™ v2.02

DEM is a family of numerical modeling techniques and equations specifically designed to solve problems in engineering and applied science that exhibit gross discontinuous mechanical behavior such as bulk material flow.

The DEM explicitly models the dynamic motion and mechanical interactions of each body or particle in the physical problem throughout a simulation and provides a detailed description of the positions, velocities, and forces acting on each body and/or particle at discrete points in time during the analysis.

In the analysis, particles are modeled as shaped bodies. The bodies can interact with each other, with transfer boundary surfaces and with moving rubber conveyor belt surfaces. The contact/impact phenomena between the interacting bodies are modeled with a contact force law which has components defined in the normal and shear directions as well as rotation.

Animations show multiple particles falling through transfer chutes. The colors of the particles in the visualization represent their velocity. The RED color is zero velocity while BLUE is the highest velocity. Perhaps the greatest benefit that can be derived from the use of these tools is the feeling an experienced engineer can develop by visualizing performance prior to building. From this feel, the designer can arrange the components in order to eliminate unwanted behavior. Other quantitative data can also be captured including impact and shear forces (wear) on the belt or chute walls.

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