Competitive Assessment of Ice and Frozen Silt Mat for Crane Ground Support Using Finite-Element Analysis

Abstract

High capacity cranes are the backbone of the heavy construction industry, which, over the last few years, has embraced modularization. Consequently, ground stability has become a critical issue for their safe utilization. In practice, ground stability includes laying several thicknesses of adequately compacted construction aggregates and one or more layers of timber/steel mats on top. In the present study, a novel alternative is explored whereby an artificially created layer of ice or frozen silt constitutes the base upon which timber or steel mats can be stacked for ancillary crane support. However, to understand the challenges and feasibility of the proposed technology, a theoretical study using finite-element analysis (FEA) is carried out in order to gain insight into the factors that can affect the structural behavior of ice/frozen silt and their comparison with commonly used mat materials, timber (Coastal Douglas fir), and steel (G40.21-44W). The comparison is built using mechanical properties under identical boundary conditions. The results show that the performance of frozen silt is on par with that of Coastal Douglas fir. A preliminary cost comparison is also established to develop the value proposition of using frozen silt as a crane mat.