skip to main content
US FlagAn official website of the United States government
dot gov icon
Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
https lock icon
Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( lock ) or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.


Title: A class of diatomic 2-D soft granular crystals undergoing pattern transformations
We propose a class of diatomic 2-D soft granular crystals, which features pattern transformation under compression with lateral confinement. The proposed granular crystals are composed of two different types of cylinders: large soft cylinders and small hard cylinders. The pattern-transformable granular crystals are obtained by exploring perturbed packing patterns as potential configurations, and compression with lateral confinement as the driving force of the transition. As a demonstration of the proof-of-concept, we first show the results of desktop-scaled experiments and finite element simulations for a representative case. Then, we present the procedure to obtain these new pattern transformations in soft granular crystals based on the compact packing theory of diatomic circles. The scale-independent compact packing theory serves as an important part of the veiled underlying mechanism of the observed pattern transformations, so the proposed granular crystals can open new avenues in the microstructural design of functional materials towards practical applications.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
1649111
PAR ID:
10073785
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ; ;
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Soft Matter
Volume:
13
Issue:
35
ISSN:
1744-683X
Page Range / eLocation ID:
5824 to 5831
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
More Like this
  1. Abstract In the presented work, wave dynamics of 2D finite granular crystals of polyurethane cylinders under low-velocity impact loading was investigated to gain better understanding of the influence of lateral constraints. The deformation of the individual grains in the granular crystals during the impact loading was recorded by a high-speed camera and digital image correlation (DIC) was used to calculate high fidelity kinematic and strain fields in each grain. These grain-scale kinematic and strain fields were utilized for the computation of the intergranular forces at each contact using a granular element method (GEM) based mathematical framework. Since the polyurethane were viscoelastic in nature, the viscoelasticity constitutive law was implemented in the GEM framework and it was shown that linear elasticity using the strain rate-dependent coefficient of elasticity is sufficient to use instead of a viscoelastic framework. These particle-scale kinematic and strain field measurements in conjunction with the interparticle forces also provided some interesting insight into the directional dependence of the wave scattering and attenuation in finite granular crystals. The directional nature of the wave propagation resulted in strong wave reflection from the walls. It was also noteworthy that the two reflected waves from the two opposite sidewalls result in destructive interference. These lateral constraints at different depths leads to significant differences in wave attenuation characteristics and the finite granular crystals can be divided into two regions: upper region, with exponential wave decay rate, and lower region, with higher decay rate. 
    more » « less
  2. Abstract This study investigates computationally the impact of particle size disparity and cohesion on force chain formation in granular media. The granular media considered in this study are bi-disperse systems under uniaxial compression, consisting of spherical, frictionless particles that interact through a modified Hookean model. Force chains in granular media are characterized as networks of particles that meet specific criteria for particle stress and inter-particle forces. The computational setup decouples the effects of particle packing on force chain formations, ensuring an independent assessment of particle size distribution and cohesion on force chain formation. The decoupling is achieved by characterizing particle packing through the radial density function, which enables the identification of systems with both regular and irregular packing. The fraction of particles in the force chains network is used to quantify the presence of the force chains. The findings show that particle size disparity promotes force chain formation in granular media with nearly-regular packing (i.e., an almost-ordered system). However, as particle size disparities grow, it promotes irregular packing (i.e., a disordered systems), leading to fewer force chains carrying larger loads than in ordered systems. Further, it is observed that the increased cohesion in granular systems leads to fewer force chains irrespective of particle size or packing. 
    more » « less
  3. Soft robots employ flexible and compliant materials to perform adaptive tasks and navigate uncertain environments. However, soft robots are often unable to achieve forces and precision on the order of rigid-bodied robots. In this paper, we propose a new class of mobile soft robots that can reversibly transition between compliant and stiff states without reconfiguration. The robot can passively conform or actively control its shape, stiffen in its current configuration to function as a rigid-bodied robot, then return to its flexible form. The robotic structure consists of passive granular material surrounded by an active membrane. The membrane is composed of interconnected robotic sub-units that can control the packing density of the granular material and exploit jamming behaviors by varying the length of the interconnecting cables. Each robotic sub-unit uses a differential drive system to achieve locomotion and self-reconfigurability. We present the robot design and perform a set of locomotion and object manipulation experiments to characterize the robot's performance in soft and rigid states. We also introduce a simulation framework in which we model the jamming soft robot design and study the scalability of this class of robots. The proposed concept demonstrates the properties of both soft and rigid robots, and has the potential to bridge the gap between the two 
    more » « less
  4. Conical surfaces pose an interesting challenge to crystal growth: A crystal growing on a cone can wrap around and meet itself at different radii. We use a disk-packing algorithm to investigate how this closure constraint can geometrically frustrate the growth of single crystals on cones with small opening angles. By varying the crystal seed orientation and cone angle, we find that—except at special commensurate cone angles—crystals typically form a seam that runs along the axial direction of the cone, while near the tip, a disordered particle packing forms. We show that the onset of disorder results from a finite-size effect that depends strongly on the circumference and not on the seed orientation or cone angle. This finite-size effect occurs also on cylinders, and we present evidence that on both cylinders and cones, the defect density increases exponentially as circumference decreases. We introduce a simple model for particle attachment at the seam that explains the dependence on the circumference. Our findings suggest that the growth of single crystals can become frustrated even very far from the tip when the cone has a small opening angle. These results may provide insights into the observed geometry of conical crystals in biological and materials applications. 
    more » « less
  5. Abstract When cylinders are packed and wrapped by the bands around the surface, the effective elastic behavior in the cross section of the assembly, which is of significance to its stability and integrity, can be controlled by the wrapping force in the band. The wrapping force is transferred to the cylinders through the Hertz contact between each pair of neighboring cylinders, which is validated by the experiments. The Singum model is introduced to study the mechanical behaviors of the packed cylinders with two-dimensional (2D) packing lattices, in which an inner cylinder is simulated by a continuum particle of Singum and the inter-cylinder force is governed by the Hertz contact model so as to derive the effective stress-strain relationship. The wrapping force will produce configurational forces given a displacement variation, which significantly changes the effective stiffness of the packed cylinders. The hexagonal packing exhibits isotropic elasticity whereas the square packing is anisotropic. The efficacy of our model is demonstrated by comparing the closed form elasticity against the numerical simulation and the previous models. The explicit form of elasticity can be used for packing design and quality control of cable construction and installation. 
    more » « less