Microstructure-Based Random Finite Element Method Simulation of Frost Heave: Theory and Implementation

Abstract

Frost heave can cause serious damage to civil infrastructure. For example, interactions of soil and water pipes under frozen conditions have been found to significantly accelerate pipe fracture. Frost heave may cause the retaining walls along highways to crack and even fail in cold climates. This paper describes a holistic model to simulate the temperature, stress, and deformation in frozen soil and implement a model to simulate frost heave and stress on water pipelines. The frozen soil behaviors are based on a microstructure-based random finite element model, which holistically describes the mechanical behaviors of soils subjected to freezing conditions. The new model is able to simulate bulk behaviors by considering the microstructure of soils. The soil is phase coded and therefore the simulation model only needs the corresponding parameters of individual phases. This significantly simplifies obtaining the necessary parameters for the model. The capability of the model in simulating the temperature distribution and volume change are first validated with laboratory scale experiments. Coupled thermal-mechanical processes are introduced to describe the soil responses subjected to sub-zero temperature on the ground surface. This subsequently changes the interaction modes between ground and water pipes and leads to increase of stresses on the water pipes. The effects of cracks along a water pipe further cause stress concentration, which jeopardizes the pipe’s performance and leads to failure. The combined effects of freezing ground and traffic load are further evaluated with the model.

Supporting Mechanism of Pile-Anchor Systems for Deep Foundation Pits in Alpine Regions during the Spring Thaw

“…Zhan et al analyzed the variations in the temperature field, liquid water migration, solid ice accumulation, and frost heave deformation of frozen soil slopes [13]. Dong and Yu proposed a numerical model to simulate the frost heave and stress of water pipes and performed experiments to confirm the reliability of the model at simulating the temperature distribution and volume variation [14]. Chou et al, Zhao et al, Han et al, and Feng et al used the software Geo-Studio and demonstrated that the thawing depth of slopes subjected to freeze thaw cycles increased with the freezing depth and that a closed loop isotherm formed on the slope [15][16][17][18][19].…”

A Damage Constitutive Model for a Rock under Compression after Freeze-Thaw Cycles Based on the Micromechanics

“…From the viewpoint of the energy conservation law, mass conservation law, and the principle of static equilibrium considering water/ice phase change, Huang et al [13] set up a fully coupled THM model and verified its validity with the laboratory test. Based on a microstructure-based random finite element model for the frozen soil, Dong and Yu [14] established a holistic model to simulate the temperature, stress, and deformation in frozen soil and implement a model to simulate frost heave and stress on water pipelines. In order to consider the migration of unfrozen water during freezing, Wang et al [15] proposed a general thermo-mechanical-water migration coupled constitutive model to model mechanical degradation of rocks subjected to freeze-thaw cycles.…”