Article first published online: 30 DEC 2011International audienceIn this article, we present a numerical method to deal with fluid-solid interactions and simulate particle-fluid systems as encountered in soils. This method is based on a coupling between two methods, now widely used in mechanics of granular media and fluid dynamics respectively: the discrete element (DE) method and the lattice Boltzmann (LB) method. The DE method is employed to model interactions between particles, whereas the LB method is used to describe an interstitial Newtonian fluid flow. The coupling presented here is a full one in the sense that particle motions act on fluid flow and reciprocally. This article presents in details each of the two methods and the principle of the coupling scheme. Determination of hydrodynamic forces and torques is also detailed, and the treatment of boundaries is explained. The coupled method is finally illustrated on a simple example of piping erosion, which puts in evidence that the combined LB-DE scheme constitutes a promising tool to study coupled problems in geomechanics

Internal erosion in soils is characterized by a first step of detachment of solid particles from the granular skeleton under the action of a water seepage; then the detached particles are transported with the water flow. For some erosion processes, as suffusion, transported particles may finally be redeposited within the interstitial space of the soil itself acting as a filter. This paper focuses on the analysis and the description of the two first steps of particle detachment and transport in the cases of erosion by suffusion and piping erosion. The analysis is mainly based on direct numerical simulations performed with a fully coupled discrete element-lattice Boltzmann method (DE-LB method). Inter-particle interactions occurring in the solid granular phase are described with the discrete element method, whereas dynamics of the water flow is solved with the lattice Boltzmann method. Simulation results show that internal erosion of the solid phase can be described either from the hydraulic shear stress or from the power expended by the water seepage.The latter description based on the flow power is finally compared with experimental results from laboratory tests.

We have performed extensive experimental and numerical studies of spontaneous percolation of small beads through an unconsolidated porous media made with large glass beads. In this paper, an experimental setup and a fast "discrete element method" algorithm are presented to deal with large numbers of particles during our interparticle percolation phenomenon studies. In all the experimental and numerical analyses, the size ratio between the moving beads and the stable packing was chosen larger than the geometrical trapping threshold: xi_{c}=(2/sqrt[3]-1);{-1}=6.464... . We measure the longitudinal and transverse dispersion coefficients versus the height of the porous medium or the number of falling small beads. The influence of bead properties such as density, diameter, or restitution coefficients was investigated by using either steel or glass beads. The individual description of these effects and their explanations were made possible by confrontation and coupling between experimental and numerical results. Indeed, with our numerical model, individual analysis of the effects of these mechanical or geometrical parameters were made possible and carried out.

In this paper, we study the transport of particles through a porous structure. Experimentally, we focus our attention on the dependence of the mean transit time on some parameters like the number of small particles injected in the structure, and the height of the packing. We have developed a numerical model, based on a DEM method, to simulate the experiment. This model is useful for accessing the internal structure of the packing and for analysing precisely the influence of the restitution coefficient and the size ratio between spheres.

A numerical investigation of jamming effect during the spontaneous interparticle percolation process of small beads through an unconsolidated porous media has been performed. The size ratio between the moving beads and the ones building up the porous medium was chosen larger than the geometrical trapping threshold: ξ(c)=(2/√3]-1)(-1)=6.464.... In this paper, we used the discrete element method algorithm to study the rebounds of particles on the top of the porous medium and the transit times of an assembly of particles through it. Several parameters such as the number of injected particles, the size ratio between beads, and the energy restitution coefficient are investigated. This study leads to give some important results of the evolution of the transit time versus the contiguous volume occupied by the percolating particles.

In this work, Discrete Element Method (DEM) is used in order to calculate the motion of granular material in rotating dryers. We are particularly interested in analysing the effect of flight shape on the behaviour of spherical particles in the cross section of the dryer. We will be using two segments flights and three different profiles : a straight flight (180 • between both segments), an angled flight (with an angle of 120 •) and a rightangled flight (90 •). The results show that the profile of the flight affects significantly the motion of the particles in the cross section of the dryer. Changing the angle between the segment's flight, changes the flight loading and thus the material holdup which leads to different discharging profiles of the flight. For a right angled flight, the range of the discharge angle increases leading to a more uniformized cascade pattern in time and an enlarging of the area occupied by the curtains of particles. The specific durations (discharging time, falling time) are also determined and studied as a function of the flight shape.

This paper presents a theoretical description of a particle motion in a rotary dryer equipped with straight lifters distributed on its periphery. In this configuration, the transport of granular materials occurs with cyclic cascades that can be decomposed into three phases: lifting, discharging, and falling into the air stream. In order to describe each of these phases, we have focused on the motion of a single particle in a rotating drum. In this condition, the analytical solution of the motion equation of each phase is found. With these solutions, the position and the velocity of the particle at any time are thus expressed as a function of physical parameters of the particle, physical parameters of the drum, and physical parameters of air in the drum, called operating parameters in practice. With these equations, we are able to calculate the behaviour of the particle as a function of the operating parameters. The transposition to the industrial context is made with an application. We show how these equations particularly permit the estimation of the Mean Residence Time (MRT) of material during the drying process as a function of operating parameters. Such estimations have been validated by comparison with experimental data of MRT found in the literature. The work presented in this paper gives some useful mathematical relations for whose who are interested in drum design optimization (lifter length, drum radius, drum length, etc.). More specifically, they can be used to help with the choice of operational parameters values that would achieve a given value of MRT for particular product.

Motion and deposition of solid particles in fibrous filter with circular, diamond, and square fibers are numerically investigated. A coupled Lattice Boltzmann (LB) and discrete element (DE) method is presented and applied to simulate the filtration process in particulate flow, taking into account the mutual interaction between fluid and particle. The influence of pertinent parameters such as the Reynolds number, the particle-to-fiber diameter ratio, and the particle-to-fluid density ratio on filtration performance (pressure drop and capture efficiency) is analyzed for fibrous filter with different fiber cross-sectional shapes. The simulation results indicate that both the pressure drop and the capture efficiency of filter are considerably affected by the fiber’s shape. Dimensionless drag force increases with the Reynolds number when Re > 1. The filter with diamond fiber has a lower pressure drop than that of the circular and square cases. Meanwhile, the deposition of particles on the surface of square fiber is more favorable. From the filter quality factor standpoint, filter with diamond fiber exhibits a better filtration performance.