Effect of shear strain rate on attrition of particulate solids in a shear cell

Computer simulation results are presented of attrition of spherical particles in a periodic cell under steady shear straining. The simulation program used is TRUBAL which is based on the distinct element method (DEM). Two damage mechanisms of surface wear and fragmentation are under consideration. The side crushing strength (SCS) of single particles is used as the criterion for fragmentation. For surface damage processes, the abrasive wear by the formation of lateral cracks during shearing is calculated using a previously developed semi-brittle failure model. The contributions to attrition by surface wear and particle fragmentation are therefore decoupled. The simulation results are then compared with the experimental data in the literature and a good agreement has been achieved. The effect of shear strain rate on particle breakage has also been examined by simulation and reported in this paper. The results indicate that the rate of attrition is not sensitive to low strain rates, as normally used for shear cell tests. However, significant effects on the trend of the attrition data have been observed at high strain rates.