5th International Congress on

Computational Mechanics and Simulation,

10-13 December 2014, India

A numerical study to simulate digging of soil by chain-hammer

system
CHITRALEKHA DEY1 and KIRAN AKELLA2
1

Research & Development Establishment (Engrs.), Defence Research & Development

Organization (DRDO), Pune, India.
E-mail: chitralekha.dey@gmail.com, dchitralekha@rde.drdo.in
2
Research & Development Establishment (Engrs.), Defence Research & Development
Organization (DRDO), Pune, India.
E-mail: kiranakella@rde.drdo.in
ABSTRACT
In this paper, a numerical analysis approach for soil digging by a chain-hammer system is
presented. An explicit dynamic finite element analysis has been performed. Drucker-Prager
material model is used for soil. Torque and velocity of the hammer are computed. Experiments
have been conducted on the same chain-hammer system. Good agreement has been observed
between experimental and FE results.
Keywords: mine breaching; Drucker-Prager material model; soil tool interaction

Introduction
Military countermine equipment is required to clear areas of land mines and create safe access. One
such equipment, the countermine flail uses rotating hammers attached to a rotor to dig the ground
and disintegrate buried mines. The hammers strike the ground with the required force and dig out
all the soil up to a certain depth. To estimate the power, torque required to dig in different classes
of soil has to be computed.
Recce (1964) has proposed the fundamental equation of earth moving by considering the soil
cutting tool as a flat blade moving through the soil at a certain speed. Wheeler and Gordin (1996)
have developed a force prediction model for single and multiple tines in soil engaging operations at
speeds at which inertial effects are significant. The force prediction model has shown good
agreement with experimental data. Ou and Lai (1994) have presented an application of finiteelement analysis to deep excavation in layered sandy and clayey soil deposits using a combination
of the hyperbolic and the Modified Cam-clay models. Patel and Prajapati (2011) have reported a
review on the research carried out in the field of soil excavation. Maciejewski and Jarzebowski
(2002) have experimentally studied various soil trajectories. They evaluated the optimum trajectory
based on specific energy. The influence of several parameters such as shape of the tool trajectory
and the shape of the cross-section of the tool on the efficiency of the soil cutting process was

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investigated. In another study, Maciejewski et al. (2004) have reported an experimental work
investigating the soil cutting problem using a tool in the shape of an excavator's bucket equipped
with teeth. The influence of parameters such as number of teeth and position of teeth on the
efficiency of the digging cycle is studied.
Studies on analytical and numerical analysis of excavation operations such as surface mining,
quarrying of rocks and highway construction are reported in literature. These are slow digging
processes in comparison with the present application. Furthermore, studies with cylindrical cutting
tool as required for the current work are not reported. Therefore, we conducted a numerical study
using dynamic finite element analysis wherein the cylindrical hammer is modeled. The soil digging
by chain and hammer system is studied and torque requirement for cutting through the soil is
estimated.

Experimental Study
Three hammers were attached to a rotor and rotated at a speed of 410 RPM in air using a hydraulic
motor. A soil bed was prepared. The height of the rotor was adjusted such that while digging, a
furrow of 210 mm depth was created. Three parameters of the hydraulic system were measured
during the digging process: system pressure, rotor speed and flow of hydraulic motor. System
pressure was measured using pressure transducer, flow was measured using a flow sensor and rotor
speed was measured using a RPM sensor. Table 1 shows the recorded data of the three parameters
during digging. During the digging process, the speed of the rotor reduced from 410 RPM to 306
RPM due to resistance offered by the soil.
Table 1. Experimental data
Parameters

Value

System pressure (p0)

System pressure after losses (p1)
Average rotor speed in air ()
Average rotor speed during digging in soil (0)

41e6 Pa
30e6 Pa
410 RPM
306 RPM

Flow of motor (q)

2e-3 m3/s

Power (P) required for digging soil by three hammers is estimated using the equation

P q p1

(1)

Substituting the values in Table 1, power required by three hammers is estimated as 60 kW. Hence
power required by one hammer to cut the soil is estimated as 20 kW. From the value of power,
torque (T) required for rotation is calculated from equation (2).

P T

(2)
Here is the rotational velocity of the hammer. Hence, torque required for cutting of 1 hammer
through soil is deduced as 465.8 N-m i.e. 4.7e5 N-mm.

