Sand/salt simulation

[Tiazz]

Hello guys, I'm new in 3D sims, but for this work i need to use Realflow, I guess.
Here what I need:
I have to simulate a salt dispenser on a truck (i will make trasparency in 3ds max), that will mix the salt before spreading it out on the street;
I have to simulate also a dump track with a open-box bed full of sand and little debris, that when is up and open will let fall off the sand/debris on the street.

Okay, i know that we haven't already some sand/granular solver in RF (the Sandy Plugin is not affordable for me also because I would use it only for this work).
I tried to use some liquid solver, but I cannot change mesh/emitter properties to looks like sand or salt.

Here my solution, maybe I can simulate with a viscous liquid the salt in the truck, maybe using a displacement/bump map in 3ds max, and then for the spread on the street i can try with particle flow inside 3ds max.
For the second simulation, i could work with liquid solver in RF and then add some little debris with mass fx and maybe some particle emitter to generate some sand.

My question is: this workflow it's ok? do you have something better/easier to suggest me? would this workflows generate some good or discrete results or am i wasting time?

I will follow some RF tutorial now, by the why i have already a question about Realflow:
I want to use the emitter "fill object" to fill my trucks with "liquids" created inside a box, but how can i let the box disappear and let the liquid fill my trucks, ready for the simulations?

Thank you so much guys, hope you could help me
and sorry for my poor english
I'm waiting for you, Realflow experts!

[ChristianZ]

Hi

the problem with this task is, that it is difficult to deliver sand, if there is no sand solver (this may change with the planned future options in the dyverso system)
What you can try is, to reduce the liquid properties from the particles to make them behave more like a non-newtonian fluid:
low (like 0.001) internal and external pressure
low viscosity and high density (or use very high viscosity, but it will become mud)
high friction on surfaces and stickyness
use a k-speed daemon with keep option so that the sand is not jumping to all sides

Maybe you want to try the free hot-cold-plugin. With that, particles can become frozen (=no motion) so that the particles pile up in clumps like snow or hardening cement.
With rigid bodies you could simulate sand grains as close-up, but otherwise it gets too slow.

Regarding the question about the fill-object emitter, just remove all connections to the cube that holds the particles. The emitter needs to be connected to the hub, but the cube can be completely disconnected from all other nodes.

[FA1LURE]

I recently came across this simulation posted on vimeo.

https://vimeo.com/groups/41372/videos/98751976

He explains how he used houdini to help make this possible.




Yannik has a plugin that only works on PC i believe... for 300 euros.

https://vimeo.com/dragonsspirit

Sandy solver.




OR.



Learn Houdini. Everything is built in and it just works.

http://www.sidefx.com/

You can learn for free using apprentice version and then upgrade to indie for 200. Purdy solid.


Good luck.