Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 25, 2026

An Analog Macroscopic Technique for Studying Molecular Hydrodynamic Processes in Dense Gases and Liquids
Published on: December 4, 2017
Mechanistic basis for particle detachment from granular media
John A Bergendahl1, Domenico Grasso
1Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester, Massachusetts 01609, USA. jberg@wpi.edu
Abstract:
Colloids may become detached from surfaces in environmental systems as a result of chemical and physical conditions. Many researchers reporting on colloidal detachment in natural and model systems have stopped short of mechanistically and quantitatively describing their observations. In this work, a mathematical construct is presented that quantitatively determines the effect of thermodynamics and hydrodynamics on particle detachment from surfaces in granular media. Using the Buckingham pi theorem, a mathematical model is structured based on governing dimensionless groupings. Determining dimensionless numbers elucidates conditions conducive for detachment in engineered and natural porous media. Published detachment data are compared to the mathematical model developed herein and provide support for its utility. Extensions of this technique have utility in many applications where fluid interaction with particulate-laden porous media is encountered.
More Related Videos
09:00Visualization of Failure and the Associated Grain-Scale Mechanical Behavior of Granular Soils under Shear using Synchrotron X-Ray Micro-Tomography
Published on: September 29, 2019
11:51Visually Based Characterization of the Incipient Particle Motion in Regular Substrates: From Laminar to Turbulent Conditions
Published on: February 22, 2018
Related Concept Videos
Newton's Law of Gravitational Attraction
Newton's law of gravitational attraction is a fundamental law of physics that governs the attraction between objects. It states that the magnitude of the gravitational force between any two objects is proportional to their masses and inversely proportional...
Principle of Linear Impulse and Momentum for a System of Particles
Notably, internal forces between particles, occurring in equal and opposite collinear pairs, cancel out and are not part of the equation of motion. This exclusion simplifies the...
Precipitate Formation and Particle Size Control
The obtained precipitate should be either a pure substance of known composition or easily converted to one by a simple process, such as ignition or drying. In addition, the precipitate should be insoluble and easily filterable. In general, filterability...
Mechanical Protein Functions
Colloidal precipitates
Characteristics of Dry Friction
Before the wheelbarrow starts moving, the static frictional force acts tangentially to the contact surface, opposing the force that is about to induce the motion. This frictional force prevents the...