Object Impacted and Transported by Dry Granular Flow: 3D MPM-SDEM

Abstract

Granular geophysical flows pose a significant threat to human lives and infrastructure in mountainous regions globally. Property and victims impacted by these flows often get carried away and buried. Quickly locating the potential location of victims is critical for post-disaster recovery and rescue. However, the trajectory of object impacted by granular flows is difficult to predict because of the scale disparity between the sizes of granular particles and the object being transported. To deal with this multi-scale problem, a continuum-discrete solver, specifically the material-discrete element method (MPM-SDEM), was developed to simulate the trajectory of a cube (the object) impacted by a dry granular flow. Simulated results are used to understand the trajectory of objects under different flow and impact dynamics.