Electrically induced tunable cohesion in granular systems

TL;DR

This paper investigates how electric fields induce tunable cohesion in granular materials, affecting their stability and flow behavior, supported by experiments and a theoretical model.

Contribution

It introduces a theoretical model incorporating electric-field-induced cohesion and validates it with experimental data on granular heap stability.

Findings

Angle of repose increases with cohesive force

Model agrees well with experimental results

Flow angle remains stable except at high electric fields

Abstract

Experimental observations of confined granular materials in the presence of an electric field that induces cohesive forces are reported. The angle of repose is found to increase with the cohesive force. A theoretical model for the stability of a granular heap, including both the effect of the sidewalls and cohesion is proposed. A good agreement between this model and the experimental results is found. The steady-state flow angle is practically unaffected by the electric field except for high field strengths and low flow rates.