Mechanical and electrical properties of coarse-grained soil affected by cyclic freeze-thaw in high cold regions

To evaluate the geotechnical properties of coarse-grained soil affected by cyclic freeze-thaw, the electrical resistivity and mechanical tests are conducted. The soil specimens are prepared under different water contents, dry densities and exposed to 0-20 freeze-thaw cycles. As a result, the stress-strain behavior of the specimen (w =14.0% and rho(d)=1.90 g/cm(3)) changes from strain-hardening into strain-softening due to the freeze-thaw effect. The electrical resistivity of test specimen increases with the freeze-thaw cycles change, but the mechanical parameters (the unconfined compressive strength q(u) and the deformation modulus E) and brittleness index decrease considerably at the same conditions. All of them tend to be stable after 7-9 cycles. Moreover, both the dry density and the water content have reciprocal effects on the freeze-thaw actions. The failure and pore characteristics of specimens affected by freeze-thaw cycles are discussed by using the image analysis method. Then, an exponential function equation is developed to assess the electrical resistivity of specimens affected by the cyclic freeze-thaw. Linear relations between the mechanical parameters and the electrical resistivity of specimens are established to evaluate the geotechnical properties of the soil exposed to freeze-thaw actions through the corresponding electrical resistivity.