Load transfer approach for laterally loaded piles

A two‐parameter model has been proposed previously for predicting the response of laterally loaded single piles in homogenous soil. A disadvantage of the model is that at high Poisson's ratio, unreliable results may be obtained. In this paper, a new load transfer approach is developed to simulate the response of laterally loaded single piles embedded in a homogeneous medium, by introducing a rational stress field. The approach can overcome the inherent disadvantage of the two‐parameter model, although developed in a similar way. Generalized solutions for a single pile and the surrounding soil under various pile‐head and base conditions were established and presented in compact forms. With the solutions, a load transfer factor, correlating the displacements of the pile and the soil, was estimated and expressed as a simple equation. Expressions were developed for the modulus of subgrade reaction for a Winkler model as a unique function of the load transfer factor. Simple expressions were developed for estimating critical pile length, maximum bending moment, and the depth at which the maximum moment occurs. All the newly established solutions and/or expressions, using the load transfer factor, offer satisfactory predictions in comparison with the available, more rigorous numerical approaches. The current solutions are applicable to various boundary conditions, and any pile–soil relative stiffness. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Variational elastic solution for axially loaded piles in multilayered soil

Most analytical or semi‐analytical solutions of the problem of load‐settlement response of axially loaded piles are based on the assumption of zero radial displacement. These solutions also are only applicable to piles embedded in either a homogeneous or a Gibson soil deposit. In reality, soil deposits consist of multiple soil layers with different properties, and displacements in the radial direction within the soil deposit are not zero when the pile is loaded axially. In this paper, we present a load‐settlement analysis applicable to a pile with circular cross section installed in multilayered elastic soil that accounts for both vertical and radial soil displacements. The analysis follows from the solution of the differential equations governing the displacements of the pile–soil system obtained using variational principles. The input parameters needed for the analysis are the pile geometry and the elastic constants of the soil and pile. We compare the results from the present analysis with those of an analytical solution that considers only vertical soil displacements. The analysis presented in this paper also provides useful insights into the displacement and strain fields around axially loaded piles. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Elastic models for nonlinear response of rigid passive piles

Recent study indicates that the response of rigid passive piles is dominated by elastic pile–soil interaction and may be estimated using theory for lateral piles. The difference lies in that passive piles normally are associated with a large scatter of the ratio of maximum bending moment over maximum shear force and induce a limiting pressure that is ~1/3 that on laterally loaded piles. This disparity prompts this study. This paper proposes pressure‐based pile–soil models and develops their associated solutions to capture response of rigid piles subjected to soil movement. The impact of soil movement was encapsulated into a power‐law distributed loading over a sliding depth, and load transfer model was adopted to mimic the pile–soil interaction. The solutions are presented in explicit expressions and can be readily obtained. They are capable of capturing responses of model piles in a sliding soil owing to the impact of sliding depth and relative strength between sliding and stable layer on limiting force prior to ultimate state. In comparison with available solutions for ultimate state, this study reveals the 1/3 limiting pressure (of the active piles) on passive piles was induced by elastic interaction. The current models employing distributed pressure for moving soil are more pertinent to passive piles (rather than plastic soil flow). An example calculation against instrumented model piles is provided, which demonstrates the accuracy of the current solutions for design slope stabilising piles. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Nonlinear response of laterally loaded piles and pile groups

In spite of extensive studies on laterally loaded piles carried out over years, none of them offers an expedite approach as to gaining the nonlinear response and its associated depth of mobilization of limiting force along each pile in a group. To serve such a need, elastic–plastic solutions for free‐head, laterally loaded piles were developed recently by the author. They allow the response to be readily computed from elastic state right up to failure, by assigning a series of slip depths, and a limiting force profile. In this paper, equivalent solutions for fixed‐head (FixH) single piles were developed. They are subsequently extended to cater for response of pile groups by incorporating p‐multipliers. The newly established solutions were substantiated by existing numerical solutions for piles and pile groups. They offer satisfactory prediction of the nonlinear response of all the 6 single piles and 24 pile groups investigated so far after properly considering the impact of semi‐FixH restraints. They also offer the extent to ultimate state of pile groups via the evaluated slip depths. The study allows ad hoc guidelines to be established for determining input parameters for the solutions. The solutions are tailored for routine prediction of the nonlinear interaction of laterally loaded FixH piles and capped pile groups. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Boundary element analysis of axially loaded piles embedded in a multi-layered soil

In a field, piles are likely installed in a multi-layered soil. Analysis of axially loaded piles in a multi-layered soil is complicated and deserves more attention. A boundary element method is used in this study to analyze an axially loaded single pile in a multi-layered soil using the solution for vertical and horizontal axisymmetric ring loads in a multi-layered elastic medium. Good and reasonable agreement is obtained between the proposed and published solutions for a single pile in a homogenous soil, a finite soil, and a Gibson soil. The proposed solution is also used to evaluate an axially loaded single pile in a multi-layered (8 layers) soil.     

