Fragmentation of drying paint layers

Fragmentation of thin layers of drying granular materials on a frictional surface are studied both by experiments and computer simulations. Besides a qualitative description of the fragmentation phenomenon, the dependence of the average fragment size as a function of the layer thickness is thoroughly investigated. Experiments are done using a special nail polish, which forms characteristic crack structures during drying. In order to control the layer thickness, we diluted the nail polish in acetone and evaporated in a controlled manner different volumes of this solution on glass surfaces. During the evaporation process we managed to get an instable paint layer, which formed cracks as it dried out. In order to understand the obtained structures a previously developed spring-block model was implemented in a three-dimensional version. The experimental and simulation results proved to be in excellent qualitative and quantitative agreement. An earlier suggested scaling relation between the average fragment siz...