Irreversible thermodynamic treatment of frost heave

The coupled transport of mass and heat which occurs in frost heave, is described by irreversible thermodynamics. The approach is macroscopic phenomenological and thus it correlated macroscopic measurable parameters. It avoids as far as possible details about mechanism and is therefore complementary to derivations by, e.g., Everett (1961) based on microscopic models. A new derivation is given for the coupling between the transport of liquid water and the transport of heat from 0°C to the ice lens. Assumption of local equilibrium in this region is not necessary. The temperature difference over the region causes a water flux, which in turn causes a build-up of pressure gradients.