An analytical continuum model for axially loaded end-bearing piles in inhomogeneous soil

An approximate static solution is derived for the elastic settlement and load-transfer mechanism in axially loaded end-bearing piles in inhomogeneous soil obeying a power law variation in shear modulus with depth. The proposed generalised formulation can handle different types of soil inhomogeneity by employing pertinent eigenexpansions of the dependent variables over the vertical coordinate, in the form of static soil “modes”, analogous to those used in structural dynamics. Contrary to available models for homogeneous soil, the associated Fourier coefficients are coupled, obtained as solutions to a set of simultaneous algebraic equations of equal rank to the number of modes considered. Closed-form solutions are derived for the (1) pile head stiffness; (2) pile settlement, axial stress, and side friction profiles leading to actual, depth-dependent Winkler moduli, (3) displacement and stress fields in the soil; and (4) average, depth-independent Winkler moduli to match pile head settlement. The predictive power of the model is verified via comparisons against finite element analyses. The applicability to inhomogeneous soil of an existing regression formula for the average Winkler modulus is explored.     

A multidirectional semi‐analytical method for analysis of laterally loaded pile groups in multi‐layered elastic strata

A semi‐analytical method for calculating the response of single piles and pile groups subjected to lateral loading is developed in this paper. Displacements anywhere in the soil domain are tied to the displacements of the piles through decay functions. The principle of virtual work and the calculus of variations are used to derive the governing differential equations that describe the response of the piles and soil. The eigenvalue method and the finite difference technique are used to solve the system of coupled differential equations for the piles and soil, respectively. The proposed method takes into account the soil surface displacement along and perpendicular to the loading direction and produces displacement fields that are very close to those produced by the finite element method but at lower computational effort. Compared with the previous method that considered only the soil displacement along the loading direction, accounting for the multi‐directional soil displacement field produces responses for the piles and soil that are closer to those approximated by the finite element method. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Response of rigid piles during passive dragging

This paper develops a three‐layer model and elastic solutions to capture nonlinear response of rigid, passive piles in sliding soil. Elastic solutions are obtained for an equivalent force per unit length p_s of the soil movement. They are repeated for a series of linearly increasing p_s (with depth) to yield the nonlinear response. The parameters underpinning the model are determined against pertinent numerical solutions and model tests on passive free‐head and capped piles. The solutions are presented in non‐dimensional charts and elaborated through three examples. The study reveals the following:

• On‐pile pressure in rotationally restrained, sliding layer reduces by a factor α, which resembles the p‐multiplier for a laterally loaded, capped pile, but for its increase with vertical loading (embankment surcharge), and stiffness of underlying stiff layer: α = 0.25 and 0.6 for a shallow, translating and rotating piles, respectively; α = 0.33–0.5 and 0.8–1.3 for a slide overlying a stiff layer concerning a uniform and a linearly increasing pressure, respectively; and α = 0.5–0.72 for moving clay under embankment loading.
• Ultimate state is well defined using the ratio of passive earth pressure coefficient over that of active earth pressure. The subgrade modulus for a large soil movement may be scaled from model tests.
• The normalised rotational stiffness is equal to 0.1–0.15 for the capped piles, which increases the pile displacement with depth.

