Experimental study on the effect of porosity on the uniaxial compressive strength of sea ice in Bohai Sea

For the abnormal ice condition in 2009–2010 winter, sea ice samples were collected in a tide ditch outside a port in the east coast of Liaodong Bay, and ice specimens were prepared. Experimental study was carried out with a temperature-control precision of 0.1°C, and 117 columnar-grained ice specimens were loaded along the direction parallel to ice surface under different test temperatures (−4, −7, −10, −13, −16°C) and strain rates ranging from 10−6 to 10−2 s−1 within which the ductile region, ductile-brittle transition and brittle region are contained. The uniaxial compressive strengths, density and salinity of the ice specimens were measured. The results support the curved-surface relationship between the uniaxial compressive strength and porosity within a wide range of strain rate. The curved-surface relationship gives a quantitative description about the variations of the mechanical behavior transition point with ice porosity, and supplies a uniform mathematical representation of uniaxial compressive strength under different failure modes. Besides, it is deduced that abnormal ice condition in 2009–2010 winter will not result in a change of the uniaxial compressive strength of sea ice in Bohai Sea.