Behavior of Laboratory‐Made Spray Ice in Triaxial Compression Testing

Abstract

The increasing use of spray ice in arctic offshore exploration and construction initiated a study that includes a series of triaxial compression tests on saline, laboratory‐made spray ice. Factors affecting spray‐ice behavior and its engineering properties are independently selected and assessed, and the results are compared with the existing literature on spray ice and similar materials. The stress‐strain behavior of spray ice is studied for isotropic consolidation pressures ranging from 45 to 172 kPa, applied for four to 19 hours. The constant rates of strain used during the triaxial compression are 1.5×10-4s-1 and 1.8×10-5s-1. The test temperature is -10°C with a few tests performed at -5°C. For the range of strain rates considered, a yield strength envelope for spray ice is suggested that separates the initial quasi‐elastic behavior from plastic deformations; beyond the yield surface, the material behaves as a frictional medium. The results compare well with previous published analysis, despite the limited number of tests.