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Cold compaction of water ice
Author(s) -
Durham William B.,
McKin William B.,
Stern Laura A.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/2005gl023484
Subject(s) - compaction , porosity , scanning electron microscope , hydrostatic pressure , mineralogy , materials science , brittleness , volume (thermodynamics) , hydrostatic equilibrium , grain size , composite material , geology , geotechnical engineering , thermodynamics , physics , quantum mechanics
Hydrostatic compaction of granulated water ice was measured in laboratory experiments at temperatures 77 K to 120 K. We performed step‐wise hydrostatic pressurization tests on 5 samples to maximum pressures P of 150 MPa, using relatively tight (0.18–0.25 mm) and broad (0.25–2.0 mm) starting grain‐size distributions. Compaction change of volume is highly nonlinear in P , typical for brittle, granular materials. No time‐dependent creep occurred on the lab time scale. Significant residual porosity (∼0.10) remains even at highest P . Examination by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) reveals a random configuration of fractures and broad distribution of grain sizes, again consistent with brittle behavior. Residual porosity appears as smaller, well‐supported micropores between ice fragments. Over the interior pressures found in smaller midsize icy satellites and Kuiper Belt objects (KBOs), substantial porosity can be sustained over solar system history in the absence of significant heating and resultant sintering.