Articles | Volume 19, issue 10
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-4259-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-4259-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
06 Oct 2025
Research article |
| 06 Oct 2025
| 06 Oct 2025
Ground ice estimation in permafrost samples using industrial computed tomography and multi-sensor core logging and comparison to destructive measurements
Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
UGent Geotechnical Institute, Ghent University, Technologiepark 68, 9052 Zwijnaarde, Belgium
Joel Pumple
Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
Jordan Harvey
Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
Duane Froese
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
Related authors
Joel Pumple, Alistair Monteath, Jordan Harvey, Mahya Roustaei, Alejandro Alvarez, Casey Buchanan, and Duane Froese
The Cryosphere, 18, 489–503, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-489-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-489-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Ice content is a critical variable in the context of thawing permafrost, and permafrost cores provide a means to measure the characteristics of frozen ground; however, these measurements are typically destructive and time intensive. Multi-sensor core logging (MSCL) provides a fast, non-destructive method to image permafrost cores, measure bulk density, and estimate ice content. The use of MSCL will improve existing digital permafrost archives by adding high-quality and reproducible data.
Patrick Neuberger, Alireza Saidi-Mehrabad, Duane Froese, and Brian Lanoil
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-224, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-224, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
Permafrost is at increased risk of thaw due to climate change and anthropogenic disturbances. As permafrost thaws, the microbiomes within these systems may become more active and change in composition, releasing greenhouse gases such as CO2 and CH4. In this study, we determined that permafrost thaw caused by road construction caused permafrost microbiomes to become more similar to surface soils, which has implications for greenhouse gas modelling.
Benjamin J. Stoker, Helen E. Dulfer, Chris R. Stokes, Victoria H. Brown, Christopher D. Clark, Colm Ó Cofaigh, David J. A. Evans, Duane Froese, Sophie L. Norris, and Martin Margold
The Cryosphere, 19, 869–910, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-869-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-19-869-2025, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
The retreat of the northwestern Laurentide Ice Sheet allows us to investigate how the ice drainage network evolves over millennial timescales and understand the influence of climate forcing, glacial lakes and the underlying geology on the rate of deglaciation. We reconstruct the changes in ice flow at 500-year intervals and identify rapid reorganisations of the drainage network, including variations in ice streaming that we link to climatically driven changes in the ice sheet surface slope.
Sophie L. Norris, Martin Margold, David J. A. Evans, Nigel Atkinson, and Duane G. Froese
The Cryosphere, 18, 1533–1559, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-1533-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-1533-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Associated with climate change between the Last Glacial Maximum and the current interglacial period, we reconstruct the behaviour of the southwestern Laurentide Ice Sheet, which covered the Canadian Prairies, using detailed landform mapping. Our reconstruction depicts three shifts in the ice sheet’s dynamics. We suggest these changes resulted from ice sheet thinning triggered by abrupt climatic change. However, we show that regional lithology and topography also play an important role.
Joel Pumple, Alistair Monteath, Jordan Harvey, Mahya Roustaei, Alejandro Alvarez, Casey Buchanan, and Duane Froese
The Cryosphere, 18, 489–503, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-489-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-489-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Ice content is a critical variable in the context of thawing permafrost, and permafrost cores provide a means to measure the characteristics of frozen ground; however, these measurements are typically destructive and time intensive. Multi-sensor core logging (MSCL) provides a fast, non-destructive method to image permafrost cores, measure bulk density, and estimate ice content. The use of MSCL will improve existing digital permafrost archives by adding high-quality and reproducible data.
Alistair J. Monteath, Matthew S. M. Bolton, Jordan Harvey, Marit-Solveig Seidenkrantz, Christof Pearce, and Britta Jensen
Geochronology, 5, 229–240, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-5-229-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-5-229-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Accurately dating ocean cores is challenging because the radiocarbon age of water masses varies substantially. We identify ash fragments from eruptions more than 4000 km from their source and use these time markers to develop a new age–depth model for an ocean core in Placentia Bay, North Atlantic. Our results show that the radiocarbon age of waters masses in the bay varied considerably during the last 10 000 years and highlight the potential of using ultra-distal ash deposits in this region.
