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Abstract It was shown from three years of in-situ tests of Luliang airport in Shanxi province that the expansion and collapse of hidden cavities in loess filled high embankment were harmful to the airstrip. Based on the theory of equilibrium and arch upon collapse，the expansion of hidden cavities were divided into a mode of lifting and a mode of radial expansion. The lifting mode was due to the development of the vertical fractures in loess and the radial expansion mode was due to the water sensitivity of loess. The quantitative methods of calculating the expansion process of hidden cavities were proposed. The three dimensional finite element method(3D-FEM) was used to analyze the deformation and stabilization of airstrip induced by the expansion of hidden cavities. A method of stability analysis was proposed based on the deformation limits and critical thickness. A method of predicting the stability of airstrip was also proposed when hidden cavities were expanding based on the laboratory disintegration test of compacted loess.
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Received: 03 December 2013
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2015, Vol. 34 
