Study on Frost Heaving Evaluation of Typical Soil Samples along Qinghai-Tibet Highway

Abstract

Based on the geological survey data of 167 boreholes along the Qinghai-Tibet Highway, the relationship between frost heaving force and natural density and water content of soil samples was analyzed and evaluated. The results show that the natural density along the line is concentrated from 1.9 g·cm−3 to 2.2 g·cm−3. The frost heaving force decreases with the increase of the natural density. Frost heaving force is affected by natural density in three stages. The frost heaving force increases with the increase of natural water content, which can be divided into three stages, too. The surface water system is developed and the water content in the shallow layer is relatively large, which makes the frost heaving force reach 37kPa, which is the maximum along the line.