[Desiccation cracking of soil body: a review].

Desiccation cracking of soil body is a complex physical process, which can affect the strength, stability, and permeability of soil body, and involve in several disciplines such as soil science, agricultural science, engineering geology, and environmental science. This paper introduced the significances of the study on the desiccation cracking of soil body, reviewed the related theoretical and applied researches and the quantitative analysis of crack morphology, and discussed the deficiencies in the research fields, research contents, and research methods. The future research directions about the desiccation cracking of soil body were pointed out.