DENSITY VARIATIONS IN A ONE-DIMENSIONAL GRANULAR SYSTEM

In this work we examine a system of inelastic particles confined to mo ve on a line between an elastic wall and a heat source. Solving a Bolt zmann equation for this system leads to an analytic expression for ste ady state behavior. Numerical simulations show that the system is in f act capable of simultaneously displaying both the uniform density of t he analytic solution, and a state in which the particles are collected into a cluster adjacent to the elastic wall. The boundary conditions for the Boltzmann treatment are then reworked to provide a theoretical description of how smooth particle distributions and clumping phenome na can coexist. From this, we gain a prediction for the time scale of clump formation in this system. (C) 1996 American Institute of Physics .