Author(s): Junjie Wang; Shuang Yu; Dianzhe Li; Xiaodong Chen; Gang Li; Shunying Ji
Linked Author(s): Gang Li
Keywords: Sea ice; Digital image correlation (DIC); Mesoscale mechanical parameters; Anisotropy; Strain localization; Young's modulus; Poisson's ratio
Abstract: Sea ice is a key medium for polar climate and engineering safety, with obvious heterogeneity and anisotropy in its mechanical behavior. In this study, uniaxial compression tests combined with digital image correlation (DIC) were performed on first-year columnar sea ice from the Bohai Sea to investigate the strain field distribution, scale effect, and mesoscopic anisotropy of Young's modulus and Poisson's ratio. Results show that the strain field of sea ice is highly non-uniform during compression. Smaller statistical subregions can effectively capture the characteristics of localized strain concentration, where peak strain can reach 4 times the nominal strain and 2.5 times the in-plane average strain. The size of statistical subregions greatly affects measurement reliability, and it shall be less than the ice crystal size. Sea ice exhibits significant mechanical anisotropy governed by its columnar structure: Poisson's ratio follows the gamma distribution, while Young's modulus conforms to the lognormal distribution. In the quasi-elastic stage, the mean Poisson's ratio is approximately 0.15 parallel to the growth direction and 1.67 in the perpendicular direction. The log-mean value of Young's modulus ranges from 6.27 to 6.47, corresponding to a geometric mean of 528–645 MPa. This study provides basic experimental data and parameter ranges for mesoscale modeling of sea ice, and offers theoretical support for polar engineering design and relevant climate research.
Year: 2026