DEM simulation of wall pressures in a model of silo and comparison to experimental measurements

Abstract

The paper presents investigation results of pea grain flows in a model of a flat-bottomed silo with vertical walls. Both filling and discharge processes were considered numerically and experimentally. The time-driven Discrete Element Method (DEM) was applied in numerical simulation of the granular flow. The fully three-dimensional model was employed in the DEM simulation. The granular material ensiled was represented by an assembly of spherical particles with non-cohesive visco-elastic contact interaction and friction. Experimental measurements were carried out in the model of silo made of Plexiglas. The wall pressures were measured by using a membrane sensor placed at three positions along the model wall.