Flow, Ordering and Jamming of Sheared Granular Suspensions

We study the rheological properties of a granular suspension subject to constant shear stress by constant volume molecular dynamics simulations. We derive the system ‘‘flow diagram’’ in the volume fraction or stress plane (, F): at low the flow is disordered, with the viscosity obeying a Bagnold-like scaling only at small F and diverging as the jamming point is approached; if the shear stress is strong enough, at higher an ordered flow regime is found, the order-disorder transition being marked by a sharp drop of the viscosity. A broad jamming region is also observed where, in analogy with the glassy region of thermal systems, slow dynamics followed by kinetic arrest occurs when the ordering transition is prevented.