Preliminary experimental study on three-dimensional contact behavior of bonded granules

Abstract

In order to explore the microscopic contact behaviour of structured sands, devices were developed for specimen preparation and for carrying out tests on mechanical contact behaviour of three-dimensional (3D) bonded spheres. The specimen preparation device can cement two separate aluminium hemispheres by epoxy adhesive with accurate size control. The auxiliary loading devices can carry out compression, tension, shear, bending and torsion tests and any of their combinations. The experimental results show that the peak shear force, bending moment and torque of the bonded hemispheres are normal force dependent; that is, they first increase with the normal force and then decrease after the normal force exceeds a critical value.