Ice lens structures, compression strengths and creep behavior of some synthetic frozen silty soils

This research paper concerns the frozen state properties of several silty soils encountered in the construction of a large LNG storage cavern near Carlstadt, New Jersey.

The creep and compression strengths were correlated with both field and laboratory-measured mechanical properties. These cryogenic mechanical properties were related to ice lens structures, sizes and occurrences, and to heat flow and geological structure effects. Three distinct and separate types of ice lenses were identified. These cryogenic ground data pertain to the prediction of the engineering properties of frozen earth for large structures. Sample size effect problems were investigated, this in relationship to the number and size and orientations of the ice lenses present.