Mechanical Properties of Granular Sea Ice Under Uniaxial Compression: A Comparison of Piled and Level Ice
The proportion of granular ice in sea ice layers has markedly increased due to global warming. To investigate the uniaxial compressive behavior of granular sea ice, we conducted a series of experiments using natural piled and level ice samples collected from the Bohai Sea. A total of 311 specimens w...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Journal of Marine Science and Engineering |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/13/7/1302 |
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| Summary: | The proportion of granular ice in sea ice layers has markedly increased due to global warming. To investigate the uniaxial compressive behavior of granular sea ice, we conducted a series of experiments using natural piled and level ice samples collected from the Bohai Sea. A total of 311 specimens were tested under controlled temperature conditions ranging from −15 °C to −2 °C and strain rates varying from 10<sup>−5</sup> to 10<sup>−2</sup> s<sup>−1</sup>. The effects of porosity, strain rate, and failure modes were studied. The results show that both the uniaxial compressive strength and uniaxial compressive elastic modulus were dependent on strain rate and porosity. Granular sea ice exhibited a non-monotonic strength dependence on strain rate, with the strength increasing in the ductile regime and decreasing in the brittle regime. In contrast, the elastic modulus increased monotonically with the strain rate. Both the strength and elastic modulus decreased with increasing porosity. Level ice consistently demonstrated higher strength and an elastic modulus than piled ice at equivalent porosities. Unified parametric models were developed to describe both properties across a wide range of strain rates encompassing the ductile-to-brittle (DBT) regime. The experimental results show that, as porosity decreased, the transition strain rate of granular sea ice shifted from 2.34 × 10<sup>−3</sup> s<sup>−1</sup> at high porosity (45%) to 1.42 × 10<sup>−4</sup> s<sup>−1</sup> at low porosity (10%) for level ice and 1.87 × 10<sup>−3</sup> s<sup>−1</sup> to 1.19 × 10<sup>−3</sup> s<sup>−1</sup> for piled ice. These results were compared with classical columnar ice models. These findings are useful for informing the design of vessel and coastal structures intended for use in ice-covered waters. |
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| ISSN: | 2077-1312 |