There are uncertainties related to the mechanical behaviour of embankments where frozen soil is used as fill material and experience natural thawing and settlements during the first thawing season following construction. Fill material of embankments in the Arctic are primarily sourced from locally-available borrow sites which, in certain areas, are predominantly composed of fine till with high ground ice content. Side slope sloughing and fill cracking typically occur due to thawing of the frozen soil and development of localized thaw settlements under the embankment shoulders and side slopes. To assess a frozen fill embankment performance, test sections were constructed along the Inuvik-Tuktoyaktuk Highway in the Northwest Territories, Canada and instrumented with temperature and displacement sensors. One test section was reinforced with layers of wicking woven geotextiles at its side slopes to primarily provide reinforcement against lateral movements and drainage during the thawing season. Field data show that the central and bottom portion of the embankment fill is still frozen while the thaw depth has increased at the toe. This paper presents the analysis and synthesis of the first three-year monitored performance of the embankment test sections following construction.
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