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2. Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC)
3. Cold Regions Research Engineering Laboratory (CRREL) - (2/1/1961 - present)
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5. Research Report

Title:	Deformation of snow under rigid plates at a constant rate of penetration
Authors:	Abele, Gunars
Keywords:	Loads Load bearing strength Density measurements Penetration tests Snow mechanics Snow Snow creep Deformation Snow density Snow roads Airfields Runways Foundations
Publisher:	Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (U.S.) Engineer Research and Development Center (U.S.)
Series/Report no.:	Research report (Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (U.S.)) ; 273.
Description:	Research Report Abstract: This report presents the results of a study performed on the behavior, particularly the deformation, of snow under a load applied to a rigid plate at a constant rate of penetration. The results will eventually be used in the development of design criteria for snow roads, runways, and foundations in the polar regions. The tests were conducted on snow samples having a high width/length ratio, simulating a two-dimensional case. The effect of snow density, plate size, and pressure on the deformation of snow below the load was investigated. The pressure-sinkage relationships and the bearing strength as functions of density were also investigated. It was determined that density, in the range 0.3 to 0.6 g/cm^3, can be used as a reasonably reliable index for predicting deformation and behavior of snow under load. In general, the critical pressure (bearing strength) increased as a power function of density, and critical sinkage decreased as a power function of density. It was also observed that the deformation bulb resembled the typical Boussinesq stress bulb. The experimental pressure-sinkage relationships agreed closely with recently developed theoretical values. For the range of plate sizes used, the test data did not provide conclusive evidence of the effect of plate size on deformation and bearing capacity of snow. The possibility of using the Moire fringe method for determing deformation patterns in snow and soils under various loading conditions should be investigated.
Rights:	Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.
URI:	http://hdl.handle.net/11681/5815
Appears in Collections:	Research Report