Single particle fragmentation in ultrasound assisted impact comminution

Impact fragmentation is the underlying principle of comminution milling of dry, bulk solids. Unfortunately the outcome of the fragmentation process is more or less determined by the dimensionality of the impactor and its impact velocity. Since fragmentation is dominated by interfering shock waves, manipulating traveling shock waves and adding energy to the system during its fragmentation could be a promising approach to manipulate fragment mass distributions and energy input. In a former study we explored mechanisms in impact fragmentation of spheres, using a three-dimensional Discrete Element Model (DEM) Carmona et al. (Phys Rev E 77:051302, 2008). This work is focused on studying how single spheres fragment when impacted on a planar vibrating target.