Impact of the slope angle of hummocks on the ride-up of finger ice in the Liaohe Estuary

The ride-up and pile-up of sea ice have effects on the ice load of marine structure. The ride-up angle is an important parameter to study the process of ride-up and to determine the possibility of the ride-up to occur. Some conclusions about the ride-up angle are drawn based on field-survey data in this paper. Thirty hummocks with full structure, formed by 0.4-1.6 cm ice layers, were investigated in the Liaohe Estuary of the north of Liaodong Bay. After analyzing the cross-sections of the pile-up body, some conclusions on the ride-up angle are reached. The results indicate that whether the ride-up occurs or not is associated with the slope angle of the hummock. If the slope angle is greater than 10.31° , the ride-up can take place. With the development of riding-up and piling-up, if the slope angle increases to 40.0° , the climbing-up process will stop and the drifting ice begins to accumulate in front of the hummock. The climbing process does not continue until a new slope angle, which is less than 28.0° , is formed. Meanwhile, the forming process of hummocks, which aremade up of 10.0 cmor 22.0 cmice layers, is proved to follow the rule.