Velocity correlations in dense granular flows observed with internal imaging

Phys Rev Lett. 2007 Jun 8;98(23):238001. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.98.238001. Epub 2007 Jun 4.

Abstract

We show that the velocity correlations in uniform dense granular flows inside a silo are similar to the hydrodynamic response of an elastic hard-sphere liquid. The measurements are made using a fluorescent refractive-index-matched interstitial fluid in a regime where the flow is dominated by grains in enduring contact and fluctuations scale with the distance traveled, independent of flow rate. The velocity autocorrelation function of the grains in the bulk shows a negative correlation at short time and slow oscillatory decay to zero similar to simple liquids. Weak spatial velocity correlations are observed over several grain diameters. The mean square displacements show an inflection point indicative of caging dynamics. The observed correlations are qualitatively different at the boundaries.

Publication types

  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Motion*
  • Particle Size*