Heat generation induced by plastic deformation during particle normal impact

Energy dissipation during particle impact has been widely studied in different fields where material plastic deformation is one of the main dissipation mechanisms. However, heat generation associated with plastic deformation is hardly accounted for, particularly in granular flows. This work investigates this problem at a particle level for the normal impact between an elastic-perfectly-plastic particle and a rigid substrate. The finite element method (FEM) and theoretical models are used to predict the net generated heat. It is shown that the FEM model agrees with the theoretical model especially when the coefficient of restitution is estimated accurately. In addition, the FEM model is used to study the temperature evolution for various impact velocities and material properties. It is found that the highest temperatures are generally in the subsurface. This observation confirms that the heat generation associated with plastic deformation is indeed a volumetric phenomenon, in contrast to the surface action conventionally assumed in the case of dissipation by friction.