INVESTIGATION OF THE ACOUSTIC EMISSION AND DEFORMATION RESPONSE OF FINITE ICE PLATES.

A procedure is described for monitoring the microfracturing of ice plates subjected to constant loads. Sample time records of fresh water ice plate deflections as well as corresponding total acoustic emission activities are presented. The linear elastic as well as viscoelastic response for a simply supported rectangular ice plate is given. Acoustic emission methods are used to study the microfracturing activity in polycrystalline ice subjected to flexural loads. The relationship between acoustic emissions and the time dependent inelastic flexural deformation in ice is studied. Also, the influence of the magnitude of the applied load and the rate of deformation on cracking activity is explored.