Construction of irregular particles with superquadric equation in DEM

Abstract

Non-spherical particles are widely present in industrial production, and significantly affect the macro and micro characteristics of granular materials. Although the superquadric equation can be used to construct non-spherical particles, its disadvantage is that the particle shape is geometrically symmetric and strictly convex. In this study, two composed approaches are used to describe geometrically asymmetric and concave particle shapes, including a multi-superquadric model and a poly-superquadric model. The multi-superquadric model is a combination of several superquadric elements, and can construct concave and geometrically asymmetric particle shapes. The poly-superquadric model is a combination of eight one-eighth superquadric elements, and can construct convex and geometrically asymmetric particle shapes. Both composed models are based on superquadric equations, and Newton's iterative method is used to calculate the contact force between the elements. Furthermore, superquadric elements, multi-superquadric elements, and poly-superquadric elements are applied for the formation of complex granular beds, and the influences of particle shape on the packing fraction can be successfully captured by the proposed models.