Study on the Dynamic Properties of Cement–Coal Gangue Powder modified Silty Sand under Freeze–Thaw Cycles

Study on the Dynamic Properties of Cement–Coal Gangue Powder modified Silty Sand under Freeze–Thaw Cycles | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Study on the Dynamic Properties of Cement–Coal Gangue Powder modified Silty Sand under Freeze–Thaw Cycles Chenkai Wang, Lixia Wang, Yunlong Zhang, Zilin Hu, Shuang Sun, and 1 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-6810440/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 24 Nov, 2025 Read the published version in Scientific Reports → Version 1 posted 12 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract The northeastern region of China, a typical seasonally frozen zone, contains silty sand subgrade that are subjected to long-term dynamic loads from vehicles and are highly susceptible to deformation and road distress, such as upheaval, under freeze–thaw (F–T) cycles. To enhance the dynamic properties and F–T resistance of silty sand subgrade, cement and coal gangue powder (CGP) were employed as modifiers. Through dynamic triaxial test and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) test, investigated the dynamic properties of modified silty sand with varying contents of cement and CGP, the dynamic behavior and micro-structural evolution under different F–T cycles, confining pressures, and loading cycles. As well as the correlation between micro-structural features and dynamic parameters was studied by grey relational analysis. The results revealed that the deviatoric stress amplitude of the modified silty sand increased significantly with higher cement content, while initially increased and then decreased with rising CGP content. Compared to silty sand, the modified soil maintained higher deviatoric stress amplitudes and dynamic elastic modulus across varying F–T cycles, loading cycles, and confining pressures. A significant correlation was identified between micro-structural characteristics and dynamic parameters. F–T cycles caused considerable micro-structural degradation in silty sand, whereas the modified soil exhibited less structural variation. The incorporation of cement and CGP enhanced inter-particle cementation, filled pore spaces, and improved particle arrangement and pore distribution, thereby increasing structural stability and F–T resistance. Notably, the optimal ratio for cement–CGP modified silty sand was determined to be 2% cement and 8% CGP. Physical sciences/Engineering/Civil engineering Physical sciences/Materials science/Structural materials freeze–thaw (F–T) cycles cement–CGP modified silty sand dynamic properties micro-structural characteristics Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 24 Nov, 2025 Read the published version in Scientific Reports → Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 16 Jul, 2025 Reviews received at journal 16 Jul, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 30 Jun, 2025 Reviews received at journal 29 Jun, 2025 Reviews received at journal 14 Jun, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 12 Jun, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 12 Jun, 2025 Reviewers invited by journal 12 Jun, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 12 Jun, 2025 Editor invited by journal 12 Jun, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 11 Jun, 2025 First submitted to journal 03 Jun, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-6810440","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":471260575,"identity":"b7c47c0d-f530-444b-92fb-66e371a6963f","order_by":0,"name":"Chenkai Wang","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Ministry of Education, Jilin Jianzhu University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Chenkai","middleName":"","lastName":"Wang","suffix":""},{"id":471260576,"identity":"271c0e95-b783-450e-9092-7b10a06fb6d0","order_by":1,"name":"Lixia Wang","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Ministry of Education, Jilin Jianzhu 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To enhance the dynamic properties and F\u0026ndash;T resistance of silty sand subgrade, cement and coal gangue powder (CGP) were employed as modifiers. Through dynamic triaxial test and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) test, investigated the dynamic properties of modified silty sand with varying contents of cement and CGP, the dynamic behavior and micro-structural evolution under different F\u0026ndash;T cycles, confining pressures, and loading cycles. As well as the correlation between micro-structural features and dynamic parameters was studied by grey relational analysis. The results revealed that the deviatoric stress amplitude of the modified silty sand increased significantly with higher cement content, while initially increased and then decreased with rising CGP content. Compared to silty sand, the modified soil maintained higher deviatoric stress amplitudes and dynamic elastic modulus across varying F\u0026ndash;T cycles, loading cycles, and confining pressures. A significant correlation was identified between micro-structural characteristics and dynamic parameters. F\u0026ndash;T cycles caused considerable micro-structural degradation in silty sand, whereas the modified soil exhibited less structural variation. The incorporation of cement and CGP enhanced inter-particle cementation, filled pore spaces, and improved particle arrangement and pore distribution, thereby increasing structural stability and F\u0026ndash;T resistance. 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