In situ creep of frozen soil, Fenghuo Shan, Tibet Plateau, China

Field measurements of frozen soil creep in the upper 3.0 m of permafrost indicate that creep occurs in both winter and summer. Between 1992 and 1993, the mean rate of creep ranged from 0.44 cm at 1.6 m depth to 0.16 cm at 2.8 m depth but there was extreme variability. Creep parameters n and A, as defined by the power flow law, were calculated from field data. Parameter n ranged between 1.96 and 2.29 and increased with depth, while A decreased with depth. Comparisons of creep rates for different permafrost environments suggest that ground temperature largely controls the magnitude of permafrost creep. Key words : permafrost, creep parameters, Tibet Plateau.

[1]  Hugh M. French,et al.  Climate controls and high‐altitude permafrost, qinghai‐xizang (tibet) Plateau, China , 1994 .

[2]  S. Wagner.  Creep of alpine permafrost, investigated on the murtel rock glacier , 1992 .

[3]  N. Morgenstern,et al.  Geotechnical condition of slopes at a proposed pipeline crossing, Great Bear River valley, Northwest Territories , 1986 .

[4]  N. Morgenstern,et al.  Creep behaviour of undisturbed clay permafrost , 1986 .

[5]  N. Morgenstern,et al.  In situ creep properties in ice-rich permafrost soil , 1986 .

[6]  V. R. Parameswaran,et al.  Strength and deformation of frozen saturated sand at −30 °C , 1982 .

[7]  Roger LeB. Hooke,et al.  Flow law for polycrystalline ice in glaciers: Comparison of theoretical predictions, laboratory data, and field measurements , 1981 .

[8]  N. Morgenstern,et al.  The behaviour of friction piles in ice and ice-rich soils , 1980 .

[9]  K. Savigny.  In situ analysis of naturally occurring creep in ice-rich permafrost soil , 1980 .

[10]  A. L. Washburn,et al.  Geocryology: A survey of periglacial processes and environments , 1979 .

[11]  J. F. Nixon.  First Canadian Geotechnical Colloquium: Foundation design approaches in permafrost areas , 1978 .

[12]  J. F. Nixon,et al.  A design approach for pile foundations in permafrost , 1976 .

[13]  Edward C McRoberts,et al.  Some Aspects of a Simple Secondary Creep Model for Deformations in Permafrost Slopes , 1975 .

[14]  E. Thompson,et al.  IN SITU CREEP ANALYSIS OF ROOM IN FROZEN SOIL , 1972 .

[15]  J. W. Glen,et al.  The creep of polycrystalline ice , 1955, Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series A. Mathematical and Physical Sciences.