Shear strength and damage model of silty sand in Daxing 'anling under freeze-thaw cycles

Shear strength and damage model of silty sand in Daxing 'anling 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 Shear strength and damage model of silty sand in Daxing 'anling under freeze-thaw cycles Xiujuan Li, Xindi Wang, Wenjie Wang, Zhengbo Wang, Lijiao Liu, and 2 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-9069788/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 10 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract This study examines the evolution of mechanical properties in silty sand from the Daxing' anling region under coupled freeze-thaw cycles and confining pressure using triaxial testing. The results demonstrate that under low confining pressure and with zero or limited freeze-thaw cycles, the stress-strain response exhibits strain-softening behavior, indicative of brittle failure. In contrast, under high confining pressure or after multiple freeze-thaw cycles, the behavior transitions to strain-hardening, characterized by plastic failure. Freeze-thaw cycling markedly degrades the soil's mechanical performance. The first cycle causes a 30%–40% reduction in failure strength, elastic modulus, and internal friction angle. Subsequent cycles lead to progressively slower degradation, with properties stabilizing after approximately 30 cycles. Although increasing confining pressure enhances mechanical behavior by promoting soil densification, this beneficial effect becomes less pronounced as the number of freeze-thaw cycles rises. Based on experimental data, a damage model incorporating the elastic deformation phase was developed. By linking Weibull distribution parameters with test variables, a coupled freeze-thaw and loading damage variable was formulated. Model validation shows close agreement between predicted and experimental results, accurately capturing the effect of freeze-thaw cycles on strength degradation and damage evolution during loading. These findings offer a reliable theoretical basis for the safety design of engineering structures in cold regions. Physical sciences/Engineering Physical sciences/Materials science Freeze-thaw cycle Confining pressure Silty sand Shear strength Damage model Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Reviewers agreed at journal 13 May, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 13 May, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 13 May, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 12 May, 2026 Reviews received at journal 05 May, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 28 Apr, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 28 Apr, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 12 Mar, 2026 Submission checks completed at journal 12 Mar, 2026 First submitted to journal 09 Mar, 2026 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. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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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-9069788","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":634839345,"identity":"f604fc02-94d6-42d7-b3c4-66ae9b26b626","order_by":0,"name":"Xiujuan Li","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Heilongjiang University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Xiujuan","middleName":"","lastName":"Li","suffix":""},{"id":634839346,"identity":"223f6477-ab76-4c4f-8772-cc0f2d6c3534","order_by":1,"name":"Xindi Wang","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Heilongjiang 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pressure, Silty sand, Shear strength, Damage model","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9069788/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9069788/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eThis study examines the evolution of mechanical properties in silty sand from the Daxing' anling region under coupled freeze-thaw cycles and confining pressure using triaxial testing. 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