TY - JOUR

T1 - Flexible polyhedra modeled by the virtual element method in a discrete element context

AU - Gay Neto, Alfredo

AU - Hudobivnik, Blaž

AU - Moherdaui, Tiago Fernandes

AU - Wriggers, Peter

N1 - Funding Information: This study was funded by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Germany and in part by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - Brasil (CAPES) - Finance Code 001.

PY - 2021/12/15

Y1 - 2021/12/15

N2 - Systems composed of numerous particles, as granular materials, can be simulated by the discrete element method (DEM). There are numerous versions of DEM considering particle shapes as spheres, superellipsoids, polyhedra and others. Classically, particles are considered rigid and the only flexibility present in the model is local, embedded in the contact interface model. Such treatment seems not to be adequate when one is interested in simulating phenomena dependent on the general flexibility of particles and investigating their effects in granular media. The present work proposes a method to introduce flexible particles of polyhedral shape within the DEM context. We employ the Virtual Element Method (VEM) for the spatial discretization of particles, taking advantage of its geometrical versatility, modeling each particle with a single-element. The dynamical behavior of the resulting particle system is predicted using an implicit time-integration. Contact between polyhedral particles (possibly non-convex) is addressed by the master–master contact technique and its degenerations, employing a barrier-based interface law. Examples include studies and discussions on the VEM's stiffness and mass stabilization parameters, such as simulations of systems composed of flexible polyhedral particles as a sand-material pack under compression and a hopper discharging process.

AB - Systems composed of numerous particles, as granular materials, can be simulated by the discrete element method (DEM). There are numerous versions of DEM considering particle shapes as spheres, superellipsoids, polyhedra and others. Classically, particles are considered rigid and the only flexibility present in the model is local, embedded in the contact interface model. Such treatment seems not to be adequate when one is interested in simulating phenomena dependent on the general flexibility of particles and investigating their effects in granular media. The present work proposes a method to introduce flexible particles of polyhedral shape within the DEM context. We employ the Virtual Element Method (VEM) for the spatial discretization of particles, taking advantage of its geometrical versatility, modeling each particle with a single-element. The dynamical behavior of the resulting particle system is predicted using an implicit time-integration. Contact between polyhedral particles (possibly non-convex) is addressed by the master–master contact technique and its degenerations, employing a barrier-based interface law. Examples include studies and discussions on the VEM's stiffness and mass stabilization parameters, such as simulations of systems composed of flexible polyhedral particles as a sand-material pack under compression and a hopper discharging process.

KW - Discrete element method

KW - Friction

KW - master–master contact

KW - Polyhedra

KW - Virtual Element Method

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85115776124&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1016/j.cma.2021.114163

DO - 10.1016/j.cma.2021.114163

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85115776124

VL - 387

JO - Computer Methods in Applied Mechanics and Engineering

JF - Computer Methods in Applied Mechanics and Engineering

SN - 0045-7825

M1 - 114163

ER -