Benjamin J. Stoker, Martin Margold, John C. Gosse, Alan J. Hidy, Alistair J. Monteath, Joseph M. Young, Niall Gandy, Lauren J. Gregoire, Sophie L. Norris, and Duane Froese
The Cryosphere, 16, 4865–4886, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4865-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4865-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
The Laurentide Ice Sheet was the largest ice sheet to grow and disappear in the Northern Hemisphere during the last glaciation. In northwestern Canada, it covered the Mackenzie Valley, blocking the migration of fauna and early humans between North America and Beringia and altering the drainage systems. We reconstruct the timing of ice sheet retreat in this region and the implications for the migration of early humans into North America, the drainage of glacial lakes, and past sea level rise.
Cited articles
Ashi, J.: Computed tomography scan image analysis of sediments, in: Proc. ODP, Sci. Results, edited by: Shipley, T. H., Ogawa, Y., Blum, P., and Bahr, J. M., 156, 151–159, 1997.
Bandara, S., Froese, D. G., St. Louis, V. L., Cooke, C. A., and Calmels, F.: Postdepositional Mercury Mobility in a Permafrost Peatland from Central Yukon, Canada, ACS Earth Sp. Chem., 3, 770–778, https://doi.org/10.1021/acsearthspacechem.9b00010, 2019.
Brown, J., Ferrians, O., Heginbottom, J., and Melnikov, E. S.: Circum-Arctic map of permafrost and ground-ice conditions, U.S. Geological Survey, https://doi.org/10.3133/cp45, 1997.
Cai, L., Lee, H., Aas, K. S., and Westermann, S.: Projecting circum-Arctic excess-ground-ice melt with a sub-grid representation in the Community Land Model, The Cryosphere, 14, 4611–4626, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-14-4611-2020, 2020.
Calmels, F. and Allard, M.: Ice segregation and gas distribution in permafrost using tomodensitometric analysis, Permafr. Periglac. Process., 15, 367–378, https://doi.org/10.1002/ppp.508, 2004.
Calmels, F. and Allard, M.: Segregated ice structures in various heaved permafrost landforms through CT Scan, Earth Surf. Process. Landforms, 33, 209–225, https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.1538, 2008.
Calmels, F., Clavano, W. R., and Froese, D. G.: Progress on X-ray computed tomography (CT) scanning in permfrost studies, in: GeoCalgary 2010: the 63. Canadian geotechnical conference and 6. Canadian permafrost conference, Calgary, AB (Canada), 12–15 September 2010, 1353–1358, https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Progress-on-X-ray-computed-tomography-(-CT-)-in-Calmels-Clavano/d5dded3cc4d3c1e079ceeded44d6bb29d88bfa8e#citing-papers, 2010.
Darrow, M. M. and Lieblappen, R. M.: Visualizing cation treatment effects on frozen clay soils through µCT scanning, Cold Reg. Sci. Technol., 175, 103085, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coldregions.2020.103085, 2020.
Duchesne, M. J., Moore, F., Long, B. F., and Labrie, J.: A rapid method for converting medical Computed Tomography scanner topogram attenuation scale to Hounsfield Unit scale and to obtain relative density values, Eng. Geol., 103, 100–105, 2009.
Duliu, O.: Computer axial tomography in geosciences: an overview, Earth-Sci. Rev., 48, 265–281, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0012-8252(99)00056-2, 1999.
Fan, X., Lin, Z., Gao, Z., Meng, X., Niu, F., Luo, J., Yin, G., Zhou, F., and Lan, A.: Cryostructures and ground ice content in ice-rich permafrost area of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau with Computed Tomography Scanning, J. Mt. Sci., 18, 1208–1221, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11629-020-6197-x, 2021.
Flisch, A. and Becker, A.: Industrial X-ray computed tomography studies of lake sediment drill cores, in: Applications of X-ray Computed Tomography, edited by: Mees, F., Swennen, R., Van Geet, M., and Jacobs, P., Geological Society, London, Special Publication, 215, 205–212, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2003.215.01.19, 2003.
