Cyclic freezing and thawing of soils affect the structure and might, under certain conditions, cause stones and particles to move and relocate. The movement of stones will influence the soil structure and create weak and loose parts with increased permeability. This phenomenon has been known for a long time, but the knowledge regarding the magnitude of stone heave and soil conditions necessary for heave to take place has been lacking. Therefore, laboratory tests were carried out. Fine-grained till (moraine) was compacted to different void ratios and then saturated in a rigid wall permeameter which was exposed to one-dimensional freezing and thawing in a closed water system. The movements of an embedded stone were measured by an X-ray technique. Unfrozen samples, as well as samples frozen and thawed, were X-rayed and the stone movements were quantified after 1, 2, 4, and 10 cycles of freezing and thawing. The results show that stone movements (vertical and horizontal) take place due to freeze/thaw. The void ratio (the ratio of the volume of void space to the volume of solid substance in the sample) was found to be a key parameter for whether upward or downward stone movements took place. The downward movement occurred when the soil had a high void ratio, and the upward when the void ratio was small. In the loose soil, the stone first moved downwards and then, when the soil became denser due to freeze/thaw, it changed direction and heaved. In the loose soil, significant movements in the horizontal direction as well as rotation of the stone were also found. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
