Creep motion of a granular pile induced by thermal cycling.
We report a time-resolved study of the dynamics associated with the slow compaction of a granular column submitted to thermal cycles. The column height displays a complex behavior: for a large amplitude of the temperature cycles, the granular column settles continuously, experiencing a small settling at each cycle. By contrast, for a small-enough amplitude, the column exhibits a discontinuous and intermittent activity: successive collapses are separated by quiescent periods whose duration is exponentially distributed. We then discuss potential mechanisms which would account for both the compaction and the transition at finite amplitude.
Université de Lyon, Laboratoire de Physique, Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, CNRS, 46 Allée d'Italie, 69364 Lyon cedex 07, France.
Thibaut
T
Divoux
Hervé
H
Gayvallet
Jean-Christophe
JC
Géminard