Experimental measurement and numerical simulation of frost heave in saturated coarse-grained soil

A series of 1-D freezing experiments were conducted to simulate frost heave in saturated coarse-grained soil (CGS) with variable fines content. Visible frost heave occurred in CGS that contained a considerable fraction of fines when supplied by an external water source. Near the beginning of the experiments, a small amount of water was expelled, likely due to consolidation of the thawed portion of the sample. As time elapsed, the total amount of frost heave was proportional to the intake of water. Furthermore, frost heave increased linearly as the fines content increased. At higher fines content, frost heave occurred mainly due to water migration and segregated ice lensing. Finally, a simple finite element model that combined thermal and mechanical analyses based on Takashi's equation was developed. The model accurately reproduced experimental results and therefore can be used to simulate and predict frost heave in CGS.