French, H. and Shur, Y.: The principles of cryostratigraphy, Earth-Sci. Rev., 101, 190–206, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2010.04.002, 2010.
Heiri, O., Lotter, A. F., and Lemcke, G.: Loss on ignition as a method for estimating organic and carbonate content in sediments: reproducibility and comparability of results, J. Paleolimnol., 25, 101–110, https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1008119611481, 2001.
Hounsfield, G. N.: Computerized transverse axial scanning (tomography). Part I. Description of system, Br. J. Radiol., 46, 1016–1022, https://doi.org/10.1259/0007-1285-46-552-1016, 1973.
Johnston, G. H.: Permafrost: engineering design and construction, National Research Council Canada, Associate Committee on Geotechnical Research, ISBN 0-471-79918-1, 1981.
Kanevskiy, M., Shur, Y., Fortier, D., Jorgenson, M. T., and Stephani, E.: Cryostratigraphy of late Pleistocene syngenetic permafrost (yedoma) in northern Alaska, Itkillik River exposure, Quaternary Res., 75, 584–596 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.yqres.2010.12.003, 2011.
Kanevskiy, M., Shur, Y., Connor, B., Dillon, M., Stephani, E., and O’Donnell, J.: Study of the ice-rich syngenetic permafrost for road design (Interior Alaska), in Proc. 10th Int. Conf. Permafrost (TICOP), vol. 1, Salekhard, Yamal-Nenets Autonomous District, Russia, June 25–29, 2012, pp. 25–29, https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/40041148/54a325720cf267bdb9042f69.pdf (last access: 29 September 2025), 2012
Ketcham, R. A. and Carlson, W. D.: Acquisition, optimization and interpretation of X-ray computed tomographic imagery: applications to the geosciences, Comput. Geosci., 27, 381–400, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0098-3004(00)00116-3, 2001.
Kokelj, S. V. and Burn, C. R.: Ground ice and soluble cations in near-surface permafrost, Inuvik, Northwest Territories, Canada, Permafr. Periglac. Process., 14, 275–289, https://doi.org/10.1002/ppp.458, 2003.
Kokelj, S. V. and Jorgenson, M. T.: Advances in Thermokarst Research, Permafr. Periglac. Process., 24, 108–119, https://doi.org/10.1002/ppp.1779, 2013.
Kozaki, T., Suzuki, S., Kozai, N., Sato, S., and Ohashi, H.: Observation of Microstructures of Compacted Bentonite by Microfocus X-Ray Computerized Tomography (Micro-CT), J. Nucl. Sci. Technol., 38, 697–699, https://doi.org/10.1080/18811248.2001.9715085, 2001.
Knoll, G. F.: Radiation Detection and Measurement, John Wiley and Sons, New York, ISBN 0-471-07338-5, 1999.
Kumar, A., and Tiwari, A.: A Comparative Study of Otsu Thresholding and K-means Algorithm of Image Segmentation, Int. J. Eng. Tech. Res., 9, 123–126, ISSN 2321-0869. https://doi.org/10.31873/IJETR.9.5.2019.62, 2019.
Kyle, J. R. and Ketcham, R. A.: Application of high resolution X-ray computed tomography to mineral deposit origin, evaluation, and processing, Ore Geol. Rev., 65, 821–839, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oregeorev.2014.09.034, 2015.
Lapalme, C. M., Lacelle, D., Pollard, W., Fortier, D., Davila, A., and McKay, C. P.: Cryostratigraphy and the Sublimation Unconformity in Permafrost from an Ultraxerous Environment, University Valley, McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica, Permafr. Periglac. Process., 28, 649–662, https://doi.org/10.1002/ppp.1948, 2017.
Lee, Y. H., Kim, S., Lim, D., Suh, J. S., and Song, H. T.: Spectral parametric segmentation of contrast-enhanced dual-energy CT to detect bone metastasis: feasibility sensitivity study using whole-body bone scintigraphy. Acta Radiologica, 56, 458–464, https://doi.org/10.1177/028418511453010, 2015.
