Periodic Knolls and Valleys: Coexistence of Solid and Liquid States in Granular Suspensions

Abstract

We report the spontaneous emergence of a doubly periodic train of sedimented knolls in a dense suspension. These solidified knolls rise out of, and coexist alongside, a sea of freely flowing liquid in a slowly rotating horizontal bottle. We apply a variable viscosity model that permits simultaneous analysis of fluidlike and solidlike behaviors that are ubiquitous in a variety of sedimenting flows. The model generates qualitative agreement with experiments, and produces new insights into mechanisms by which sedimented structures form.