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Engineered piles to improve cyclic load capacity

a b c
H. G. Poulos & K. B. Sim
a
University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
b
Director of Advanced Technology, Coffey Partners International Pty Ltd, Australia
c
School of Civil and Mining Engineering, University of Sydney, Sydney, 2006, Australia
Version of record first published: 23 Dec 2008.

To cite this article: H. G. Poulos & K. B. Sim (1990): Engineered piles to improve cyclic load capacity, Marine Geotechnology,
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Engineered Piles to Improve Cyclic Load Capacity

H. G. POULOS
University of Sydney
Sydney, Australia
Director of Advanced Technology
Coffey Partners International Pty Ltd
Australia

K. B. SIM
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School of Civil and Mining Engineering

University of Sydney
Sydney, Australia 2006

Abstract Theoretical analyses have been carried out on five different pile types in
two hypothetical soils representing offshore calcareous sediment profiles. It is dem-
onstrated that both static and cyclic performance can be improved, over that of a
conventional uniform pile, by altering the distribution of diameter and/or stiffness
along the pile. To optimize performance under cyclic loading, a pile should be de-
signed so that stress concentrations are minimized and the shape of the distribution of
pile-soil shear stress is the same as that of the limiting skin friction.

Keywords Analysis, calcareous soil, cyclic loading, foundations, offshore piles,

piling, soil mechanics.

Introduction
Laboratory and field tests have revealed that piles in calcareous sediments may suffer
significant loss of load capacity when subjected to cyclic axial loading (e.g., Nauroy and
Le Tirant, 1985; Deane 1988; Poulos and Lee 1988). This loss appears to derive primar-
ily from the degradation of skin friction as cyclic loading proceeds; the greater the cyclic
displacement or the number of cycles, the greater is the amount of degradation. Theoret-
ical analysis (Poulos 1988a) suggest that cyclic degradation is initiated at the point of
greatest concentration of pile-soil stress and that the more nonuniform this stress distri-
bution, the smaller the cyclic load at which degradation begins.
This article examines the theoretical feasibility of designing a pile so that its poten-
tial for loss of capacity due to cyclic loading is diminished. Various types of "engi-
neered" piles are examined in order to assess the degree of improvement in cyclic load
capacity as compared with a conventional uniform diameter, uniform section pile.

Engineered Pile Concepts

Conventional onshore piles, whether driven or bored, are generally of uniform diameter
and stiffness along their length. Offshore piles are often of variable section or stiffness,
but these variations are usually governed by the stresses induced by lateral loading.

131
 132 H. G. Poulos and K. B. Sim

However, it is possible to modify the design of a pile in order to alter the axial load
transfer to the surrounding soil, reduce stress concentrations along the shaft, and im-
prove pile performance under cyclic axial loading. Four such modified or engineered
piles will be analyzed here:
(1) A pile whose stiffness varies with depth, termed a variable stiffness pile.
(2) A pile whose diameter varies with depth, termed a variable diameter pile.
(3) A pile with a bell at the base, termed a belled pile.
(4) A pile with a bell some distance above the base, termed a belled pile plus insert.
Each of these pile types, together with a conventional pile as the reference case, is
illustrated in Figure 1. The dimensions and stiffness shown in Figure 1 are those for
which the solutions described later have been obtained. This article examines their com-
parative performance under both static and cyclic axial load.
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Method of Analysis
The analysis employed has been described by Poulos (1988a) and uses a simplified
boundary element approach in which the soil mass is represented by an elastic contin-
uum. For static loading, allowance is made for pile-soil slip along the interface and end-
bearing failure at the pile toe by specifying limiting values of the pile-soil stress at each
element. Strain-softening behavior of the interface can also be considered.
For cyclic loading, the analysis can allow for three major effects:
(1) The cyclic degradation of shaft resistance, end-bearing resistance, and
soil.

Pile Type 1

20m
35m
45m
L=60m

2m 2m

40m d=1.0m

Uniform calcareous sand

Figure 1. Pile types analyzed. Pile types for Figures 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8: 1, standard uniform
pile; 2, variable stiffness pile; 3, variable diameter pile; 4, belled pile; 5, belled pile and insert.
 Engineered Piles to Improve Cyclic Load Capacity 133

Young's Modulus Limiting Skin Friction Young's Modulus Limiting Skin Friction
MPa kPa MPa kPa
0 50 100 0 50 100 150 0 300 0 100 200
0

100 kPa 250 MPa 150 kPa

- -
50 -
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100

(a) Uncemented Profile |b) Cemented Profile

Figure 2. Hypothetical calcareous soil profile analyzed.

(2) The effects of loading rate.

