Adaptive model reduction for nonsmooth discrete element simulation

A method for adaptive model order reduction for nonsmooth discrete element simulation is developed and analysed in numerical experiments. Regions of the granular media that collectively move as rigid bodies are substituted with rigid bodies of the corresponding shape and mass distribution. The method also support particles merging with articulated multibody systems. A model approximation error is defined and used to derive conditions for when and where to apply reduction and refinement back into particles and smaller rigid bodies. Three methods for refinement are proposed and tested: prediction from contact events, trial solutions computed in the background and using split sensors. The computational performance can be increased by 5 - 50 times for model reduction level between 70 - 95%.