Research on engineering geological properties and transformation measurements of salted frozen soil of the Ali airport

Ali airport is located in the Ali region of Tibet, which is the second highest airport above sea level in China. It lies in a unique climate zone in the cold plateau with monsoon and drought. The annual average temperature in most of the time of the year is below zero degree centigrade. Groundwater in the shallow aquifer contains salt, forming the salted frozen soil foundation at the airport. The engineering geological properties of the salted frozen soil are unique. There is not any experience in design and construction of airport of this kind in the history of Chinese airport construction. By examining the engineering geological properties, this paper puts forward a series of targeted treatment schemes applied to engineering construction. The airport is now safely operated and monitored by related tests for more than two years. It is proven that these technical schemes have successfully shoveled the problem of seasonal salted frozen soil in the airport runway foundation. The results also provide experience for similar airport construction in the plateau area of China.