Influence of freeze-thaw on the stability of road cut slopes--a case study in the Indian Himalayan region

The rock slopes in the Indian Himalayan region are exposed to recurrent freeze-thaw (FT). FT testing (0-30 FT cycles) was carried out in the laboratory on the rock samples collected from the Indian Himalayan region. The result shows a reduction of 27%-39% in rock strength. Microscopic damages were observed in SEM images. Further, a three-dimensional numerical analysis was performed to evaluate the stability and corroborate the results with the field observations. FT conditioning results reveal a 10%-39% decrease in the safety factor for rock slopes.