a bearing if the grains can roll on each other without sliding

a collection of discrete, solid particles dispersed in a vacuum or interstitial fluid

Synonym for particulate solid

A sandy type of soil with particles that are coarser than cohesive material and do not stick to each other.

A granular material is a conglomeration of discrete solid, macroscopic particles characterized by a loss of energy whenever the particles interact (the most common example would be friction when grains collide). The constituents that compose granular material must be large enough such that they are not subject to thermal motion fluctuations. Thus, the lower size limit for grains in granular material is about 1 µm.