Collisional model for granular impact dynamics

When an intruder strikes a granular material from above, the grains exert a stopping force which decelerates and stops the intruder. Many previous studies have used a macroscopic force law, including a drag force which is quadratic in velocity, to characterize the decelerating force on the intruder. However, the microscopic origins of the force-law terms are still a subject of debate. Here, drawing from previous experiments with photoelastic particles, we present a model which describes the velocity-squared force in terms of repeated collisions with clusters of grains. From our high speed photoelastic data, we infer that clusters correspond to segments of the strong force network that are excited by the advancing intruder. The model predicts a scaling relation for the velocity-squared drag force that accounts for the intruder shape. Additionally, we show that the collisional model predicts an instability to rotations, which depends on the intruder shape. To test this model, we perform a comprehensive experimental study of the dynamics of two-dimensional granular impacts on beds of photoelastic disks, with different profiles for the leading edge of the intruder. We particularly focus on a simple and useful case for testing shape effects by using triangular-nosed intruders. We show that the collisional model effectively captures the dynamics of intruder deceleration and rotation; i.e., these two dynamical effects can be described as two different manifestations of the same grain-scale physical processes.