Sample preparation of dense granular materials Influence of void ratio e and coordination number Z^* on the mechanical behaviour at failure

Abstract

This paper presents a Discrete Element Method (DEM) study of assemblies of 5041 frictional discs, with periodic boundary conditions and confined by an external isotropic load. In order to generate samples with different internal state variables like the void ratio and coordination number, we present two different numerical procedures. The first technique, which has been widely used in the literature for many years, consists in controlling the coefficient of friction between particles to adjust the density of the samples, which directly influences the coordination number. The second technique is inspired by the previous one but adds an extra step of dynamic mixing with intergranular contacts lubrication. This makes it possible to control quasi independently the void ratio and the coordination number in the case of dense samples. These two types of samples are subjected to simple shear to analyse the influence of the sample preparation procedure on their macroscopic mechanical behaviour.

Effects of intergranular friction and grain size distributions on the initial void ratio of granular sample

“…Additionally, the behavior of granular assembly is also affected by the coordination number. This is somewhat shown by several authors [34,35]. Future research could explore the combined effects of void ratio and coordination number on granular behavior.…”