Analysation of the Effect of the Contact Properties on Soil’s Penetration Resistance in Discrete Element Simulations

Abstract

Cone penetration in-situ tests are commonly used to measure the cone index of the soils. This measurement process can be modelled very well with Discrete Element Method (DEM) if the parameters of the correct contact model are defined properly. In this paper the Hertz-Mindlin with bonding contact model are used and the effect of the properties of this contact model on soil’s penetration resistance is investigated. Our aim was to determine those contact parameters which play important role in the penetration process, thus are necessary to take into account while calibrating the discrete element soil model to the results of real penetration tests.