Journal of Cold Regions Engineering

We present a laboratory system designed for studying frost heave in fine-grained soil. The system consists of: a modified refrigerator, a frost heave test cell, a laser for measuring heave, a differential pressure transducer for measuring water intake, and platinum resistance temperature detectors for measuring pedestal temperatures. The frost heave cell allows for visual observation of the sample, and accommodates pretest sample consolidation, freezing tests using a variety of freezing methods, triaxial tests on frozen soil, and thaw consolidation tests. The modified refrigerator maintains the specified temperature $\pm 0.5°\mathrm{C}$ during the full length of the test. Test results indicate repeatability of frost heave ratios $\xi$ to within $\pm 7\%$ , and average heave rates to within $\pm 0.05\mathrm{mm}∕h$ . Results from frost heave tests conducted on five fine-grained soils indicate that: (1) a soil removed of its colloidal organic content becomes less frost susceptible; (2) the geomorphologic history of a “regional” soil is a critical factor influencing its frost susceptibility; and (3) $\xi$ is dependent on overall clay content and is most sensitive to chlorite content.

An experimental study was undertaken to investigate the influence of cold temperatures on the seismic behavior of reinforced concrete members. This paper summarizes the results of Phase I of a multiphase research project that consisted of the reversed cyclic testing of four identical large scale reinforced concrete circular columns subjected to temperatures ranging from $-40°\mathrm{C}$ $(-40°\mathrm{F})$ to $20°\mathrm{C}$ $(68°\mathrm{F})$ . An extensive literary review is also presented. It was found that most of the past research focused on the material level, i.e., the independent behavior of plain concrete and reinforcing bars. Data collected from past works were complemented with the results obtained from the material tests performed in this research, and used to develop empirical equations for the estimation of the mechanical properties of concrete and steel reinforcement at low temperature. Past research shows an increase in strength without any loss in the deformation capacity of plain concrete and reinforcing steel bars tested at low temperatures. The results of this study show a reduction in the displacement capacity of reinforced concrete members tested at freezing temperatures.