| Abstract | A series of confined compression tests has been performed on columnar sea ice over a range of nominal strain rates of 10⁻⁵ to 10⁻³ s⁻¹ at a temperature of -2°C. Both the applied load and side confining load were measured. These are used to outline the full 3-dimensional failure envelope of the ice. The results are discussed in terms of loading rate effects, temperature, brine volume and air porosity. A strength index is introduced which correlates the present results in terms of these parameters. This leads to an empirical relationship which gives the functional dependence of the uni-axial compressive strength in terms of strain rate, loading direction, salinity, temperature and ice density. A mathematical description of the failure envelope is presented using a modified n-type yield function. |
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