Shear Behaviors of Confined Flow: Insights for Understanding the Influences of Fractal Particle Size Distribution on High Mobility of Granular Flows

Abstract Granular flows, such as rockslide debris flows, can reach high velocities and travel vast distances, but mechanisms behind this high mobility remain elusive. Using the Discrete Element Method, we implement confined shear flow with fractal particle size distribution to study the physical mec...

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Main Authors: Zhaowei Ding, Wei Hu, Chingshung Chang, Yan Li, Gonghui Wang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2024-07-01
Series:Geophysical Research Letters
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1029/2024GL108956
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author Zhaowei Ding
Wei Hu
Chingshung Chang
Yan Li
Gonghui Wang
author_facet Zhaowei Ding
Wei Hu
Chingshung Chang
Yan Li
Gonghui Wang
author_sort Zhaowei Ding
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Granular flows, such as rockslide debris flows, can reach high velocities and travel vast distances, but mechanisms behind this high mobility remain elusive. Using the Discrete Element Method, we implement confined shear flow with fractal particle size distribution to study the physical mechanisms inside the highly localized basal zones. Our results show that the shear strength of confined flow decreases at large fractal dimensions, and a notable transition in shear behavior also occurs with increasing fractal dimension: large particles exhibit low granular temperature and act as solid phase within a semi‐diluted suspension, and small particles enter the rolling regime. The small particles behave as interstitial fluids and reduce the shear strength of confined flow. We suggest that the reduction of shear strength stemming from the fractal particle size distribution may provide insights into the mechanisms within the highly localized basal zones, ultimately contributing to the high mobility of granular flows.
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issn 0094-8276
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publishDate 2024-07-01
publisher Wiley
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series Geophysical Research Letters
spelling doaj-art-4663fe154e0b4891995e37cd89ae7bef2025-08-20T01:51:55ZengWileyGeophysical Research Letters0094-82761944-80072024-07-015114n/an/a10.1029/2024GL108956Shear Behaviors of Confined Flow: Insights for Understanding the Influences of Fractal Particle Size Distribution on High Mobility of Granular FlowsZhaowei Ding0Wei Hu1Chingshung Chang2Yan Li3Gonghui Wang4State Key Laboratory of Geo‐Hazard Prevention and Geo‐Environment Protection Chengdu University of Technology Chengdu ChinaState Key Laboratory of Geo‐Hazard Prevention and Geo‐Environment Protection Chengdu University of Technology Chengdu ChinaDepartment of Civil and Environmental Engineering University of Massachusetts Amherst MA USAState Key Laboratory of Geo‐Hazard Prevention and Geo‐Environment Protection Chengdu University of Technology Chengdu ChinaDPRI Kyoto University Kyoto JapanAbstract Granular flows, such as rockslide debris flows, can reach high velocities and travel vast distances, but mechanisms behind this high mobility remain elusive. Using the Discrete Element Method, we implement confined shear flow with fractal particle size distribution to study the physical mechanisms inside the highly localized basal zones. Our results show that the shear strength of confined flow decreases at large fractal dimensions, and a notable transition in shear behavior also occurs with increasing fractal dimension: large particles exhibit low granular temperature and act as solid phase within a semi‐diluted suspension, and small particles enter the rolling regime. The small particles behave as interstitial fluids and reduce the shear strength of confined flow. We suggest that the reduction of shear strength stemming from the fractal particle size distribution may provide insights into the mechanisms within the highly localized basal zones, ultimately contributing to the high mobility of granular flows.https://doi.org/10.1029/2024GL108956particle size distributionfractal dimensiongranular flowshigh mobility
spellingShingle Zhaowei Ding
Wei Hu
Chingshung Chang
Yan Li
Gonghui Wang
Shear Behaviors of Confined Flow: Insights for Understanding the Influences of Fractal Particle Size Distribution on High Mobility of Granular Flows
Geophysical Research Letters
particle size distribution
fractal dimension
granular flows
high mobility
title Shear Behaviors of Confined Flow: Insights for Understanding the Influences of Fractal Particle Size Distribution on High Mobility of Granular Flows
title_full Shear Behaviors of Confined Flow: Insights for Understanding the Influences of Fractal Particle Size Distribution on High Mobility of Granular Flows
title_fullStr Shear Behaviors of Confined Flow: Insights for Understanding the Influences of Fractal Particle Size Distribution on High Mobility of Granular Flows
title_full_unstemmed Shear Behaviors of Confined Flow: Insights for Understanding the Influences of Fractal Particle Size Distribution on High Mobility of Granular Flows
title_short Shear Behaviors of Confined Flow: Insights for Understanding the Influences of Fractal Particle Size Distribution on High Mobility of Granular Flows
title_sort shear behaviors of confined flow insights for understanding the influences of fractal particle size distribution on high mobility of granular flows
topic particle size distribution
fractal dimension
granular flows
high mobility
url https://doi.org/10.1029/2024GL108956
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