68th Canadian Geotechnical Conference and 7th Canadian Permafrost Conference

IMPROVING WATER CONTENT DESCRIPTION OF ICE-RICH PERMAFROST SOILS

Session: Permafrost Considerations in Design / Pergélisol et conception en milieu nordique

Marcus Phillips, Carleton University (Canada)
Chris Burn, Carleton University (Canada)
Stephen Wolfe, Geological Survey of Canada (Canada)
Peter Morse, Geological Survey of Canada (Canada)
Adrian Gaanderse, Carleton University (Canada)
Brendan O'Neill, Carleton University (Canada)
Dan Shugar, University of Washington Tacoma (United States)
Stephan Gruber, Carleton University (Canada)

The standard expression for soil gravimetric water content is on a dry basis (mass of water per unit mass of dry soil). In ice-rich soil, this method may produce extremely high values that are difficult to interpret. Alternatively, the wet-basis gravimetric water content (mass of water per unit mass of field-moist soil) may be used. Until now, this method has not been evaluated for use with ice-rich soils. We compare dry- and wet-basis gravimetric water contents, and find wet-basis to be a reliable and readily interpretable alternative to dry-basis for ice-rich mineral soils. However, it offers no clear advantage in organic soils or unfrozen mineral soils.