(3) The accumulation of permanent displacements under zero mean loading.
A cycle-by-cycle analysis procedure is used, whereby the pile response at each cycle is
analyzed and the soil parameters are adjusted for cyclic loading effects at the end of each
cycle.
For the results presented herein, the program GAPCYC (Hewitt 1988) was used,
and the consideration of cyclic degradation was confined to skin friction. It was assumed
that no cyclic degradation of end-bearing resistance or soil modulus occurred and that
rate effects were not significant. Possible strain-softening behavior and accumulation of
permanent displacements under nonsymmetrical cyclic loading were also not considered.

Theoretical Solutions for Pile Response

Cases Analyzed
Figure 1 summarizes the dimensions and stiffness characteristics of the five piles types
analyzed. All piles are 60 m long with a i m shaft diameter and an equivalent Young's
modulus of 25,000 MPa, except for the "stiffened" pile, which as an equivalent modu-
lus of 50,000 MPa in the upper 35 m. For steel tube piles, these equivalent moduli
would correspond to wall thicknesses of about 30 and 60 mm, respectively. Where bells
are present, their diameter is 2 m.
Two idealized soil profiles have been considered: (1) A 100-m-deep layer of unce-
mented calcareous sediment, and (2) a 100-m-deep layer of cemented calcareous sedi-
ment. These profiles are illustrated in Figure 2, together with the assumed distributions
of static shaft resistance and soil Young's modulus. The limiting compressive bearing
pressure for the bells and the pile tip has been taken as 1 MPa for the uncemented soil
 134 H. G. Poulos and K. B. Sim

and 3 MPa for the cemented soil. These values have been assessed as being reasonable
design parameters from previous experience with field and model testing (Poulos
1988b). Under cyclic loading, it was assumed that skin friction degradation took place in
accordance with the simple Matlock and Foo (1980) model (Poulos 1988a). For both
soils, the degradation parameters for shaft resistance adopted are as follows: minimum
degradation factor Z?|im - 0.1 and degradation rate parameters X - 0.5.
The performance of the five pile types will be compared with respect to the follow-
ing four aspects of behavior:
(1) static compressive load capacity
(2) secant pile head stiffness at a working load of half die static capacity of the pile
(3) the maximum sustainable load under one-way cyclic loading conditions
(4) the maximum sustainable load under two-way cyclic loading conditions

Static Ultimate Load Capacity

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Figure 3 compares the theoretical static compressive load capacity of the five pile types.
Pile types 1 and 2 have identical load capacities; the other three pile types have higher
load capacities because of their larger shaft and/or bearing areas. The presence of strain
softening could, however, result in some differences in static load capacity between pile
types 1 and 2 and in somewhat different relative performances of the various pile types.

Static Pile Head Stiffness

Figure 4 shows the computed pile head stiffness of the various pile types for both the
uncemented and cemented soil profiles. As would be expected, the values of pile head

30 r

60 r
S.
ro
20
T3
40
TO
o

QJ 10 77 7.
fU 20
e
7 7/ 7 7/
2 3 4 2 3 4
Pile Type Pile Type

(a) Uncemented Soil Profile (b) Cemented Soil Profile

Figure 3. Comparison of static ultimate load capacity of various pile types.

 Engineered Piles to Improve Cyclic Load Capacity 135

500 r 4000
Z]
400
3000

| 300
2000
in
-o 200
Ol
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1000
£ 100

1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4
Pile Type Pile Type
(a) Uncemenf-ed Soil Profile (b) Cemented Soil Profile

Figure 4. Comparison of pile head stiffness of various pile types.

stiffness in the cemented profile are substantially greater than in the uncemented profile.
The following points may be noted:
The largest value of pile head stiffness are obtained with the variable diameter pile;
the variable stiffness pile also performs well.
The belled piles show a lower stiffness than the other pile types, particularly in the
cemented profile.
It is clear that a considerable increase in pile head stiffness over that for a conventional
uniform pile may be obtained by suitable design of the pile and the use of a variable
diameter and/or stiffness.

Sustainable Load Levels Under Cyclic Loading

Figure 5 shows the computed maximum load level (as a proportion of the static ultimate
load capacity in compression) that can be sustained for 10 cycles of one-way compres-
sive loading. In general, considerably higher load levels can be sustained in the unce-
mented soil than in the cemented soil. The performance of a particular pile type is
greatly influenced by the nature of the soil profile. In the uncementSd profile, both the
standard uniform and the belled pile performed well, while the variable diameter pile
gives the smallest sustainable maximum load level. In contrast, for the cemented profile,
 136 H. G. Poulos and K. B. Sim

1.0 1.0 r

0.8 0.8
OJ

OJ

0.6 0.6
O

I 0.4 0.4
X
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ro

0.2 0.2

1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5
Pile Type Pile Type
(a) Uncemented Soil Profile (b) Cemented Soil Profile
Figure 5. Comparison of maximum sustainable load level for various pile types—one-way cyclic
loading {N - 10 cycles).

