Investigating soil properties and their effects on freeze-thaw processes in a thermokarst lake region of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, China

Abstract

Soil parameters form the foundation of hydrogeological research and are crucial for studying engineering construction and maintenance, climate change, and ecological environment effects in cold regions. However, the soil properties in the permafrost region of the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau (QTP) remain unclear. Hence, in this study, soil temperature (T_s), volumetric specific heat capacity (C), thermal conductivity (K), thermal diffusivity (D), soil water content (SWC), electric conductivity (EC), vertical (K_v) and horizontal (K_h) saturated hydraulic conductivity, bulk density (ρ_b), and soil texture near the Qinghai-Tibet Railway were measured, and their effects on the freeze-thaw process were evaluated. The results revealed a predominantly sandy loam soil texture, with K_h and K_v showing strong spatial variability, while the other parameters presented moderate spatial variability. Thermokarst lake had a limited influence on D, C, K, and ρ_b but significantly reduced K_h and K_v. Groundwater affected SWC, T_s, and EC. The model results showed that all parameters indicated small sensitivities to the maximum thawing depth (MTD), with MTD positively responding to all parameters except for K_v and porosity (ρ_p). Except for K_h and K_v, all parameters showed high sensitivities to the time from starting to complete freezing (TSCF). TSCF responded positively to C, ρ_p, and density (ρ_d) and negatively to K and K_h. This study expanded the quantification of soil properties in the QTP, which can help improve the accuracy of cryohydrogeologic models, thus guiding the construction and maintenance of infrastructure engineering.