The three‐layer model solutions well predict nonlinear response of capped piles subjected to passive loading, which may be used for pertinent design. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Lateral load distributions on grouped piles from dynamic pile‐to‐pile interaction factors

The load distributions of the grouped piles under lateral loads acting from one side of the pile cap could be approximately modeled using the elasticity equations with the assumptions that the underground structure is rigid enough to sustain the loads, and only small deformations of the soils are yielded. Variations of the soil–pile interactions along the depths are therefore negligible for simplicity. This paper presents the analytical modeling using the dynamic pile‐to‐pile interaction factors for 2 × 2 and 2 × 3 grouped piles. The results were found comparative with the experimental and numerical results of other studies. Similar to others' findings, it was shown that the leading pile could carry more static loads than the trailing pile does. For the piles in the perpendicular direction with the static load, the loads would distribute symmetrically with the centerline whereas the middle pile always sustains the smallest load. For steady‐state loads with operating frequencies up to 30 Hz, the pile load distributions would vary significantly with the frequencies. It is interesting to know that designing the pile foundation needs to be cautioned for steady‐state vibrations as they are a problem of machine foundation. However, for transient loads or any harmonic loads acting upon relatively higher frequencies, the pile loads could be regarded as uniformly distributed. It is hoped that the numerical results of this paper will be helpful in the design practice of pile foundation. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A Winkler model approach for vertically and laterally loaded piles in nonhomogeneous soil

An investigation is made to present analytical solutions provided by a Winkler model approach for the analysis of single piles and pile groups subjected to vertical and lateral loads in nonhomogeneous soils. The load transfer parameter of a single pile in nonhomogeneous soils is derived from the displacement influence factor obtained from Mindlin's solution for an elastic continuum analysis, without using the conventional form of the load transfer parameter adopting the maximum radius of the influence of the pile proposed by Randolph and Wroth. The modulus of the subgrade reaction along the pile in nonhomogeneous soils is expressed by using the displacement influence factor related to Mindlin's equation for an elastic continuum analysis to combine the elastic continuum approach with the subgrade reaction approach. The relationship between settlement and vertical load for a single pile in nonhomogeneous soils is obtained by using the recurrence equation for each layer. Using the modulus of the subgrade reaction represented by the displacement influence factor related to Mindlin's solution for the lateral load, the relationship between horizontal displacement, rotation, moment, and shear force for a single pile subjected to lateral loads in nonhomogeneous soils is available in the form of the recurrence equation. The comparison of the results calculated by the present method for single piles and pile groups in nonhomogeneous soils has shown good agreement with those obtained from the more rigorous finite element and boundary element methods. It is found that the present procedure gives a good prediction on the behavior of piles in nonhomogeneous soils. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Finite element analyses of layered visco‐elastic system under vertical circular loading

Analyses for the response of a linear visco‐elastic system subjected to axi‐symmetric vertical circular loading are presented. Hankel transforms with respect to the radial spatial coordinate are used to reduce the three‐dimensional problem to that involving only a single spatial dimension, which is then discretized using the finite element method. Three techniques are employed to handle the time factor in the visco‐elastic material: (i) direct time integration; (ii) Fourier transforms; and (iii) Laplace transforms. These methods are compared and evaluated through their numerical results. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A three‐dimensional displacement approach for analysis of laterally loaded piles in nonhomogeneous soil

An analytical approach using the three‐dimensional displacement of a soil is investigated to provide analytical solutions of the horizontal response of a circular pile subjected to lateral loads in nonhomogeneous soil. The rocking stiffness coefficient of the pile shaft in homogeneous soil is derived from the analytical solution taking into account the three‐dimensional displacement represented in terms of scalar potentials in the elastic three‐dimensional analysis. The lateral stiffness coefficient of the pile shaft in nonhomogeneous soil is derived from the rocking stiffness coefficient taking into account the rocking rotation of a rigid pile shaft. The relationship between horizontal displacement, rotation, moment, and shear force of a pile subjected to horizontal loads in nonhomogeneous soil is obtainable in the form of the recurrence equation. The formulation of the lateral displacement and rotation of the pile base subjected to lateral loads in nonhomogeneous soils is presented by taking into account Mindlin's equation and the equivalent thickness for soil layers in the equivalent elastic method. There is little difference between lateral, rocking, and couple stiffness coefficients each obtained from both the two‐dimensional and three‐dimensional methods except for the case of Poisson's ratio near 0.5. The comparison of results calculated by the current method for a pile subjected to lateral loads in homogeneous and nonhomogeneous soils has shown good agreement with those obtained from analytical and numerical methods. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Response evaluation for horizontally loaded fixed‐head pile groups using 3‐D non‐linear analysis

