A Bioinspired Self-Burrowing Probe in Shallow Granular Materials
Publication: Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 149, Issue 9
Abstract
Bioinspired strategies have been used in recent years to solve engineering problems in geotechnics. Inspired by the dual-anchor locomotion mechanism of razor clams, researchers are developing a new generation of self-burrowing probes for a wide range of applications such as site exploration and sensor deployment. Due to inherent complexities of the bioinspired self-burrowing mechanism, the interaction between the probe and the soil is not fully understood, hindering the development of physical prototypes. In this study, a model based on the discrete element method (DEM) is used to prove feasibility and study and optimize the self-burrowing process of a probe. The probe burrows in a gravity-settled chamber filled with a scaled discrete analogue of a silica sand. A stepwise methodology, including essential anchor expansion, tip penetration, and anchor retraction, is proposed to model the self-burrowing process. Tip oscillation is introduced to reduce penetration resistance, which enables efficient burrowing through continuous cycles. However, the reduction strategy of soil resistance consumes more than 50% of the total work done by the entire self-burrowing cycle. Micromechanical observations, such as the contact force network and the particle displacement field, are provided to clearly visualize the interaction between the soil and the probe. While the total energy necessary to penetrate is greater than that for an equivalent constant-rate penetration, the feasibility of such a probe is numerically proven.
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Data Availability Statement
The data sets generated and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Acknowledgments
The first author recognizes the financial support of the Theodore von Kármán Fellowship—Outgoings 2023 (GSO082) from RWTH Aachen University for promoting collaboration among the authors. This material is based on work supported in part by the Engineering Research Center Program of the National Science Foundation under NSF Cooperative Agreement No. EEC–1449501. The second and third authors were supported by the NSF under Award No. 1942369. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of the National Science Foundation.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 149 • Issue 9 • September 2023
Copyright
© 2023 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Nov 26, 2022
Accepted: Apr 12, 2023
Published online: Jun 26, 2023
Published in print: Sep 1, 2023
Discussion open until: Nov 26, 2023
ASCE Technical Topics:
- Anchors
- Design (by type)
- Discrete element method
- Engineering fundamentals
- Engineering materials (by type)
- Equipment and machinery
- Feasibility studies
- Geotechnical engineering
- Granular materials
- Load and resistance factor design
- Load factors
- Materials engineering
- Methodology (by type)
- Models (by type)
- Numerical methods
- Optimization models
- Probe instruments
- Research methods (by type)
- Structural design
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