Growth-rate-dependent prediction of pile set-up and its application in driven pile foundation construction

In this paper research was presented on the development of a growth-rate-dependent model for pile set-up prediction using the restrike and static/statnamic load testing data collected from different projects. The data included: a) restrike records from ninety-five production piles and restrike and load test results of nine instrumented piles driven in soft clays from the relocation project of Highway No. 1 in Louisiana (LA-1); and b) restrike and static load testing data of five fully instrumented square PPC piles driven at four different bridge sites in various soil layers from sands to clays in Florida. Research effort was focused on the prediction of the ultimate shaft resistances with pile set-up formulated using the pile resistance growth rate-dependent model. The timeframe of interest was studied for a practical set-up magnitude such as 90% of the ultimate shaft resistance (Q₉₀). As an application of the rate-dependent model, it was found that piles at the LA-1 relocation project, in general, reached about 95% of the ultimate shaft resistances at the time of 2 weeks after pile installation. The strategy of incorporation of pile set-up in adjusting pile driving criteria or/and design during pile construction, such as the experience-based plan of a two-week waiting period adopted by Louisiana DOTD, was investigated and justified.     

Assessment of direct CPT and CPTU methods for predicting the ultimate bearing capacity of single piles

Twelve methods to determine axial pile capacity directly based on cone penetration test (CPT) and piezocone penetration test (CPTU) data are presented, compared and evaluated. Analyses and evaluation were conducted on three types of piles of different size and length. All the tested piles have failed at the end of static load test. Both the CPT methods and the CPTU methods were used to estimate the load bearing capacities of the investigated piles (Q_p). The static load test was performed to determine the measured load bearing capacities (Q_m). The pile capacities determined through different methods were compared with the measured values obtained from the static load tests. Two criteria were selected as bases of evaluation: the best fit line for Q_p versus Q_m and the arithmetic mean and standard deviation for the ratio Q_p/Q_m. Results of the analyses showed that the best methods for determining pile capacity are the two CPTU methods. Furthermore, the CPTU method is simple, easy to apply, and not influenced by the subjective judgements of operating staff. Therefore, it is quite suitable for the application in pile engineering practice.     

A New Computer Program for Pile Capacity Prediction using CPT Data

An interactive computer program “GLAMCPT” is developed for application in soil profiling and prediction of pile load capacity using cone penetration test (CPT) and laboratory soil test results. GLAMCPT calculates pile capacity according to 10 selected methods from European design codes, refereed international publications and recommendations of professional institutions. To demonstrate the capabilities of the program, a database of comprehensive ground investigation and full-scale pile tests in sand, at a Belgian site, is analysed using GLAMCPT. The database comprises 11 static tests and 12 dynamic tests on piles of different construction techniques, including driven pre-cast concrete piles and screwed cast in-situ piles, installed using 5 different procedures. Prior to pile installation, CPTs were carried out at each proposed pile location. Comparison of GLAMCPT predictions with the observed pile capacities reveals that the most accurate of the existing methods yields an average, μ, of predicted to observed pile head capacity [P_uh(p)/P_uh(m)] equal to 0.94. The most consistent method produces a coeffcient of variation (COV) of [P_uh(p)/P_uh(m)] equal to 0.1 and ranking index (RI) of 0.08. Parametric studies have been carried out using GLAMCPT to formulate an improved predictive method, which yielded: μ = 0.99, COV = 0.07 and RI = 0.04.     

Statistical Evaluation of CPT and CPTu Based Methods for Prediction of Axial Bearing Capacity of Piles

Piles are structural members made of steel, concrete, or wood installed into the ground to transfer superstructure loads to the soil. Nowadays, many structures are built on poor lands, and therefore piles have crucial roles in such structures. Performing in-situ tests such as cone penetration (CPT) and piezocone penetration tests (CPTu) have always been of great importance in designing piles. These tests have a brilliant consistency with reality, and as a result, the outcome data can be used in order to achieve reliable pile designing models and reduce uncertainty in this regard. In this paper, the capability of various CPT and CPTu based methods developed from 1961 to 2016 has been investigated using four statistical methods. Such CPT and CPTu based methods are adopted for direct prediction of axial bearing capacity of piles using CPT and CPTu field data. For this purpose, 61 sets of field data prepared from CPT and CPTu have been collected. The data sets were utilized in order to calculate the axial bearing capacity of piles (Q_E) through 25 different methods. In addition, the measured axial pile capacities (Q_M) have been collected, recorded and prepared from field static load tests, respectively. Then, four different statistical approaches have been applied to assess the accuracy of these methods. Finally, the most reliable and accurate methods are presented.