The response of laterally loaded pile foundations may be significantly important in the design of structures for such loads. A static horizontal pile load test is able to provide a load–deflection curve for a single free‐head pile, which significantly differs from that of a free‐ or fixed‐head pile group, depending on the particular group configuration. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the influence of the interaction between the piles of a group fixed in a rigid pile cap on both the lateral load capacity and the stiffness of the group. For this purpose, a parametric three‐dimensional non‐linear numerical analysis was carried out for different arrangements of pile groups. The response of the pile groups is compared to that of the single pile. The influence of the number of piles, the spacing and the deflection level to the group response is discussed. Furthermore, the contribution of the piles constituting the group to the total group resistance is examined. Finally, a relationship is proposed allowing a reasonable prediction of the response of fixed‐head pile groups at least for similar soil profile conditions. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Analytical study of mine closure behaviour in a poro‐visco‐elastic medium

This paper is interested in the hydro‐mechanical behaviour of an underground cavity abandoned at the end of its service life. It is an extension of a previous study that accounted for a poro‐elastic behaviour of the rock mass (Int. J. Comput. Geomech. 2007; DOI: 10.1016/j.compgeo.2007.11.003 ). Deterioration of the lining support with time leads to the transfer of the loading from the exterior massif to the interior backfill. The in situ material has a poro‐visco‐elastic constitutive behaviour while the backfill is poro‐elastic, both saturated with water. This loading transfer is accompanied by an inward cavity convergence, thereby compressing the backfill, and induces an outward water flow. This leads to a complex space–time evolution of pore pressures, displacements and stresses, which is not always intuitive. In its general setting, a semi‐explicit solution to this problem is developed, using Laplace transform, the inversion being performed numerically. Analytical inversion leading to a quasi‐explicit solution in the time domain is possible by identifying the characteristic creep and relaxation times of volumetric strains with those of the deviatoric strains, on the basis of a parametric study. A few numerical examples are given to illustrate the hydro‐mechanical behaviour of the cavity and highlight the influence of key parameters (e.g. stiffness of backfill, lining deterioration rate, etc.). Further studies accounting for more general material behaviours for the backfill and external ground are ongoing. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Surface displacements due to batter piles driven in cross‐anisotropic media

This article derives the closed‐form solutions for estimating the vertical surface displacements of cross‐anisotropic media due to various loading types of batter piles. The loading types include an embedded point load for an end‐bearing pile, uniform skin friction, and linear variation of skin friction for a friction pile. The planes of cross‐anisotropy are assumed to be parallel to the horizontal ground surface. The proposed solutions are never mentioned in literature and can be developed from Wang and Liao's solutions for a horizontal and vertical point load embedded in the cross‐anisotropic half‐space. The present solutions are identical with Wang's solutions when batter angle equals to 0^°. In addition, the solutions indicate that the surface displacements in cross‐anisotropic media are influenced by the type and degree of material anisotropy, angle of inclination, and loading types. An illustrative example is given at the end of this article to investigate the effect of the type and degree of soil anisotropy (E/E′, G′/E′, and ν/ν′), pile inclination (α), and different loading types (a point load, a uniform skin friction, and a linear variation of skin friction) on vertical surface displacements. Results show that the displacements accounted for pile batter are quite different from those estimated from plumb piles, both driven in cross‐anisotropic media. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Transient solution for a plane‐strain fracture driven by a shear‐thinning,power‐law fluid

This paper analyses the problem of a fluid‐driven fracture propagating in an impermeable, linear elastic rock with finite toughness. The fracture is driven by injection of an incompressible viscous fluid with power‐law rheology. The relation between the fracture opening and the internal fluid pressure and the fracture propagation in mobile equilibrium are described by equations of linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM), and the flow of fluid inside the fracture is governed by the lubrication theory. It is shown that for shear‐thinning fracturing fluids, the fracture propagation regime evolves in time from the toughness‐ to the viscosity‐dominated regime. In the former, dissipation in the viscous fluid flow is negligible compared to the dissipation in extending the fracture in the rock, and in the later, the opposite holds. Corresponding self‐similar asymptotic solutions are given by the zero‐viscosity and zero‐toughness (J. Numer. Anal. Meth. Geomech. 2002; 26 :579–604) solutions, respectively. A transient solution in terms of the crack length, the fracture opening, and the net fluid pressure, which describes the fracture evolution from the early‐time (toughness‐dominated) to the large‐time (viscosity‐dominated) asymptote is presented and some of the implications for the practical range of parameters are discussed. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Numerical modelling of the driving response of thin‐walled open‐ended piles

