# Friction-mediated flow and jamming in a two-dimensional silo with two exit orifices

## TL;DR

This study investigates how interparticle friction affects flow and jamming in a 2D silo with two exits, revealing complex dependencies on friction and interorifice distance that influence flow stability.

## Contribution

It demonstrates the significant role of interparticle friction and interorifice distance in governing flow intermittency and jamming behavior in a granular silo system.

## Key findings

- Mean jammed and flow durations vary monotonically with friction coefficient.
- Unjamming frequency shows a nonmonotonic dependence on friction.
- Jamming and flow time distributions have exponential and power-law tails.

## Abstract

We show that the interparticle friction coefficient significantly influences the flow and jamming behavior of granular materials exiting through the orifice of a two-dimensional silo in the presence of another orifice located in its vicinity. The fluctuations emanating from a continuous flow through a larger orifice results in an intermittent flow through the smaller orifice consisting of sequential jamming and flowing events. The mean time duration of jammed and flow events, respectively, increase and decrease monotonically with increasing interparticle friction coefficient. The frequency of unjamming instances ($n_{u}$), however, shows a nonmonotonic behavior comprising an increase followed by a decrease with increasing friction coefficient. The decrease on either side of the maximum, then, represents a system moving progressively towards a permanently jammed or a permanently flowing state. The overall behavior shows a systematic dependence on the interorifice distance which determines the strength of the fluctuations reaching the smaller orifice leading to unjamming instances. The probability distributions of jamming and flowing times are nearly similar for different combinations of friction coefficients and interorifice distances studied and, respectively, exhibit exponential and power-law tails.