  Structural characteristics are considered to be the dominant factors in
determining the effective properties of granular media, particularly in the
scope of transport phenomena. Towards improved heat management, thermal
transport in granular media requires an improved fundamental understanding. In
this study, the effects of packing structure on heat transfer in granular media
are evaluated at macro- and grain-scales. At the grain-scale, a gas-solid
coupling heat transfer model is adapted into a discrete-element-method to
simulate this transport phenomenon. The numerical framework is validated by
experimental data obtained using a plane source technique, and the
Smoluschowski effect of the gas phase is found to be captured by this
extension. By considering packings of spherical SiO2 grains with an
interstitial helium phase, vibration induced ordering in granular media is
studied, using the simulation methods developed here, to investigate how
disorder-to-order transitions of packing structure enhance effective thermal
conductivity. Grain-scale thermal transport is shown to be influenced by the
local neighbourhood configuration of individual grains. The formation of an
ordered packing structure enhances both global and local thermal transport.
This study provides a structure approach to explain transport phenomena, which
can be applied in properties modification for granular media.
