Frost susceptibility of soils——A confusing concept that can misguide geotechnical design in cold regions

Frost susceptibility is a concept widely used in cold region geotechnical design, to quantify the capacity of a soil in generating frost heave and frost damage. The laboratory test used to verify frost susceptibility of a soil is based on the measurement of frost heave generated in the soil under specific conditions. In reality this concept is, however, more related to the soil's potential to thaw weakening than to frost heave. Recent experimental studies show that frost non-susceptible soils like clean sand and clean gavel can also generate much ice segregation and frost heave if the conditions are favourable, hence challenging the usefulness and suitability of soil classification based on frost susceptibility. It is further shown that the concept is not suitable for design scenarios where frost heave itself is a serious hazard, such as in high-speed rail embankments.     

1961—2017年北疆初终霜日及霜期时空变化特征

利用1961—2017年北疆37个地面气象站逐日最低气温观测资料,结合常规气象统计方法,分析北疆地区初、终霜日和霜期的时空演变特征.结果表明:(1)北疆平均初霜日以2.2 d·(10a)-1速率推迟;平均终霜日以1.7 d·(10a)-1速率提前;平均霜期以3.9 d·(10a)-1速率缩短;初、终霜日和霜期的主周期均...     

Numerical analysis of frost effects in porous media. Benefits and limits of the finite element poroelasticity formulation

The aim of this paper is to analyse the performance of a finite element formulation usable for predicting the mechanical consequences of frost effects on porous media. It considers the characteristics of porous media and how the frost action can be assessed. The problem is then separated into two parts: thermal and poromechanical calculations. The constitutive equations developed in the framework of poromechanics are presented and the implementation in a usual finite element poroelasticity formulation based on Zuber's method is adopted. An analysis of the time‐step influence on the convergence rate is given and leads us to propose a simple method in order to obtain objectivity of the finite element response and avoid over‐long calculations. Frost effect simulations are carried out on real porous media (two fired clays) as a case study. Although the experimental behaviour of the porous media subjected to frost action is in accordance with some observations, the calculated strains appear to be overestimated compared with measurements. The problem could be largely attributable to the difficulty of assessing permeability evolution during frost development. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effect of snow and soil frost melting on the concentrations of suspended solids and phosphorus in two rural watersheds in Western Finland

Hydrological processes are known to have a considerable effect on nutrient transport from agricultural land to watercourses. In cold temperate regions peak discharges are caused not only by storm conditions but also by melting of snow and frost. The objective of this work was to investigate the effects of snow and frost melt on concentrations of phosphorus and suspended solids. The samples were taken using flowweighted automatic sampling techniques from two agricultural drainage basins. During the beginning of the snowmelt period the concentration of suspended solids was rather low by comparison with the total phosphorus concentration and the discharge. The different behaviour compared with the relationships found during storm conditions was probably caused by continuous extraction of the soil surface by low ionic concentration melt water, and to some extent by leaching from plant residues. The gradual decrease of total phosphorus concentration during the frost thawing period could be attributed to the gradually increasing proportion of the subsurface and ground water discharge in the runoff.     

湖北省钟祥第四纪冰缘融冻构造的发现及其意义

笔者于1986年在钟祥首次发现了第四纪地层间的冰缘融冻构造——古冰楔与揉皱,其时代为早更新世末期—中更新世初期。它的发现不仅为建立本区第四纪地层层序,而且为确定更新世北方冰缘冻土的南界和研究长江中下游更新世古气候环境的演变提供了重要的科学依据。     

黑北公路冻土路基设计原则及病害特征

依据位于小兴安岭地区的黑北公路沿线退化多年冻土特征，以及地质、水文、气候等工程环境条件，分析了黑北公路路基可能会发生的病害和发展过程，提出了适合于黑经公路的路基设计与病害防治措施，以便比选与优化退化型多年冻土地区的路基稳定性设计原则及结构形式，同时在路基设计形式和病害处理上提出了一些初步设想和建议。     

河西走廊春季强冻害成因及防御对策

应用酒泉、张掖、武威实况资料,从作物的各个生长发育期进行了对比分析,结果表明强冷空气爆发是造成冻害的直接原因,前期气温异常偏高使农作物生育期提前、气温和地温较低加剧了冻害程度。并提出了防御冻害发生的有效措施。