Towards an H-theorem for granular gases

Abstract

The H-theorem, originally derived at the level of the Boltzmann nonlinear kinetic equation for a dilute gas undergoing elastic collisions, strongly constrains the velocity distribution of the gas to evolve irreversibly towards equilibrium. As such, the theorem could not be generalized to account for dissipative systems: the conservative nature of collisions is an essential ingredient in the standard derivation. For a dissipative gas of grains, we construct here a simple functional H related to the original H, that can be qualified as a Lyapunov functional. It is positive, and results backed by three independent simulation approaches (a deterministic spectral method, the stochastic direct simulation Monte Carlo technique, and molecular dynamics) indicate that it is also nonincreasing. Both driven and unforced cases are investigated.