Phil,
for my classes in Oman I use sand form desert dunes - perhaps you can find a way to get this in the USA.
for the ductile material in teaching I have used different kinds of hair gel that you can buy in any drug store. Just go for the ones without perfume.
A great addition also is a good strong lamp to illuminate the models in low angle light.
Finally, perhaps you want to consider using gypsum powder which you can harden and excavate and can fail in both modes. This is very easy to do. We described this in
Also, there are some ink types which you can use to colour the sand easily.
kind regards,
Janos
Prof. Dr. Janos L. Urai
Structural Geology, Tectonics and Geomechanics
RWTH Aachen University, Lochnerstrasse 4-20
D-52056 Aachen, Germany
T: +49 241 809 5723 M: +49 151 140 42552
Hello All,
I am adding sandbox modeling experiments to my structural geology course this year and am struggling with where to find appropriate sand (well sorted, fine-grained). I have seen “play sand” suggested online, but everything that passes as play
sand around here is quite poorly sorted. I think perhaps the only requirement is that it is washed.
Thanks for any suggestions you may have.
Best,
Phil Resor
Wesleyan University