Modeling and simulation of elementary processes in ideal sintering

Three-dimensional numerical simulation of sintering was performed to illustrate the interplay between shapes and forces in particle scale. Elementary rules for topological transition of triple lines were derived from the analysis of micromechanical models of sintering: bond formation, pore channel closure, and pore disappearance. The particle motion was driven by the force acting on a particle, i.e., a vector sum of sintering forces. The non-equilibrium sintering stress was defined to analyze the pore shrinkage. A particle changed its own shape through interaction with neighbor particles; then, the coordination number affected particle motion, pore shrinkage, coarsening, and grain growth.