Joint work with Ian Gladwell, Southern Methodist University

During sintering of particles, surface diffusion forces a movement of particle surface that is governed by the surface Laplacian of curvature. We formulate the surface diffusion equation and boundary conditions in a global coordinate system for tracking surface evolution in a closed packed 3D array of particles. Using the method of lines, we develop a computational strategy and discuss its results for a particle surface movement in the 3D array.