Experimental tests on the consolidation of broken and brash ice

Accumulations of broken ice can pose challenges for ice engineering applications, such as rubble accumulations around offshore structures and brash ice in ports. It is thus important to understand the properties to enable reliable assessments of the impact they might have on facilities or to ship navigation. To improve the understanding of the different brash ice parameters, and especially those involved in the consolidation process, a series of experimental tests have been conducted. The tests included variations in parameters including the porosity, salinity and thickness of the brash ice. A series of measurements were made over the consolidation period. Namely those were salinity and compressive strength measurements of cores taken from consolidated brash ice and temperature profiles within the brash ice. The results provide insight into the processes in the brash ice during freezing. The paper presents an overview of the tests, measurements and results. The findings from these tests provide an improved understanding of the consolidation process which can be incorporated into modelling techniques for marine design and operations.