Related papers: A network model for granular statics with impenetr…
We use a theoretical model to explore how fluid dynamics, in particular, the pressure gradient and wall shear stress in a channel, affect the deposition of particles flowing in a microfluidic network. Experiments on transport of colloidal…
We study a material modeled as a network of nodes connected by edges. Using a discrete approach, we build a nonlinear algebraic system that connects applied forces to internal forces and node positions. The model can describe elasticity,…
Disordered networks of semiflexible filaments are common support structures in biology. Familiar examples include fibrous matrices in blood clots, bacterial biofilms, and essential components of cells and tissues of plants, animals, and…
We propose a novel model for the shear failure of a glued interface between two solid blocks. We model the interface as an array of elastic beams which experience stretching and bending under shear load and break if the two deformation…
An atomistic model of near-crack-tip plasticity on a square lattice under anti-plane shear kinematics is formulated and studied. The model is based upon a new geometric and functional framework of a lattice manifold complex, which ensures…
The cytoskeleton of eukaryotic cells provides mechanical support and governs intracellular transport. These functions rely on the complex mechanical properties of networks of semiflexible protein filaments. Recent theoretical interest has…
Dense particulate suspensions often exhibit a dramatic increase in viscosity in response to external deformation. This shear thickening behavior has been related to a transition from lubricated, unconstrained pairwise motion to a frictional…
Wet granular materials in a quasi-static steady state shear flow have been studied with discrete particle simulations. Macroscopic quantities, consistent with the conservation laws of continuum theory, are obtained by time averaging and…
Mechanical responses of soft particle packings to quasi-static deformations are determined by the microscopic restructuring of force-chain networks, where complex non-affine displacements of constituent particles cause the irreversible…
Entangled polymers are deformed by a strong shear flow. The shape of the polymer, called the form factor, is measured by small angle neutron scattering. However, the real-space molecular structure is not directly available from the…
Extra-large deformations in ultra-soft elastic materials are ubiquitous, yet systematic studies and methods to understand the mechanics of such huge strains are lacking. Here we investigate this complex problem systematically with a simple…
The relation between packing geometry and force network statistics is studied for granular media. Based on simulations of two-dimensional packings of Hertzian spheres, we develop a geometrical framework relating the distribution of…
The coupling interactions between deformable structures and unsteady fluid flows occur across a wide range of spatial and temporal scales in many engineering applications. These fluid-structure interactions (FSI) pose significant challenges…
The shear response of soft solids can be modeled with linear elasticity, provided the forcing is slow and weak. Both of these approximations must break down when the material loses rigidity, such as in foams and emulsions at their…
Composite materials are often stronger than their constituents. We demonstrate this through a spring network model on a square lattice. Two different types of sites (A and B) are distributed randomly on the lattice, representing two…
We propose a dynamical theory of low-temperature shear deformation in amorphous solids. Our analysis is based on molecular-dynamics simulations of a two-dimensional, two-component noncrystalline system. These numerical simulations reveal…
Under shear, a system of particles changes its contact network and becomes unstable as it transitions between mechanically stable states. For hard spheres at zero pressure, contact breaking events necessarily generate an instability, but…
We probe the onset and effect of contact changes in 2D soft harmonic particle packings which are sheared quasistatically under controlled strain. First, we show that in the majority of cases, the first contact changes correspond to the…
An ensemble approach for force networks in static granular packings is developed. The framework is based on the separation of packing and force scales, together with an a-priori flat measure in the force phase space under the constraints…
Dense, disordered packings of particles are useful models of low-temperature amorphous phases of matter, biological systems, granular media, and colloidal systems. The study of dense packings of nonspherical particles enables one to…