Dispersal of sticky particles
Date
2007
Authors
Chimala, V.R.R.
Kumar, S.
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Journal article
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Europhysics Letters, 2007; 80(5):56001-56001
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Abstract
In this paper, we show through simulations that when sticky particles are brokencontinually, particles are dispersed into fine dust only if they are present in a narrow range ofvolume fractions. The upper limit of this range is 0.20 in the 2D and 0.10 in the 3D space. Anincrease in the dimensionality of space reduces the upper limit nearly by a factor of two. Thisscaling holds for dispersal of particles in hyperdimensional space of dimensions up to ten, themaximum dimension studied in this work. The maximum values of volume fractions obtained aresignificantly lower than those required for close packing and random packing of discs in 2D andspheres in 3D space. These values are also smaller than those required for critical phenomena ofcluster percolation. The results obtained are attributed to merger cascades of sticky particles,triggered by breakup events. A simple theory that incorporates this cascade is developed toquantitatively explain the observed scaling of the upper limit with the dimensionality of space.The theory also captures the dynamics of the dispersal process in the corresponding range ofparticle volume fractions. The theory suggests that cascades of order one and two predominantlydecide the upper limit for complete dispersal of particles.
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Copyright 2007 EPLA