Abstract
A mechanistic explanation of channeling during boiling in unconsolidated particulate debris beds is formulated by combining a free-body force diagram and the capillary pressure-saturation curve for porous media. The model is consistent with the principles of two-phase flow in porous media and provides boundary conditions for the flow equations in the unchanneled region. Experimental evidence for spherical particles presented here implies that the solid matrix in the channeled region cannot maintain a shear force and therefore behaves like a fluid without being fluidized in the classical sense.

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