Low-velocity collisions of chondrules: How a thin dust cover helps enhance the sticking probabilityOPEN ACCESS
Nina Gunkelmann, Akimasa Kataoka, Cornelis P. Dullemond and Herbert M. Urbassek
A&A
Volume 599, March 2017
24 February 2017
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“Aims. The collision of two chondrules covered by a dust shell is investigated using a granular-mechanics algorithm.
Methods. We focus on the specific case of chondrules of radius 25 μm covered by dust of 0.76 μm radius; the dust shells have thicknesses of up to 5 μm and filling factors between 0.08 and 0.21.
Results. We demonstrate that the bouncing velocity of the two chondrules increases by two orders of magnitude if a dust shell covers the chondrules. The shells become partly destroyed during the collision process, both by sputtering (monomer ejection) and by agglomeration to dust aggregates. Thicker and denser dust shells are more efficient in accommodating the collision energy than thin and porous shells.”