     

极限荷载下纵向截面异形桩破坏形式对比模型试验研究

由于基桩纵向截面形式的差异,竖向荷载作用下桩侧摩阻力和桩端阻力发挥存在明显的差异,尽管纵向截面异形桩在工程中得到了一定的应用,然而针对极限荷载下桩端和桩侧土体破坏形式的研究却相对较少。基于透明土材料和粒子图像测速（particle image velocimetry）技术,针对等体积的扩底楔形桩、楔形桩和等截面桩的承载特性及破坏形式进行对比模型试验,测得桩顶荷载-沉降曲线,研究了各级荷载下桩端和桩侧土体位移场的变化规律以及极限荷载下桩端和桩侧土体的破坏形式;同时分析了不同桩长情况下各类型桩的承载力特性。研究结果表明,在此试验条件下,扩底楔形桩的极限承载力约为常规楔形桩的3.5倍和等截面桩的2.5倍;极限荷载作用下各类型纵向截面异形桩桩端的破坏形式规律基本一致。     

Piles shaft capacity from CPT and CPTu data by polynomial neural networks and genetic algorithms

Cone penetration test (CPT) is one of the most common in situ tests which is used for pile design because it can be realized as a model pile. The measured cone resistance (q_c) and sleeve friction (f_s) usually are employed for estimation of pile unit toe and shaft resistances, respectively. Thirty three pile case histories have been compiled including static loading tests performed in uplift, or in push with separation of shaft and toe resistances at sites which comprise CPT or CPTu sounding. Group method of data handling (GMDH) type neural networks optimized using genetic algorithms (GAs) are used to model the effects of effective cone point resistance (q_E) and cone sleeve friction (f_s) as input parameters on pile unit shaft resistance, applying some experimentally obtained training and test data. Sensitivity analysis of the obtained model has been carried out to study the influence of input parameters on model output. Some graphs have been derived from sensitivity analysis to estimate pile unit shaft resistance based on q_E and f_s. The performance of the proposed method has been compared with the other CPT and CPTu direct methods and referenced to measured piles shaft capacity. The results demonstrate that appreciable improvement in prediction of pile shaft capacity has been achieved.     

Numerical ANFIS-Based Formulation for Prediction of the Ultimate Axial Load Bearing Capacity of Piles Through CPT Data

This study explores the potential of adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference systems (ANFIS) for prediction of the ultimate axial load bearing capacity of piles (P_u) using cone penetration test (CPT) data. In this regard, a reliable previously published database composed of 108 datasets was selected to develop ANFIS models. The collected database contains information regarding pile geometry, material, installation, full-scale static pile load test and CPT results for each sample. Reviewing the literature, several common and uncommon variables have been considered for direct or indirect estimation of P_u based on static pile load test, cone penetration test data or other in situ or laboratory testing methods. In present study, the pile shaft and tip area, the average cone tip resistance along the embedded length of the pile, the average cone tip resistance over influence zone and the average sleeve friction along the embedded length of the pile which are obtained from CPT data are considered as independent input variables where the output variable is P_u for the ANFIS model development. Besides, a notable criticism about ANFIS as a prediction tool is that it does not provide practical prediction equations. To tackle this issue, the obtained optimal ANFIS model is represented as a tractable equation which can be used via spread sheet software or hand calculations to provide precise predictions of P_u with the calculated correlation coefficient of 0.96 between predicted and experimental values for all of the data in this study. Considering several criteria, it is represented that the proposed model is able to estimate the output with a high degree of accuracy as compared to those results obtained by some direct CPT-based methods in the literature. Furthermore, in order to assess the capability of the proposed model from geotechnical engineering viewpoints, sensitivity and parametric analyses are done.     

