PREDICTING UNFROZEN WATER CONTENTS IN FROZEN SOILS FROM SURFACE AREA MEASUREMENTS

Abstract

AN EMPIRICAL EQUATION RELATING THE UNFROZEN WATER CONTENT OF PARTIALLY FROZEN SOILS TO TEMPERATURE AND SPECIFIC SURFACE AREA HAS BEEN DEVISED. IN SPITE OF THE SIMPLIFYING ASSUMPTIONS INVOLVED, THIS PREDICTION EQUATION IS OF SUFFICIENT ACCURACY FOR NORMAL ENGINEERING REQUIREMENTS. PREDICTED UNFROZEN WATER CONTENTS (PHASE COMPOSITION) COMPUTED FROM THIS EQUATION ARE COMPARED WITH EXPERIMENTALLY OBTAINED VALUES FOR NINE SOILS AND TWO SURFACE-ACTIVE SOIL CONSTITUENTS AND ARE FOUND TO BE IN GOOD AGREEMENT, PARTICULARLY AT TEMPERATURES BELOW -5 C (23 F). POSSESSION OF THIS PREDICTION EQUATION PERMITS MORE REFINED CALCULATIONS OF FROST AND THAW PENETRATION UNDER NATURAL OR DISTURBED CONDITIONS AND CALCULATION OF THE TIME-DEPENDENT TEMPERATURE DISTRIBUTIONS ASSOCIATED WITH FOUNDATIONS, FOOTINGS, PRODUCTION OIL WELLS, AND PIPELINES. /AUTHOR/