Thermodynamic description in a simple model for granular compaction

A simple model for the dynamics of a granular system under tapping is studi ed. The model can be considered as a particularization for short taps of a more general one-dimensional lattice model with facilitated dynamics. The s teady state reached by the system is discussed and the results are shown to be consistent with the thermodynamic granular theory developed by Edwards and coworkers. In particular, the basic assumption of the theory, i.e., tha t the probability distribution depends only on the volume of the configurat ion, is verified. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.