Stress distribution in particulate systems

It is not yet possible to predict how stress will be distributed in a given particulate system. Continuum mechanics provide elegant equations describing stress distribution in solid continua which due to lack of a suitable theory are often applied to particle systems. Soil mechanics on the other hand recognises the particle nature of such systems and produce solutions based on empirical failure criteria. However the way in which stresses are propagated in a bed of particles is not understood. This thesis investigates how stress is distributed in dry cohesionless particle beds with the aid of the photoelastic technique. [Continues.]