3D ejection behavior of different sized particles in the grain-bed collision process

The impact-ejection process on a mixed-grain-size bed with granular packing was simulated with the discrete element method in order to understand the interaction between different sized grains in natural aeolian sand transport. In this model, the granular bed was formed by settling the randomly generated two-sized particles under gravity, and then a foreign particle was shot onto the granular bed at different speeds and angles. The recorded speed, direction and number of the ejected particles were then analyzed. It was found that the probability distributions of the ejection speed and angle for different sized particles are all identical to those for the single size grain-bed collision process, the mean ejection speeds of different sized particles are nearly equal, and the mean ejection angles of different sized particles are all equal to a constant of 60 degrees. The average number of each size of ejected particles grows linearly with the increasing impact speed but remains invariant for various impact angles. Moreover, the smaller particles are preferentially ejected and the ratio between the mean numbers of different sized particles is independent of both the impact speed and angle. Additionally, the ejected particles were found to move in a 3D space, they become distributed symmetrically around the incident plane and jump not only forward but also backward. These results are critical to understanding the grain size-induced inhomogeneity in aeolian sand transport. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.