Lin, Z., Gao, Z., Fan, X., Niu, F., Luo, J., Yin, G., and Liu, M.: Factors controlling near surface ground-ice characteristics in a region of warm permafrost, Beiluhe Basin, Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, Geoderma, 376, 114540, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2020.114540, 2020.
Murton, J. B. and French, H. M.: Cryostructures in permafrost, Tuktoyaktuk coastlands, western arctic Canada, Can. J. Earth Sci., 31, 737–747, https://doi.org/10.1139/e94-067, 1994.
Nguyen, T. T. H., Cui, Y.-J., Ferber, V., Herrier, G., Ozturk, T., Plier, F., Puiatti, D., Salager, S., and Tang, A. M.: Effect of freeze-thaw cycles on mechanical strength of lime-treated fine-grained soils, Transp. Geotech., 21, 100281, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trgeo.2019.100281, 2019.
Nitzbon, J., Westermann, S., Langer, M., Martin, L. C. P., Strauss, J., Laboor, S., and Boike, J.: Fast response of cold ice-rich permafrost in northeast Siberia to a warming climate, Nat. Commun., 11, 2201, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-15725-8, 2020.
Nitzbon, J., Gadylyaev, D., Schlüter, S., Köhne, J. M., Grosse, G., and Boike, J.: Brief communication: Unravelling the composition and microstructure of a permafrost core using X-ray computed tomography, The Cryosphere, 16, 3507–3515, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-3507-2022, 2022.
Object Research Systems (ORS): Dragonfly; Object Research Systems: Montreal, QC, Canada, https://www.theobjects.com/dragonfly, 2021.
O'Neill, H. B. and Burn, C. R.: Physical and temporal factors controlling the development of near-surface ground ice at Illisarvik, Western Arctic coast, Canada, Can. J. Earth Sci., 49, 1096–1110, https://doi.org/10.1139/E2012-043, 2012.
Otsu, N.: A Threshold Selection Method from Gray-Level Histograms, IEEE Trans. Syst. Man. Cybern., 9, 62–66, https://doi.org/10.1109/TSMC.1979.4310076, 1979.
Permafrost Subcommittee, Associate Committee on Geotechnical Research, National Research Council of Canada: Glossary of Permafrost and Related Ground-Ice Terms, Technical Memorandum No. 142, National Research Council of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, ISBN 0-660-12540-4, NRCC 27952, https://doi.org/10.4224/20386561, 1998.
Pumple, J., Monteath, A., Harvey, J., Roustaei, M., Alvarez, A., Buchanan, C., and Froese, D.: Non-destructive multi-sensor core logging allows for rapid imaging and estimation of frozen bulk density and volumetric ice content in permafrost cores, The Cryosphere, 18, 489–503, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-489-2024, 2024.
Pullman, E. R., Jorgenson, M. T., and Shur, Y.: Thaw settlement in soils of the Arctic Coastal Plain, Alaska, Arct. Antarct. Alp. Res., 39, 468–476, https://doi.org/10.1657/1523-0430(05-045)[PULLMAN]2.0.CO;2, 2007.
Roustaei, M., Pumple, J., Harvey, J., and Froese, D.: Estimating ice and unfrozen water in permafrost samples using industrial computed tomography scanning, in: Proceedings of GeoCalgary 2022 – 75th Canadian Geotechnical Conference, Canadian Geotechnical Society, Calgary, Alberta, Canada, 2–5 October 2022, 1220–1235, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/364717176_Estimating_ice_and_unfrozen_water_in_permafrost_samples_using_industrial_computed_tomography_scanning 2022a.
Roustaei, M., Pumple, J., Hendry, M. T., Palat, A., and Froese, D.: Freeze-thaw impacts on macropore structure of fiber-reinforced clay by industrial computed tomography scanning, in: Proceedings of GeoCalgary 2022 – 75th Canadian Geotechnical Conference, Canadian Geotechnical Society, Calgary, Alberta, Canada, 2–5 October 2022, 1340–1355, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/364717537_Freeze-thaw_impacts_on_macropore_structure_of_fiber-reinforced_clay_by_industrial_computed_tomography_scanning (last access: 30 September 2025), 2022b.
