Extension of the hard-sphere model for particle-flow simulations

Area of Science:

• Computational Physics
• Materials Science

Background:

• Discrete element methods (DEM) commonly use computationally expensive soft-sphere models for particle collisions.
• Existing hard-sphere models lack the accuracy needed for certain simulations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a computationally efficient and accurate hard-sphere collision model for DEM simulations.
• To integrate analytic formulas into a standard hard-sphere model.

Main Methods:

• Applied the linear-spring soft-sphere model to derive analytic relations for particle collisions.
• Implemented these analytic relations into an existing three-parameter hard-sphere model.

Main Results:

• The developed hard-sphere model provides analytic solutions for pre- and postcollisional velocities.
• The new model demonstrates improved accuracy over the standard hard-sphere approach.
• The simulation remains computationally inexpensive.

Conclusions:

• The enhanced hard-sphere model offers a robust and efficient alternative for DEM simulations.
• This approach balances computational cost with improved accuracy in modeling particle collisions.