Murino Kobayakawa, Shinichiro Miyai, Takuya Tsuji, Toshitsugu Tanaka
Journal of Terramechanics, Volume 90, 2020, Pages 3-10, ISSN 0022-4898
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jterra.2019.08.006.
Abstract
The interaction between dry granular materials and an inclined plate is numerically studied using a three-dimensional discrete element method (DEM) simulation. In the simulation, a plate is dragged horizontally through densely packed dry granular materials. To examine the effect of the rake angle α of the plate on the drag force acting on the plate, three cases with α = 50°, 70°, and 90° are compared (α = 90° for a vertical plate). The results show that for all cases, the force oscillates as the plate advances. As α decreases, the amplitude and frequency of the force oscillation decrease and increase, respectively. The force oscillation is attributed to the periodic evolution of a shear band formed in the materials. The relationships between the rake angle, evolution of the shear band, and drag force can be explained quantitatively by using a three-dimensional wedge model considering the variation of the local volume fraction inside the shear band.
Keywords: Discrete element method; Dry granular materials; Plate drag; Rake angle; Local volume fraction; Shear band