EDEM Creator - Set up the Model

Learn how to set up a simulation model and equipment, and define the generation of bulk materials using EDEM Creator.

To set up the model:
  1. Open Rock_box.dem from Part 1.
  2. In EDEM Analyst, set Current Time to 0 s.
  3. Select File > Export > Simulation Deck.
  4. Select a location (e.g. C:\EDEM_Tutorials) and file name (e.g. Rock_box_full.dem) and click Save.
  5. In the Export Options dialog box, leave the default settings.
    Note: This will create the simulation file at t = 0 s. An input deck can be taken from any point in a simulation. It is recommended to take the input from the last Time Step to store the simulation results or share with other users. This is a single Time Step and smaller in file size than the full simulation.
  6. Close this file and open Rock_box_full.dem from the folder.

Define the Base Particles

The first step is to define all the types of particles used in a model in the Bulk Material section.

To set up the model:
  1. Define the base particles.
  2. Create new particle shapes - two multi-sphere shapes and one polyhedral shape.
    1. In the Bulk Material section, select and expand rock.
    2. Right-click the GEMM particle shape and select Delete Particle.

      A warning message indicating deletion of the associated factory is displayed.

    3. Click OK.
    4. Right-click rock and select Add Particle > Add Multi-Sphere.
    5. Enter the name rock particle_1 into the highlighted field, and repeat the same steps to add another Multi-Sphere particle rock particle_2.
    6. Select Add Particle > Add Polyhedral to create a third shape rock particle_3.
  3. Define the spheres and properties.
    Multi-Sphere Particles are made up of one or more spheres. In this case, we shall import CAD templates of rock particles of different shapes and fit spheres to the template.
    1. Select Tools > Options > Rendering Options > Display Templates.
    2. Click Import to import the particle templates Rock_Template1.stl and Rock_Template 2.stl.
    3. In the Import Options dialog box, set the measurement units to mm, and ensure that all the settings have the default values.
    4. Click OK.
    5. Click the icon and rename the templates to Rock_Template1 and Rock_Template2, and then click OK.
    6. To view the template, select rock particle_1 from the Creator Tree.
    7. On the lower-right corner, select Rock_Template1 from the Display Templates dropdown list.
      Note: The template will appear larger compared to the spheres until the next step is completed.
    8. Select rock_particle1 in the Bulk Material section.
    9. Modify the rock particle_1 Spheres section as follows:
      Table 1. Radii and positions of spheres
      Particle Name rock particle_1 rock particle_2
      Sphere 0 1 2 0 1 2
      Radius (mm) 25 25 25 25 20 20
      Position X (mm) 0 -17 17 0 16 -16
      Position Y (mm) 19 -9 -9 2 -8 -8
      Position Z (mm) 0 0 0 0 0 0
    10. Select user-defined from the Size Distribution dropdown list.


    11. Click Import and select PSD.csv.

      This will set the size distribution as in the csv file.

    12. Select Properties and click Calculate Properties.
    13. Repeat the same steps for the second Multi-Sphere particle.
    14. Select user-defined from the Size Distribution dropdown list.
    15. Select Properties and click Auto Calculation.
    16. Set the Cuboid Box Length X,Y,Z values to 50 mm.
      The following shapes are generated by the templates:


      Note: Three different particles have been created to highlight the types of rock particles shapes.

Create the Particle Factory

The next step is to create a dynamic factory that produces particles over the duration of a simulation.

To create a particle factory:
  1. Expand Geometries in the Creator tree and right-click factory_plate.
  2. Specify values for the creation of the particle factory particle.
    In this model, all the three rock particles are to be created at a rate of 100 kg per second.
    1. Select Dynamic from the Factory Type dropdown list.
    2. Select Unlimited Number.
    3. In the Generation Rate section, select Target Mass and set the rate to 300 kg/s.
    4. To ensure that this corresponds to each particle being generated at 100 kg/s, select rock in the Bulk Material section of the Creator Tree.
      Note: The Particle Ratios section shows an even composition of the three rock particle types (33.33333% each).
  3. Set the initial parameters for the factory.
    1. Select the newly created factory (e.g. New Factory 2) in the Creator Tree.
    2. Ensure that the Factory Type is set to Dynamic.
    3. If the Factory Type is set to Static, right-click the factory and select Change Factory Type.
    4. Set the Velocity to Fixed and then click the icon to set the velocity in the X-direction to 3.54 m/s.