A three-dimensional transient fully coupled fluid-particle model is presented to simulate fluid flow-induced scour of a particle bed. The interaction of the liquid and solid phases is the key mechanism related to flood-induced failures of geotechnical systems. In this model, the mix of soil particles and water is idealized as two interpenetrating phases, each of which is modeled at a different scale. The fluid phase is idealized as a continuum using Eulerian formulation of averaged Navier-Stokes equations that account for the presence of the solid particles and solved using the finite element method. The particles are modeled at a microscale using the discrete element method. Computational simulations are conducted to investigate the response of a particle bed to Poiseuille flow conditions. The simulations provided information at the microscale level for the solid phase and the macroscale level for the fluid phase.
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