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A while ago this random thought crossed my mind: I am not even sure if the question is valid or makes sense, but I can sort of imagine a powder (consisting of of granules with a diameter way less than a nanometer across) behaving like a fluid (at least they would have a similar "macroscopic" behaviour). Of course I do not expect this powder to have similar chemical properties, but maybe that's the case. Is there any information on "simulating fluids with many tiny solid objects"?

Qmechanic
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Lorem Ipsum1729
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    There is a lot about granular materials and fluids (their behaviour can range from very fluid-like to utterly different), and in computational fluid dynamics people use Lagrangian fluid solvers where the fluid is approximated by moving points. – Anders Sandberg Jan 20 '21 at 10:56
  • Some powders will flow, but being a solid can resist shear stresses and will not assume the same angle of repose as a liquid. But it is a good question. – Adrian Howard Jan 20 '21 at 10:58
  • The Wikipedia page for the properties of water states that a molecule of $H_2O$ is around 0.3nm across. What will your "powder" be made of to have granules way less than a nanometre across? – Dan Pollard Jan 20 '21 at 10:58
  • @Dan Pollard I know it may not be very realistic, but I essentially that is what I wanted to say: granules on near-atomary scale. – Lorem Ipsum1729 Jan 20 '21 at 11:03

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