper is devoted to the study of anisotropic specimens loaded in different directions, which shows the model capability of considering the influence of inherent anisotropy on the stress–strain response under a drained triaxial loading condition.     

Continuous contact force models for impact analysis in multibody systems

One method for predicting the impact response of a multibody system is based on the assumption that the impacting bodies undergo local deformations and the contact forces are continuous. In a continuous analysis, the integration of the system equations of motion is carried out during the period of contact; therefore, a model for evaluating the contact forces is required. In this paper, two such contact force models are presented, both Hertzian in nature and based upon the direct-central impact of two solid particles.At low impact velocities, the energy dissipation during impact can be represented by material damping. A model is constructed based on the general trend of the Hertz contact law in conjuction with a hysteresis damping function. The unknown parameters are determined in terms of a given coefficient of restitution and the impact velocity. When local plasticity effects are the dominant factor accounting for the dissipation of energy at high impact velocities, a Hertzian contact force model with permanent indentation is constructed. Utilizing energy and momentum considerations, the unknown parameters in the model are again evaluated. The two particle models are generalized to an impact analysis between two bodies of a multibody system.     

Micromechanical study of elastic moduli of loose granular materials

In micromechanics of the elastic behaviour of granular materials, the macro-scale continuum elastic moduli are expressed in terms of micro-scale parameters, such as coordination number (the average number of contacts per particle) and interparticle contact stiffnesses in normal and tangential directions. It is well-known that mean-field theory gives inaccurate micromechanical predictions of the elastic moduli, especially for loose systems with low coordination number. Improved predictions of the moduli are obtained here for loose two-dimensional, isotropic assemblies. This is achieved by determining approximate displacement and rotation fields from the force and moment equilibrium conditions for small sub-assemblies of various sizes. It is assumed that the outer particles of these sub-assemblies move according to the mean field. From the particle displacement and rotation fields thus obtained, approximate elastic moduli are determined. The resulting predictions are compared with the true moduli, as determined from the discrete element method simulations for low coordination numbers and for various values of the tangential stiffness (at fixed value of the normal stiffness). Using this approach, accurate predictions of the moduli are obtained, especially when larger sub-assemblies are considered. As a step towards an analytical formulation of the present approach, it is investigated whether it is possible to replace the local contact stiffness matrices by a suitable average stiffness matrix. It is found that this generally leads to a deterioration of the accuracy of the predictions. Many micromechanical studies predict that the macroscopic bulk modulus is hardly influenced by the value of the tangential stiffness. It is shown here from the discrete element method simulations of hydrostatic compression that for loose systems, the bulk modulus strongly depends on the stiffness ratio for small stiffness ratios.     

Reaction Forces under Static Loading of a Wheel Pair with Camber

The static loading of a wheel pair with a deformable periphery is considered when the wheels are mounted on a common axle with a non-zero camber angle. A tire tread (protector) is modeled by a set of elastic rods interacting with the motion plane according to the dry friction law. The wheel camber effect on the slip in the contact zone and on the magnitude of reaction forces from the road is studied. An analog of the continuous model for a rod tread is discussed. The normal and tangential reaction forces are found depending on the vertical displacement of the center of the mechanical system under discussion.