Tuning strain of granular matter by basal assisted Couette shear

Yiqiu Zhao (1) , Jonathan Barés (1, 2, 3) , Hu Zheng (4) , Robert Behringer (1)

1 Department of Physics & Center for Nonlinear and Complex Systems
2 LMGC - Laboratoire de Mécanique et Génie Civil
3 PMMD - Physique et Mécanique des Milieux Divisés
4 School of Earth Science and Engineering

We present a novel Couette shear apparatus capable of generating programmable azimuthal strain inside 2D granular matter under Couette shear. The apparatus consists of 21 independently movable concentric rings and two boundary wheels with frictional racks. This makes it possible to quasistatically shear the granular matter not only from the boundaries but also from the bottom. We show that, by specifying the collective motion of wheels and rings, the apparatus successfully generates the desired strain profile inside the sample granular system, which is composed of about 2000 photoelastic disks. The motion and stress of each particle is captured by an imaging system utilizing reflective photoelasticimetry. This apparatus provides a novel method to investigate shear jamming properties of granular matter with different interior strain profiles and unlimited strain amplitudes.

Domaines: Mécanique [physics.med-ph]

Yiqiu Zhao, Jonathan Barés, Hu Zheng, Robert Behringer. Tuning strain of granular matter by basal assisted Couette shear. Powders and Grains 2017, Jul 2017, Montpellier, France. ⟨hal-01499250⟩