Abstract
The engineering properties of loess are significantly influenced by seasonal wet and dry climates, the effects of which are essentially inseparable from variations of its structure. To realize the multiscale evaluation of the influence of wet/dry (WD) cycles on the intact loess structure, several WD cycles were applied to intact loess samples. The samples were then subjected to X-ray computed tomography, scanning electron microscopy, and nuclear magnetic resonance tests, paired with state-of-the-art image processing techniques to assess the evolution of the mesoscopic and microscopic structure (i.e., fissures, particles, and pores). The results indicate that the loess fissuring is gradual; that is, it commences in the first two cycles, propagates in three to five cycles, and reaches an equilibrium in six to ten cycles. In the equilibrium stage, the average width of the fissures is inhibited owing to the emergence of secondary fissures. The primary cause for the fissuring is uneven shrinkage (generating tensile stresses) inside and on the surface of the soil. Further, as the WD cycles progress, the orientation of the particles near the polar angle exhibits depolarization, the non-uniformity of the particles and pores increases, the particle roundness improves, and the pore curvature decreases. Moreover, the changes in pore structure include mesopore and macropore expansion, along with the generation of new micropores. These findings serve as a basis for understanding the structural variations in loess exposed to WD cycles, which can help explain changes in the engineering properties of loess in semiarid regions.
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This work is supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 42072319).
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National Natural Science Foundation of China, 42072319, Wanjun Ye.
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KL contributed to conceptualization, methodology, investigation, data curation, formal analysis, software, validation, visualization, and writing—original draft preparation, and writing—review and editing. WY contributed to conceptualization, methodology, resources, funding acquisition, visualization, and writing—review and editing. HJ contributed to conceptualization, investigation, supervision, validation, and writing—review and editing. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Liu, K., Ye, W. & Jing, H. Multiscale evaluation of the structural characteristics of intact loess subjected to wet/dry cycles. Nat Hazards 120, 1215–1240 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-023-06253-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-023-06253-x