Dynamic behavior of frozen soil under uniaxial strain and stress conditions

The split Hopkinson pressure bar (SHPB) method is used to investigate the dynamic behavior of the artificial frozen soil under the nearly uniaxial strain and uniaxial stress conditions. The tests are conducted at the temperatures of −3°C, −8°C, −13°C, −17°C, −23°C, and −28°C and with the strain rates from 900 s−1 to 1 500 s−1. The nearly uniaxial stress-strain curves exhibit an elastic-plastic behavior, whereas the uniaxial stress-strain curves show a brittle behavior. The compressive strength of the frozen soil exhibits the positive strain rate and negative temperature sensitivity, and the final strain of the frozen soil shows the positive strain rate sensitivity. The strength of the frozen soil under the nearly uniaxial strain is greater than that under the uniaxial stress. After the negative confinement tests, the specimens are compressed, and the visible cracks are not observed. However, the specimens are catastrophically damaged after the uniaxial SHPB tests. A phenomenological model with the thermal sensitivity is established to describe the dynamic behavior of the confined frozen soil.