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Fundamental study of thermal conduction in dry soils

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Abstract

The thermal conductivity of the different soil components—mineral, liquids and air—varies across two orders of magnitude. Two studies are implemented to explore the role of contacts in heat conduction in dry granular materials. The first set of experiments is designed to elucidate heat transfer at contacts, and it is complemented with a numerically based inversion analysis for different local and boundary conditions to extract proper material parameters. Then, the thermal conductivity of dry soils is measured at different packing densities to address the relevance of coordination number and particle shape effects. Together, both studies confirm the prevailing effect of contact quality and number of contacts per unite volume on heat conduction in granular materials. Interparticle contacts and the presence of liquids in pores play a critical role in heat transfer, and determine the ordered sequence of typical thermal conductivity values: k air < k dry-soil < k water < k saturated-soil < k mineral.

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Abbreviations

λ:

heat loss coefficient (s−1)

ρ:

mass density (g m−3)

ν:

poisson ratio

A :

area (m2)

a :

fitting parameter

A c :

contact area (m2)

cn :

interparticle coordination number

C u :

coefficient of uniformity

c v :

heat capacity (cal g−1 °C−1)

d:

diameter (mm)

D:

thermal diffusivity (m2 s−1)

D 50 :

mean particle size (mm)

FRd :

larger particle size ratio

FRmass :

mass fraction

G:

shear stiffness

I :

electrical current (Ampere)

k :

thermal conductivity (W m−1 K−1)

k eff :

effective thermal conductivity (W m−1 K−1)

L :

loss factor (cal s−1°C−1)

M:

numerical modulus

N:

normal force

n :

porosity

p :

fitting parameter

q :

heat energy per unit time (cal s−1)

R:

resistance (Ω)

S:

saturation

T:

temperature (°C)

t :

time (min)

V :

voltage (V)

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Author notes

  1. T. S. Yun

    Present address: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Lehigh University, 13 East Packer Avenue, Bethlehem, PA, 18015, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, 790 Atlantic Drive, Atlanta, GA, 30332-0355, USA

    T. S. Yun

  2. Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332-0335, USA

    J. C. Santamarina

  3. Goizueta Chair School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, 790 Atlantic Drive, Atlanta, GA, 30332-0355, USA

    J. C. Santamarina

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Correspondence to J. C. Santamarina.

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Yun, T.S., Santamarina, J.C. Fundamental study of thermal conduction in dry soils. Granular Matter 10, 197–207 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10035-007-0051-5

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