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Angle of repose
The angle of repose or the critical angle of repose,
[1]
of a granular material is the steepest angle
of descent or dip relative to the horizontal plane to hich a material can be piled ithout
slumping. At this angle, the material on the slope face is on the verge of sliding. The angle of
repose can range from !" to #!". $mooth, rounded sand grains cannot be piled as steeply as can
rough, interloc%ing sands. &f a small amount of ater is able to bridge the gaps beteen particles,
electrostatic attraction of the ater to mineral surfaces ill increase soil strength.
'hen bul% granular materials are poured onto a horizontal surface, a conical pile ill form. The
internal angle beteen the surface of the pile and the horizontal surface is %non as the angle of
repose and is related to the density, surface area and shapes of the particles, and the coefficient of
friction of the material. (oever, a )!11 study shos that the angle of repose is also gravity*
dependent.
[)]
+aterial ith a lo angle of repose forms flatter piles than material ith a high
angle of repose.
The term has a related usage in mechanics, here it refers to the ma,imum angle at hich an
ob-ect can rest on an inclined plane ithout sliding don. This angle is e.ual to the arctangent of
the coefficient of static friction
s
beteen the surfaces.
Contents
[hide]
1 Applications of theory
) +easurement
/ 0,ploitation by antlion and ormlion 12ermileonidae3 larvae
4 +ethods in determining the angle of repose
o 4.1 Tilting bo, method
o 4.) 5i,ed funnel method
o 4./ 6evolving cylinder method
7 Angle of repose of various materials
8 $ee also
9 6eferences
Applications of theory[edit]
Talus cones on north shore of &sf-ord,$valbard, :oray, shoing angle of repose for coarse sediment
The angle of repose is sometimes used in the design of e.uipment for the processing of
particulate solids. 5or e,ample, it may be used to design an appropriate hopper or silo to store
the material, or to size a conveyor belt for transporting the material. &t can also be used in
determining hether or not a slope 1of a stoc%pile, or uncompacted gravel ban%, for e,ample3
ill li%ely collapse; the talus slope is derived from angle of repose and represents the steepest
slope a pile of granular material ill ta%e. This angle of repose is also crucial in correctly
calculatingstability in vessels.
&t is also commonly used by mountaineers as a factor in analysing avalanche danger in
mountainous areas.
+easurement[edit]
There are numerous methods for measuring angle of repose and each produces slightly different
results. 6esults are also sensitive to the e,act methodology of the e,perimenter. As a result, data
from different labs are not alays comparable. <ne method is the tria,ial shear test, another is
the direct shear test.
&f the coefficient of static friction is %non of a material, then a good appro,imation of the angle
of repose can be made ith the folloing function. This function is somehat accurate for piles
here individual ob-ects in the pile are minuscule and piled in random order.
[/]
here,
s
is the coefficient of static friction, and is the angle of repose.
0,ploitation by antlion and ormlion 12ermileonidae3 larvae[edit]
$and pit trap of the antlion
The larvae of the antlions and the unrelated ormlions 2ermileonidae trap small insects such
as ants by digging conical pits in loose sand, such that the slope of the alls is effectively at
the critical angle of repose for the sand.
[4]
They achieve this by flinging the loose sand out of
the pit and permitting the sand to settle at its critical angle of repose as it falls bac%. Thus,
hen a small insect, commonly an ant, blunders into the pit, its eight causes the sand to
collapse belo it, draing the victim toard the center here the predator that dug the pit
lies in ait under a thin layer of loose sand. The larva assists this process by vigorously
flic%ing sand out from the center of the pit hen it detects a disturbance. This undermines
the pit alls and causes them to collapse toard the center. The sand that the larva flings
also pelts the prey ith so much loose, rolling material as to prevent it from getting any
foothold on the easier slopes that the initial collapse of the slope has presented. The
combined effect is to bring the prey don to ithin grasp of the larva, hich then can in-ect
venom and digestive fluids.
+ethods in determining the angle of repose[edit]
Tilting box method[edit]
This method is appropriate for fine*grained, non*cohesive materials, ith individual particle
size less than 1! mm. The material is placed ithin a bo, ith a transparent side to observe
the granular test material. &t should initially be level and parallel to the base of the bo,. The
bo, is sloly tilted at a rate of appro,imately !./ degrees=second. Tilting is stopped hen
the material begins to slide in bul%, and the angle of the tilt is measured.
Fixed funnel method[edit]
The material is poured through a funnel to form a cone. The tip of the funnel should be held
close to the groing cone and sloly raised as the pile gros, to minimize the impact of
falling particles. $top pouring the material hen the pile reaches a predetermined height or
the base a predetermined idth. 6ather than attempt to measure the angle of the resulting
cone directly, divide the height by half the idth of the base of the cone. The inverse tangent
of this ratio is the angle of repose.
Revolving cylinder method[edit]
The material is placed ithin a cylinder ith at least one transparent face. The cylinder is
rotated at a fi,ed speed and the observer atches the material moving ithin the rotating
cylinder. The effect is similar to atching clothes tumble over one another in a sloly
rotating clothes dryer. The granular material ill assume a certain angle as it flos ithin
the rotating cylinder. This method is recommended for obtaining the dynamic angle of
repose, and may vary from the static angle of repose measured by other methods. 'hen
describing the angle of repose for a substance, alays specify the method used.
Angle of repose of various materials[edit]
(ere is a list of various materials and their angle of repose.
[7]
All measurements are
appro,imated and not e,act.
Material (condition) Angle of Repose (degrees)
Ashes 40
Asphalt (crushed) 3045
Bark (wood refuse) 45
Bran 3045
Material (condition) Angle of Repose (degrees)
Chalk 45
Clay (dry lump) 2540
Clay (wet eca!ated) "5
Clo!er seed 2#
Coconut (shredded) 45
Coffee $ean (fresh) 3545
%arth 3045
&lour (corn) 3040
&lour (wheat) 45
'ran(te 3540
'ra!el (loose dry) 3045
'ra!el (natural w) sand) 2530
*alt 3045
+and (dry) 34
Material (condition) Angle of Repose (degrees)
+and (water f(lled) "530
+and (wet) 45
+now 3#
,-.
/rea ('ranular) 20
,0.
1heat
20