The tensile strength of first-year sea ice

Abstract We present the results of tests done to determine the tensile behavior of first-year columnar sea ice over a range of temperatures from −20° to −3°C and strain rates of 10 −5 and 10 −3 s −1 . The temperature of a test specimen was dictated by its in-situ location within the sea-ice sheet; samples located near the top of the sea-ice sheet were tested at the lower temperatures. A tensile load was applied along the cylindrical axes of the test specimens, which were perpendicular to the growth direction of the ice. Results showed that the maximum stress reached during a test was most strongly influenced by temperature, while the failure strain and the modulus were principally affected by the loading rate. A model relating the tensile strength of the ice to its porosity based on temperature-dependent variations in the brine-pocket geometry is evaluated.