News From the Field
Physicists Find That Size Matters When Initiating an Object's Movement Through Grains

September 16, 2008

Physicists have discovered that the size of grains, such as sand, above a buried object is important in determining the force required to begin raising the object. No one, until now, has discovered how much force is required to initiate an object's movement through grains. The discovery may be useful for engineering foundations for objects such as power-line towers, or for designing industrial mixer blades, such as those used in pharmaceutical processing. Full Story

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Penn State

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