= Kenneth G. Libbrecht
{c}
<Kenneth G. Libbrecht> analyzes ice growth and <frost heave> using thermodynamics. His heat-engine argument bounds the overburden <pressure> that an advancing freezing front can sustain by comparing useful mechanical work with the maximum efficiency allowed between warm and cold reservoirs.<A Basic Thermodynamic Derivation of the Maximum Overburden Pressure Generated in Frost Heave by Kenneth G. Libbrecht>[Heat-engine derivation of the pressure bound]{ref}
The method separates an equilibrium upper bound from the actual growth rate. A thermodynamically permitted <pressure> need not be reached if liquid supply or heat removal is too slow. Frost heave therefore cannot be understood solely as the volume expansion of an isolated <water> sample on freezing.
Back to article page
