Microscopic Mechanism of the Macroscopic Mechanical Properties of Cement Modified Subgrade Silty Soil Subjected to Freeze-Thaw Cycles

In order to study the effects of the microstructure parameters of cement modified subgrade silty soil (CMSS) in a frozen area under freeze-thaw (F-T) cycles on the macroscopic mechanical properties, the static triaxial test, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and grey relation analysis (GRA) were implemented on silty soil modified with 0% and 2% cement at optimum moisture content from the northwest in Jilin Province in China. The results showed that the shear strength, the cohesion of 0% and 2% CMSS, decreased with the increase of F-T cycles, while the internal friction angle was not obviously changed. The shear strength and its parameters of 2% CMSS doubled compared to that of 0% CMSS. The micro-parameters, representing the particle morphological characteristics, particle arrangement, and pore characteristics of CMSS, changed differently under F-T cycles. If the cement was not added, the cohesion and the internal friction angle were most sensitive to the average particle diameter (D-p) and the average particle abundance (C), respectively. When the cement content was 2%, the cohesion was chiefly affected by the particle size fractal dimension (D-ps), while the internal friction angle was mainly related to the average pore diameter (D-h). The main principle of cement improvement was to decrease D-h of soil under F-T cycles.