Energy Transmission through Grain-to-grain Contacts: the Role of Bulk and Rayleigh Waves

The physical mechanism of elastic wave propagation through granular solids is investigated. Based on the symmetry of a one dimensional chain of spheres, spherical surface waves are considered to be responsible for the energy transport. A simple mathematical model is set up to describe the energy exchange during consequent granule-to-granule interactions. Experiments on a two-sphere setup support this model.