Frost jacking of piles in seasonally and perennially frozen ground

Piles are a common type of foundation to support engineering structures in frozen ground, but they may suffer from heaving once sufficiently moist frost-susceptible soils freeze around them, posing threats to infrastructure stability. This study provides a critical review of relevant research on the frost heaving of piles to examine the mechanisms, approaches for obtaining the heave response and uplift forces, state-of-the-art design guidelines, and technical measures to address frost jacking issues. The values of the measured tangential heave stress are compiled from pile/column tests and interface shear tests. Two misleading concepts of tangential heave stress and adfreeze shear strength are distinguished in the discussion of field and laboratory tests. The evolution of pile heaving in the field is described with major influential factors identified, and an explanation is offered for the discrepancy between laboratory measurements and field observations. In the context of frost damage issues, different design practices and considerations are compared across countries, followed by a brief introduction of commonly used protective and remedial measures to resist frost-jacking hazards. Finally, we elaborate on future research in areas such as sophisticated interface modeling, green construction, data-centric and artificial intelligence-based approaches and explore their implications for professional practices.