Granular hydrodynamics and density wave regimes in a vertical chute experiment

Laboratoire des Milieux Désordonnés et Hétérogènes, UMR7603 Université Pierre et Marie Curie - Boîte 86 4, Place Jussieu, 75005 Paris, France

Received: 30 November 1999
Accepted: 27 April 2000

Abstract

We report experiments on grains falling in a bidimensional vertical column. We identify a steady flow regime and, for narrow openings, a regime of density waves. The density, velocity and temperature fields are measured and compared with the prediction of a granular hydrodynamics theory. We find a good qualitative agreement for weakly dissipative particles but for the more dissipative ones, we evidence a new regime of momentum and energy transport characterized by a clogging dynamics.