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Numerical analysis
FE analysis of soil digging by chain-hammer has been performed using commercial finite element
software Abaqus 6.10. The hammer and chain are connected with a connector element simulating a
hinge connection. Total length of chain and hammer is 1 m. The length of hammer is fixed at 0.28
m as mines are laid at that depth below ground surface. Therefore, the chain and hammer position
at a height of 0.72 m from soil surface at start of digging as shown in Fig. 2. The rotor rotates at a
speed of 410 RPM, while the equipment moves ahead at a speed of 2 kmph. Due to these two
movements, each hammer cuts only a slice of soil in one rotation as shown in Fig. 3. Therefore in
the FE model, soil cut by the previous hammer rotation is removed as illustrated in Fig. 4.
Node based contact surfaces are used for the entire soil mass to ensure that contact is defined
between the successive layers of soil and the hammer while digging. As the stresses in the hammer
are negligible in comparison with soil, the hammer is modeled using three dimensional four node
solid rigid elements. Chain is modeled with truss elements and the soil is modeled with three
dimensional 8-node solid elements. The meshed model is shown in Fig. 5.
Soil samples in the areas of operation have been collected and properties have been obtained by
laboratory testing (Juneja, 2009). Linear Drucker Prager material model is used to model the soil.
Drucker-Prager is a pressure dependent plasticity model which is popularly used in geotechnical
engineering. The yield criteria of the linear Drucker-Prager model in the meridional plane is
obtained from the equation

F p t tan d 0

(3)

Where, p is the mean pressure, t the deviatoric stress measure, d the hardening parameter which
measures the cohesion of the soil and the friction angle of the material in the meridional plane.
The yield criteria is shown in Fig 1. Strain hardening has also been included in the material model
to represent the large plastic strains in the soil arising during the digging process.
t

d
p
Fig. 1. Yield criteria of linear Drucker Prager model
The material model requires the parameters listed in Table 2. Ultimate stress is based on
unconfined compressive strength. The strain at failure is obtained from the deviatoric stress- axial

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strain curve of soil obtained from the unconsolidated-undrained triaxial compression test results.
After reaching of the failure strain, the element is removed.
Table 2. Material properties of soil
Soil properties

Value

Ultimate stress
Strain at failure
Density
Angle of friction

0.283 MPa
0.16
2.06e-9 kg/mm3
28.3

Boundary condition of rotational velocity is defined at the center of rotation to simulate the rotation
of the chain hammer system. This point of rotation is coupled with the chain by a rigid coupling.

720mm

mm

Fig. 2. Chain hammer position with respect to soil

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Fig. 3. Digging pattern of hammer

Fig. 4. FE model of soil with cut

Fig. 5. Meshed model

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5th International Congress on Computational Mechanics and Simulation

Fig. 6. Soil at end of digging cycle

Explicit dynamic analysis is done. Contact is established between the hammer and successive
layers of soil . Fig. 6 shows the soil at end of one digging cycle.

Comparison of results
Fig. 7 shows the FE results of the velocity of hammer during digging in soil. When the hammer is
freely rotating in air, the velocity of hammer is 410 RPM. The velocity of the hammer decreases to
307 RPM at 0.036s during digging through soil. Comparing Fig. 7 with the experimental result in
Table 1, we observe that in both cases, hammer starts with a velocity of 410 RPM and reaches a
value of 306 RPM during digging. Fig. 8 shows the torque at point of rotation. When the hammer is
freely rotating, torque is zero. While digging, it reaches a peak value of 1.37e5 N-mm after it enters
the soil.

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Fig. 7. FE results of hammer velocity

Fig. 8. Torque at point of rotation

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Conclusions
The soil digging process by the hammer has been simulated using finite element procedure. The
kinematics of the hammer before digging and while digging through the soil have been realistically
captured. Torque and velocity of hammer while digging through soil are estimated. These are in
good agreement with experimental results. Thus, a modeling approach to simulate soil-digging
using finite element method is established.

References
Recce, A. R., (1964), "The fundamental equation of earth moving mechanics," Proceedings of the
Institution of Mechanical Engineers.
Wheeler, P.N., Godwin, R.J., (1996), Soil dynamics of single and multiple tines at speeds up to
20km/h," J. Agric. Engng. Res., 63, 243-250.
Ou, C.Y., Lai, C.H. (1994), "Finite element analysis of deep excavation in layered sandy and
clayey soil deposits," Canadian Geotechnical Journal, 31(2), 204-214
Patel, B.P., Prajapati, J.M., (2011), "Soil tool interaction as a review for digging operation of mini
hydraulic excavator," International journal of Engineering Science and Technology, Volume 3, No.
2, 894-901.
Maciejewski, J., Jarzebowski, A., (2002), "Laboratory optimization of the soil digging process,"
Journal of Terramechanics, 39, 161179.
Maciejewski, J., Jarzebowski, A., Trampczynski, W,(2004), "Study on the efficiency of the digging
process using the model of excavator bucket," Journal of Terramechanics, 40, 221233.
ABAQUS/6.10, users manual (2010), Dassault Systems Simulia Corp, USA.
Juneja, A., (2009): "Experimental and theoretical investigation of power required on rotor shaft of
project CMF 72; Annexure: Evaluation of soil parameters", Dept. of civil engg., IIT, Bombay.

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