The driving response of thin‐walled open‐ended piles is studied using numerical simulation of the wave propagation inside the soil plug and the pile. An elastic finite element analysis is carried out to identify the stress wave propagation in the vicinity of the pile toe. It is found that the shear stress wave has the highest magnitude above the bottom of the soil plug. Below the bottom of the soil plug, the vertical stress wave has the highest magnitude. Although the shear stress wave propagating in the radial direction is similar in magnitude to the vertical stress wave at the bottom of the soil plug, it decays rapidly while travelling downwards. The highest vertical stress at the bottom of the soil plug appears after the vertical stress wave interacts with the shear stress wave travelling in the radial direction. Initially, the vertical stress wave propagates with the dilation wave velocity in both the radial and vertical directions. After it interacts with the shear stress wave, the vertical stress wave starts to propagate with the shear wave velocity in the radial direction and with the axial wave velocity downwards. It is concluded that at the bottom of the soil plug, the interaction between the waves travelling in radial and vertical directions is important. The capabilities of several one‐dimensional pile‐in‐pile models to reproduce the driving response given by a two‐dimensional axisymmetric finite element model is studied. It is seen that when the base of the soil plug fails, a one‐dimensional pile‐in‐pile model can be used to achieve results in agreement with the finite element model. However, when the pile is unplugged, where the base of the soil plug does not fail, a reduced finite element mesh that permits the radial wave propagation inside the soil plug must be used. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Analytical solutions for Euler–Bernoulli beam on visco‐elastic foundation subjected to moving load

Analytical solutions for the steady‐state response of an infinite beam resting on a visco‐elastic foundation and subjected to a concentrated load moving with a constant velocity are developed in this paper. The beam responses investigated are deflection, bending moment, shear force and contact pressure. The mechanical resistance of the foundation is modeled using two parameters k_s and t_s — k_s accounts for soil resistance due to compressive strains in the soil and t_s accounts for the resistance due to shear strains. Since this model represents the ground behavior more accurately than the Winkler spring model, the developed solutions produce beam responses that are closer to reality than those obtained using the existing solutions for Winkler model. The dynamic beam responses depend on the damping present in the system and on the velocity of the moving load. Based on the study, dynamic amplification curves are developed for beam deflection. Such amplification curves for deflection, bending moment, shear force and contact pressure can be developed for any beam‐foundation system and can be used in design. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Response evaluation of axially loaded fixed‐head pile groups in clayey soils

The aim of this paper is to investigate the interaction between the piles in a group with a rigid head and correlate the response of a group of piles to that of a single pile. For this purpose, a computationally intensive study using 3‐D nonlinear numerical analysis was carried out for different pile group arrangements in clayey soils. The responses of the groups of piles were compared with that of a single pile and the variation of the settlement amplification factor R_a was then quantified. The influence of the number of piles, the spacing, and the settlement level on the group response is discussed. A previously proposed relationship for predicting the response of a pile group, based on its configuration and the response of a single pile, has been modified to extend its applicability for any pile spacing. The modified relationship provides a reasonable prediction for various group configurations in clayey soils. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Vertical stress distributions around batter piles driven in cross‐anisotropic media

This work presents analytical solutions to compute the vertical stresses for a cross‐anisotropic half‐space due to various loading types by batter piles. The loading types are an embedded point load for an end‐bearing pile, uniform skin friction, and linear variation of skin friction for a friction pile. The cross‐anisotropic planes are parallel to the horizontal ground surface. The proposed solutions can be obtained by utilizing Wang and Liao's solutions for a horizontal and vertical point load acting in the interior of a cross‐anisotropic medium. The derived cross‐anisotropic solutions using a limiting approach are in perfect agreement with the isotropic solutions of Ramiah and Chickanagappa with the consideration of pile inclination. Additionally, the present solutions are identical to the cross‐anisotropic solutions by Wang for the batter angle equals to 0. The influential factors in yielded solutions include the type and degree of geomaterial anisotropy, pile inclination, and distinct loading types. An example is illustrated to clarify the effect of aforementioned factors on the vertical stresses. The parametric results reveal that the stresses considering the geomaterial anisotropy and pile batter differ from those of previous isotropic and cross‐anisotropic solutions. Hence, it is imperative to take the pile inclination into account when piles are required to transmit both the axial and lateral loads in the cross‐anisotropic media. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.