Roustaei, M., Pumple, J., Hendry, M. T., J., Harvey, and Froese, D.: Effect of freeze–thaw cycles on the macrostructure and failure mechanisms of fiber-reinforced clay using industrial computed tomography, Can. Geotech. J., 61, 2007–2021, https://doi.org/10.1139/cgj-2023-0136, 2024.
Shur, Y. L.: The upper horizon of permafrost soils, in: Proceedings of the Fifth International Conference on Permafrost, Vol. 1, Tapir Publishers, Trondheim, Norway, 2–5 August 1988, 867–871, 1988.
Soret, M., Bacharach, S. L., and Buvat, I.: Partial-volume effect in PET tumor imaging, J. Nucl. Med., 48, 932–945, 2007.
Stephani, E., Fortier, D., Shur, Y., Fortier, R., and Doré, G.: A geosys-tems approach to permafrost investigations for engineering applica-tions, an example from a road stabilization experiment, Beaver Creek, Yukon, Canada, Cold Reg. Sci. Technol., 100, 20–35, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coldregions.2013.12.006, 2014.
Subcommittee on Permafrost: Glossary of permafrost and related ground-ice terms, Associate Committee on Geotechnical Research, National Research Council of Canada, Ottawa, 156, 63–64, https://www.permafrost.org/publication/glossary-of-permafrost-and-related-ground-ice-terms/ (last access: 29 September 2025), 1988.
Tanaka, E. Y., Yoo, J. H., Rodrigues, A. J., Utiyama, E. M., Birolini, D., and Rasslan, S.: A computerized tomography scan method for calculating the hernia sac and abdominal cavity volume in complex large incisional hernia with loss of domain, Hernia, 14, 63–69, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10029-009-0560-8, 2010.
Torrance, J. K., Elliot, T., Martin, R., and Heck, R. J.: X-ray computed tomography of frozen soil, Cold Reg. Sci. Technol., 53, 75–82, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coldregions.2007.04.010, 2008.
Van Everdingen, R. O.: Multi-Language Glossary of Permafrost and Related Ground-Ice Terms, International Permafrost Association, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada, ISBN 0-660-125404, 1998 (revised 2005).
Van Geet, M., Volckaert, G., and Roels, S.: The use of microfocus X-ray computed tomography in characterising the hydration of a clay pellet/powder mixture, Applied Clay Science 29.2, 73–87, doi10.1016/j.clay.2004.12.007, 2005.
Wang, S., Yang, P., and Yang, Z.: Characterization of freeze–thaw effects within clay by 3D X-ray Computed Tomography, Cold Reg. Sci. Technol., 148, 13–21, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coldregions.2018.01.001, 2018.
Wang, Y., Chen, Z., and Wang, G.: Material segmentation in industrial X-ray CT images using histogram-based thresholding: challenges with unimodal and multimodal distributions, Acta Radiol., 65, 901–911, https://doi.org/10.1177/02841851231225418, 2024.
Wellington, S. L. and Vinegar, H. J.: X-ray computerized tomography, J. Pet. Technol., 39, 885–898, 1987.
Zhang, T., Barry, R. G., Knowles, K., Heginbottom, J. A., and Brown, J.: Statistics and characteristics of permafrost and ground-ice distribution in the Northern Hemisphere 1, Polar Geogr., 23, 132–154, https://doi.org/10.1080/10889379909377670, 1999.
Short summary
This study investigated the application of CT (computed tomography) scanning to tackle the limitations of traditional destructive methods in characterizing permafrost cores. Five different permafrost cores were scanned at resolutions of 65 and 25 μm with new calibration method. The identification of different materials from CT images showed air (gas), ice (excess and pore), and sediments using an Otsu segmentation method. The results were validated by a destructive (cuboid) and a non-destructive method.
This study investigated the application of CT (computed tomography) scanning to tackle the...
