Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 20, 2026

An Analog Macroscopic Technique for Studying Molecular Hydrodynamic Processes in Dense Gases and Liquids
Published on: December 4, 2017
Diffusion and mobility in a stirred dense granular material
1Department of Physics and Center for Nonlinear and Complex Systems, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708-0305, USA.
Abstract:
We describe a probe of diffusivity (D) and mobility (B) for a dense 2D granular system. We introduce random motion by stirring, and characterize D by particle tracking. To measure B we measure the force needed to push a particle through the medium at fixed velocity, v, using three sizes of tracer particle. We find simple Brownian diffusion, but B depends strongly on v because the force needed to push a tracer through a sample is nearly independent of v. Data for D/B depend on the tracer particle size.
Related Concept Videos
Diffusion
Diffusion
Protein Diffusion in the Membrane
Behavior of Gas Molecules: Molecular Diffusion, Mean Free Path, and Effusion
Diffusion on Chromatography Columns
Longitudinal diffusion occurs when the solute molecules in the mobile phase diffuse from the more concentrated center of the chromatographic band to the more dilute regions on either side, both towards and against the flow direction. This...
Theories of Dissolution: The Danckwerts' Model and Interfacial Barrier Model

