Soil freezing and thawing as affected by soil moisture content and air temperature

Authors

• Mikko Sillanpää Department of Soil Science, Agricultural Research Centre, Helsinki

DOI: https://doi.org/10.23986/afsci.71556

Abstract

A laboratory study was conducted to evaluate the effects of soil moisture and air temperature on soil freezing and thawing. The time required to freeze or thaw a soil sample was a linear function of soil moisture content and a linear log-log function of the temperature of the surrounding air. The differences in the freezing-thawing properties between the three mineral soils under study were small when compared with the effect of soil moisture content. In field conditions the indirect effects of those soil properties that determine the moisture-holding properties of various soils seem to be of prime importance in influencing the course of the freezing and thawing processes.