Shearing particle collisions studied by MD

It is proposed to investigate the response of a liquid bridge to a shearing collision by means of Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations. From various fields there is a keen interest in the liquid bridging that occurs as an equilibrium phenomenon between two closely opposed moist surfaces, and MD is a powerful technique to explore this to its full extend. In the present proposal we aim to study the response of a tensiled and sheared liquid bridge, loaded with external forces. These will then be extended to simulations of real -velocity, full collision events, which is of great interest for the interaction of particles, for instance in powder technology. The proposed project will run in parallel with a post -doctoral project at the University of Groningen in Holland funded by the STW, and with representatives from Shell, Unilever, Akzo/Organon, DSM and the University of Twente on the advisory board, The o bject of the Groningen project is to study the forces between particles with rough surfaces using MD techniques.