Application of the asymptotic homogenization method to find the expansion coefficient of a water-saturated porous medium during freezing processes

An approach is proposed to determine the effective relative expansion coefficient of a porous medium filled with water during its freezing. This approach is based on an asymptotic homogenization method. An explicit formula is derived to find the expansion coefficient in the case of open pores. In the case of closed pores, the expansion coefficient is a second-rank tensor. Its determination requires to solve the so-called local problems in a representative volume element. The proposed approach can be used to determine the effective expansion coefficient during the freezing of water in the soil. Its efficiency is confirmed for model and realistic geological structures.