Ageing of the avalanche angle in immersed granular matter

Abstract:

The stability of packings of glass beads immersed in various fluids is studied experimentally in a rotating drum. The avalanche angle depends on the time during which the system remains at rest before measurement only when the grains are immersed in water. The experimental results prove that ageing of immersed granular materials, under low applied stress and in the absence of external sollicitations, only originates from chemical reactions that occur at the surface of the grains.