Abstract: Abstract: Water delivery canals play an important role in highly efficient water use in arid and semi-arid regions in China. Those regions mostly belong to cold region widely distributed with seasonal frozen soils. Thus, canal lining is susceptible to frost damage because of the heave of freezing soil and the adfreezing constraint between foundation and lining. Double geo-membranes between lining and foundation soil have an advantage in relieving adfreezing strength and adjusting lining displacement to adapt nonuniform frost heave but reduce the stiffness and stability of lining structure. To find the best layout of double geo-membranes and quantitative analysis on the adaptation of the double geo-membranes, a heat-moisture-stress coupling model of frost heave for arc bottom trapezoidal canal was established by finite element method. A bilinear interaction model between layers of cushion was considered by thin elastic layer element, of which the friction force was expressed as reaction force relating to its shear stiffness. A total of 3 different layout forms of composite cushion (membrane-membrane, membrane-fabric and fabric-fabric) were simulated by various shear stiffness parameters. The lining stress and deformation were compared by different canal sections and layout forms of double membranes cushion under lining. The result showed that: 1) For narrow and deep lined canals, the smaller the friction between membranes would result in the more uniform frost heave but the worse overall structure stability. While for wide and shallow canals, it was disadvantageous for neither frost heave uniformity nor overall stability when reducing the friction between membranes. Hence considering the requirements of frost heave uniformity and stability, the membrane-fabric form was suitable for both narrow and deep lined canals and wide and shallow lined canals. 2) The arch structure at the bottom of canal had an arch effect that could increase the axial compressive force along lining when bearing the heave force at the lower surface of lining. But as decreasing friction by double membranes, the arch effect was weaken, causing the extra tensile stress in the slope of canal lining. Therefore, considering the requirements of structure strength, the membrane-fabric and fabric-fabric form was suitable for anti-frost damage of canal lining. Double membranes cushion with less adfreezing strength such as membrane-membrane and membrane-fabric combinations could relieve the freezing constraint and adjust lining uneven frost heave deformation, but may lead to large displacement and damage tensile stress as a result of the release of arch effect at the bottom of the canal. Therefore, double membranes cushion with some small friction could not ensure the safety of strength and stiffness of lining structure. In addition, proper adfreezing strength was helpful in adjusting uneven frost heave by partly slip and limiting overall deformation. Furthermore, the arch effect should be rationally utilized to produce compressive stress along lining. In consequence, when membrane-fabric was used as interface between membranes, the displacement variance of lining decreased by 25% and the frost heave stress reduced by more the 50%, while the overall displacement increased by 0.2 cm or less. This double membranes form, which was suitable for narrow and deep canals as well as wide and shallow canals, could meet the requirements of strength, stiffness and stability for lining structure, and could improve the adaptive ability for frost heave damage. The results could provide information for selecting reasonable layout of double membranes cushion lining canals in cold region.