A full-scale field study for performance evaluation of axially loaded large-diameter cylinder piles with pipe piles and PSC piles

This paper presents the results from a pile load testing program for a bridge construction project in Louisiana. The testing includes two 54-in. open-ended spun cast concrete cylinder piles, one 30-in. open-ended steel pile and two (30- and 16-in.) square prestressed concrete (PSC) piles driven at two locations with very similar soil conditions. Both cone penetration tests (CPTs) and soil borings/laboratory testing were used to characterize the subsurface soil conditions. All the test piles were instrumented with vibrating wire strain gauges to measure the load distribution along the length of the test piles and measure the skin friction and end-bearing capacity, separately. Dynamic load tests were performed on all test piles at different times after pile installations to quantify the amount of setup with time. Static load tests were also performed on the PSC and open-ended steel piles. Due to expected large pile capacities, the statnamic test method was used on the two open-ended cylinder piles. The pile capacities of these piles were evaluated using various CPT methods (such as Schmertmann, De Ruiter and Beringen, LCPC, Lehane et al. methods). The result showed that all the methods can estimate the skin friction with good accuracy, but not the end-bearing capacity. The normalized cumulative blow counts during pile installation showed that the blow count was always higher for the PSC piles compared to the large-diameter open-ended cylinder pile, regardless of pile size and hammer size. Setup was observed for all the piles, which was mainly attributed to increase in skin frictions. The setup parameters “A” were back-calculated for all the test piles and the values were between 0.31 and 0.41.     

基于黄河冲洪积地层试桩试验优化 桩基承载力设计的研究

以山东东营某工程为例,基于黄河冲洪积地层试桩试验成果,对试桩试验、试桩单桩极限承载力实测值与预估值相差较大（6.36%～20.19%）的原因进行分析。建立在相同桩顶标高（-5.7 m）条件下单桩极限承载力实测平均值与桩底标高（可以换算成桩长）的关系曲线,对工程桩桩基承载力设计方法进行优化。根据桩基检测结果,优化后的工程桩在相同桩长、桩径条件下单桩极限承载力实测值与预估值承载力相比提高约10%,达到发掘地质条件的潜力、减少桩数、节省工程造价的目的。相关试验方法、优化桩基承载力设计的方法可为类似地质条件的工程设计及建立区域桩基承载力数据库提供借鉴。     

水平荷载下纵截面异形桩承载特性试验

针对纵截面异形桩（扩底桩和楔形桩）、等混凝土用量常规等直径桩的水平向承载特性进行对比模型试验研究,测得不同水平荷载等级下扩底桩和楔形桩的内力、变形、极限承载力和桩侧土压力分布等变化规律特性;初步探讨3种桩型的水平极限承载特性和桩侧土压力分布规律。考虑纵向截面异形效应,基于水平土抗力与水平位移（p-y）曲线法建立纵截面异形桩水平向承载特性理论计算方法,进一步分析弯矩分布规律,并开展影响因素分析。研究结果表明,在当前试验条件下,等混凝土用量楔形桩的水平向承载力比等直径桩的高,砂性土和黏性土中楔形桩水平向极限承载力约分别为等直径桩的1.25倍和1.33倍。相关研究成果可为今后类似土层下水平受荷纵截面异形桩的设计与计算提供参考依据。     

Study of compressive loading capacities of helical piles using torque method and induced settlements

Torque is a most widely used method to estimate the load capacities of helical piles because of its simplicity and minimal costs. This research attempts to investigate the torque method by incorporating settlements and involves its comparison with bearing equations which have also been used to estimate the capacities of helical piles. The test program consisted of installation of seven helical piles including a static axial compression test to estimate the corresponding settlements. The compression test was conducted on the seventh pile which is referred to as the test pile. The load movement curve of the test pile is used to predict the settlement of each pile corresponding to the ultimate load calculated using torque method. In addition, few methods to interpret the load movement curve have been discussed. This research would pave way to yield more reliable results using torque method and could lead to the large-scale usage of helical piles.     

Prediction of ultimate axial load-carrying capacity of piles using a support vector machine based on CPT data

The support vector machine (SVM) is a relatively new artificial intelligence technique which is increasingly being applied to geotechnical problems and is yielding encouraging results. In this paper SVM models are developed for predicting the ultimate axial load-carrying capacity of piles based on cone penetration test (CPT) data. A data set of 108 samples is used to develop the SVM models. These data were obtained from the literature containing pile load tests and each sample contains information regarding pile geometry, full-scale static pile load tests and CPT results. Moreover, a sensitivity analysis is carried out to examine the relative significance of each input variable with respect to ultimate strength prediction. Finally, a statistical analysis is conducted to make comparisons between predictions obtained from the SVM models and three traditional CPT-based methods for determining pile capacity. The comparison confirms that the SVM models developed in this paper outperform the traditional methods.     

