Angularly anisotropic correlation in granular packings

Journal Article · Mon Dec 01 00:00:00 EST 2014 · Physical Review. E, Statistical, Nonlinear, and Soft Matter Physics (Print)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevE.90.062201· OSTI ID:1239559

Xia, Chengjie; Cao, Yixin; Kou, Binquan; Li, Jindong; Wang, Yujie; Xiao, Xianghui; Fezzaa, Kamel

We present an x-ray microtomography study of the three-dimensional structural correlations in monodisperse granular packings. By measuring an orientation-dependent pair correlation function, we find that the local structure shows an angularly anisotropic orientation correlation. The correlation is strongest along the major axis of the local Minkowski tensor of the Voronoi cell. It turns out that this anisotropic correlation is consistent with the existence of some locally favored structures. The study suggests the importance of high-order structural correlations in random granular packings.

• Research Organization: Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES); National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC)
• DOE Contract Number: AC02-06CH11357
• OSTI ID: 1239559
• Journal Information: Physical Review. E, Statistical, Nonlinear, and Soft Matter Physics (Print), Vol. 90, Issue 6; ISSN 1539-3755
• Publisher: American Physical Society (APS)
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English