Cold Regions Science and Technology

Volume 55, Issue 3, March 2009, Pages 263277

doi:10.1016/j.coldregions.2008.08.002

ADSORBED CATION EFFECTS on THE FROST

SUSCEPTIBILITY of NATURAL SOILS
Margaret M. Darrow , ,Scott L. Huang , Satoshi Akagawa
Abstract
To investigate the effects of adsorbed cations on the frost susceptibility of soil, a
comprehensive suite of laboratory experiments was conducted on five natural
heterogeneous soils. Cation treatments, which included Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+, and K+
treatments, were prepared by exchanging the soil's adsorbed cations in saturated salt
solutions. Laboratory experiments included measuring unfrozen water contents, zeta
potentials, and frost heave ratios. Results from frost heave tests indicate that
exchanging the predominately adsorbed cation in a natural soil greatly affects the
soil's physicochemical properties and frost susceptibility. Statistical analysis results
indicate that frost heaving is most dependent on adsorbed cations, the unfrozen water
content, and the amount of smectite, kaolinite, and chlorite present in the soil. The
results also indicate that the frost heave response of a given soil to a salt treatment
may not be predictable and systematic.
Keywords
Frost heave; Zeta potential; Cations; Unfrozen water; Soil chemistry