抗拔桩极限平衡方程及其应用

将抗拔桩侧阻力分解为与桩侧正压力不相关的桩-土黏结强度 、与桩侧有效正压力成正比的摩擦力 两部分,采用摩擦定律计算摩擦力 。基于轴对称条件,假定土体为半无限弹性体,以Mindlin公式积分计算分析极限平衡状态下桩-土共同作用,依据平面应变条件下柱状孔扩张的弹性力学解建立桩-土界面位移协调方程,推导出抗拔桩极限平衡方程,给出了求解方法及计算参数确定方法。该方程能反映桩与土的材料特性、桩体尺寸、桩顶埋深、群桩效应、卸荷效应等多因素对抗拔桩极限承载力的影响。结合海上风电大直径超长抗拔钢管桩足尺试验进行验证。对比分析结果表明,该方法计算的抗拔极限承载力与实测值接近,计算精度远高于现行规范推荐方法,其结果可为工程应用及抗拔桩承载力机制研究提供参考。     

用双曲线法预测挤扩支盘桩的极限承载力

双曲线法能够比较好地预测P-s曲线为缓变型的桩基的极限承载力。根据7根挤扩支盘桩的实测P-s曲线,用双曲线法预测了支盘桩的极限承载力。结果表明在极限加载范围内,双曲线法同样适用于挤扩支盘桩,拟合双曲线与实测的曲线比较吻合,预测的结果对工程实际有一定的价值。     

A design method for plastic tube cast-in-place concrete pile considering cavity contraction and its validation

Bearing capacity calculation method and field static load test (SLT) program were carried out simultaneously to study the bearing characteristics of individual Plastic Tube Cast-in-Place Concrete Pile (TC pile), which are increasingly being employed for support of embankments in southeast China. The bearing capacity calculation method considering pile setup (i.e., setup calculation method) was built up according to the cylindrical cavity contraction and horizontal consolidation theories. A series of SLTs on different dates were applied to study the bearing behavior of TC pile and to verify the validity of the established setup calculation method. During TC piles installation, there is about 45% contraction in cylindrical volume due to the extraction of steel casing. Both theoretical and experimental results show that the calculated outcomes considering cylindrical cavity contraction agree well with measured ones. The difference value between them is not more than 12%. On the other hand, if the cylindrical cavity contraction is ignored, the calculated bearing capacities of TC piles are overestimated by 160–300%. The setup of TC pile is mainly due to the increment of pile shaft resistance with time elapsed. Cylindrical cavity contraction accompanied by TC pile installation causes much loss of pile shaft resistance.     

超长大直径桩的变形特性研究

应用有限元方法,分析了不同几何参数情况下超长大直径桩的荷载-沉降关系、桩顶沉降量的构成及其比例。根据计算结果得出以下规律：超长桩极限承载力的发挥需要较大的桩顶位移,且随着长径比的增大而增大;超长桩的变形主要由桩身压缩量控制,桩端沉降所占比例较小,且各沉降分项所占比例与长径比存在明显的函数关系;对长径比为50～83的超长大直径桩,极限状态下的桩身压缩量所占比例为65.2 %～71.83 %,桩端荷载所引起的沉降量所占比例为15.7 %～9.72 %;工作荷载作用下的桩身压缩量所占比例为66.1 %～72.5 %,桩端荷载所引起的沉降量所占比例为10.8 %～3.9 %。     

Probabilistic analysis of load-settlement response from pile load tests

The evaluation of variability in ultimate pile capacity from the load-settlement data is useful in the context of code calibration and reliability based design in pile foundations. This paper examines the applicability of two non-linear analytical methods to calculate the load-settlement response of piles using actual test data in terms of percentage deviation from the measured capacity. The degree of agreement associated with each method with respect to field test data is quantified using two different failure criteria (FHWA and Eurocode) for determination of the ultimate load of pile. The analytical methods are used to quantify the variability associated with the soil-pile interface parameters and ultimate capacity using Monte Carlo simulations, which is useful in load-resistance factored/reliability design of pile foundations. Study reveals that variability depends on the method of analysis, percent deviation of prediction from measured values and failure criteria.     

