Rheology of granular rafts.

Abstract

Rheology of macroscopic particle-laden interfaces, called "granular rafts," has been experimentally studied in the simple shear configuration. The shear-stress relation obtained from a classical rheometer exhibits the same behavior as a Bingham fluid, and the viscosity diverges with the surface fraction according to evolutions similar to 2D suspensions. The velocity field of the particles that constitute the granular raft has been measured in the stationary state. These measurements reveal nonlocal rheology similar to dry granular materials. Close to the walls of the rheometer cell, one can observe regions of large local shear rate while in the middle of the cell a quasistatic zone exists. This flowing region, characteristic of granular matter, is described in the framework of an extended kinetic theory showing the evolution of the velocity profile with the imposed shear stress. Measuring the probability density functions of the instantaneous local shear rate, we provide evidence of a balance between positive and negative instantaneous local shear rate. This behavior is the signature of a quasistatic region inside the granular raft.