Effects of the geometry on the characteristics of the motion of a particle rolling down a rough surface

AGUIRRE M. A.; IPPOLITO I; CALVO, A.; HENRIQUE, C.; BIDEAU, D.

POWDER TECHNOLOGY

ELSEVIER SCIENCE SA

Lugar: Amsterdam; Año: 1997

0032-5910

The different dynamic regimes of a sphere rolling on a rough inclined surface have been studied experimentally, with special attention tothe effects of energy dissipation and geometry. A controlled roughness of the surface is obtained by gluing glass beads or sand onto a plane.Three different types of rolling spheres (steel, glass and plastic) have been used on two kinds of rough surface (glass beads and sand). Thedifferent regimes can be presented in a phase diagram whose control parameters are 0, the inclination angle of the plane, and R, the radius ofthe rolling sphere (in fact, we use @, the surface smoothness, which is the ratio of R and r, the radius of the glued beads). A comparativeanalysis is done, showing that the behaviour is qualitatively not dependent on the system, and a ´universal´ dynamical threshold line is obtainedfor all the particle-surface systems studied. We also confirm that the motion is characterized by a viscous friction force, strongly dependenton the smoothness.