秦巴山区软岩地基桥桩承载性状试验研究

为了研究软岩地基桥桩的荷载传递性状、破坏机理,并获取在该地质条件下更为可靠的桩基计算参数,对秦巴山区软岩地基3根钻孔灌注试桩进行竖向静载试验。结果表明：秦巴山区软岩地基桥桩试桩荷载沉降曲线呈陡降型,实测竖向极限承载力为20 500kN,桩的破坏方式为桩身材料强度破坏;淤泥质亚黏土地层中的碎石起到一定的骨架作用,增强了此地层桩极限侧阻力,发挥极限侧阻力所需的桩土（岩）相对位移为4～8mm;强风化砾岩表现为加工软化型,发挥极限侧阻力所需的桩土（岩）相对位移为3～8mm;中风化砂砾岩表现为明显的加工硬化型,所需的桩岩相对位移大,且桩极限侧阻力的特征点不明显;淤泥质亚黏土地层桩侧阻力占总荷载的60%～70%,随着桩顶荷载的逐步加大,该地层桩侧阻力所占比例不断下降,而嵌岩段桩侧阻力所占比例逐渐上升,达到55%～65%,嵌岩段桩侧阻力沿桩深的分布曲线表现出非线性的特征;试桩为端承摩擦桩,桩端阻力约占桩顶荷载的20%左右,且未充分发挥,在上部结构允许的沉降范围内,适当增加桩端的沉降有利于端阻力的发挥;桩侧阻力先于端阻力发挥,建议单桩承载力设计时分别采用不同的端阻力和侧阻力安全系数。     

On the Study of Pile Driving Formula Based on Blow Counts

Accuracy of predicting pile capacities by pile driving formulas have been investigated. Five test piles were driven up to a depth of about 9 m of clay deposit and the penetrations due to final blows were recorded. The pile bearing capacity of each pile was predicted using 6 different pile driving formulas and the predicted pile capacity was compared with measured pile capacity from the pull up tests. Hiley formula, Modified Engineering News Record (ENR) formula, Janbu formula, Dutch formula, Danish formula, and Gates formula were used. The performance and accuracy of each formula was evaluated and the correlation coefficient of each pile driving formula was determined for a more accurate pile capacity prediction. Methods used to evaluate the performance of each formula were; (1) the best fit line for Q _p versus Q _m (2) cumulative probability for Q _p/Q _m and (3) the arithmetic mean and standard deviation for Q _p/Q _m. From the study, it was found that using Dutch formula provided the most accurate pile capacity estimate compared to the other formulas with an average of 7% deviation from value obtained from the field pull up test. It was followed by the Danish formula, Janbu formula, Hiley formula, Modified ENR formula, and Gates formula. The ability to predict the accuracy of estimating pile capacity using an appropriate method is very important and valuable to contractors, developers, geotechnical engineers, and manufacturers.     

Failure analysis of CPT-based direct methods for axial capacity of driven piles in sand

Due to variety of current pile bearing capacity methods based on cone penetration test (CPT) measurements, there is always a need for evaluating performance of existing methods to make proper choices of methods as well as safety factors for optimum design. In this regard, geotechnical databases are known as useful tools which facilitate evaluation of existing methods. This paper deals with axial bearing capacity of driven piles in sand using CPT-based methods. A database of seventy-six records is employed to analyze different criteria of interpreting static pile load test results to select the most consistent approach with the CPT-based methods. Then, performance of nine commonly used direct CPT-based methods was evaluated. Finally, via a failure probability and cost optimisation approach, optimum safety factors are presented and discussed. Analysis of different failure criteria shows that the Hansen 80% criterion leads to more consistent results with the CPT-based methods. In addition, almost all of the investigated methods showed promising performance. The attained safety factors range from 1.6 to 3.1 for all records, 1.4 to 3.1 for piles in compression, and 1.4 to 2.2 for the piles in tension. Then, efficiency of methods was evaluated and the methods with higher efficiency are introduced.