the variable diameter pile performs very well, whereas some of the other types (in
particular those with bells) can sustain only relatively low maximum load levels.
Corresponding results for symmetrical two-way loading (about zero mean load) are
shown in Figure 6. The characteristics of behavior are similar to those for one-way
loading, but the actual sustainable load levels are significantly smaller than for one-way
loading. As before, the variable stiffness and variable diameter piles perform least well
in the uncemented profile but show the best performance in the cemented profile. Fig-
ures 5 and 6 apply to cases in which no degradation of end-bearing resistance occurs.
Should there be some degradation, the maximum sustainable load level would tend to
decrease, with belled piles being most affected.
The reason for the different performance characteristics may best be appreciated by
examining the distributions of the pile-soil stress under static loading. These are shown
in Figures 7 and 8 for the two profiles. Cyclic degradation of skin friction tends to
commence in the most heavily stressed region of the pile, and the higher the stress
concentration along the pile shaft, the smaller the cyclic load required to initiate degra-
dation. For the uncemented profile (Figure 7), the pile-soil shear stress generally in-
creases with depth because the modulus of the soil increases with depth. The analysis
indicates that the least severe stress concentrations along the pile shaft are experienced in
the belled pile (although there may well be significant stress concentrations below the
bell itself)- Correspondingly, this pile is able to sustain the highest level cyclic loading.
 Engineered Piles to Improve Cyclic Load Capacity 137

The closer the distribution of pile-soil shear stress is to the distribution of limiting skin
friction, the better is the cyclic performance of the pile. It must, however, be stated that
in selecting a pile type for a project (particularly an offshore project), cost considerations
may weigh against the use of a belled pile, even if technically it provides a better option
than other pile types.
For the cemented profile (Figure 8), the soil modulus is constant with depth and the
pile-soil shear stress generally decreases with depth. The variable diameter pile has the
smallest stress concentrations, and its cyclic performance is therefore superior to the
other pile types. From the foregoing theoretical solutions, the major point which
emerges is that the key to design of piles to resist high levels of cyclic loading is to
reduce stress concentrations and attempt to match the shape of the distribution of pile-
soil shear stress with the distribution of pile skin friction. If this is achieved, progressive
cyclic degradation will not occur, but the pile will remain stable until the cyclic load
reaches a level sufficient to initiate degradation. The pile will then fail abruptly in a
"brittle" manner (Poulos 1988a) but at a cyclic load level approaching the static load
Downloaded by [Harry Poulos] at 15:46 18 April 2013

capacity of the pile. At present, such a design process will involve a measure of trial and
error, but the greater the understanding of the load-transfer mechanism by the designer,
the less trial and error will be involved. For example, local pile-soil stresses may be
increased by locally decreasing the pile size or increasing the pile stiffness, and vice
versa.

1.0 r 1.0 r

0.8 0.8
ai
>
CD

0.6 0.6
rv
O
V,

II
0.4

11 I 1
X

0.2 0.2

1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5
Pile Type Pile Type
(a) Uncemented Soil Profile (b) Cemented Soil Profile
Figure 6. Comparison of maximum sustainable load level for various pile types—two-way cyclic
loading (N - 10 cycles).
 138 H. G. Poulos and K. B. Sim

Conclusions
It has been demonstrated that both the static and cyclic performance of offshore piles in
calcareous sediments may be improved by judicious design of the pile. The most effec-
tive design depends on the nature of the soil profile. In an uncemented profile, piles with
a bell show a relatively high level of resistance to cyclic degradation, although their
static stiffness may be less than that of other pile types. In a cemented profile, piles with
a variable diameter or stiffness appear to perform better than the other pile types investi-
gated.
In general, the cyclic performance of a pile may be improved by adjusting its
diameter or stiffness so as to reduce stress concentrations. The maximum resistance to
cyclic load can be obtained by matching the "elastic" distribution of pile-soil shear
stress to the distribution of pile skin friction. At present, this design process must rely to
some extent on trial and error.
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Dimensionless Pile-Soil Shear Stress xirdL/P

0 0.50 1.0 1.50 2.0

E
sz
CL.
<U
Q

Figure 7. Elastic distributions of pile-soil shear stress along shaft—uncemented soil profile.
 Engineered Piles to Improve Cyclic Load Capacity 139

Dimensionless Pile-Soil Shear Stress xndL/P

1 2 3 4 5
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a.
O

Figure 8. Elastic distributions of pile-soil shear stress along shaft—cemented soil profile.

Acknowledgments
The work described in this article forms part of a project on the mechanics of calcareous
sediments, which is supported by a grant from the Australian Research Council. The
second author was supported by a scholarship provided by the Civil and Mining Engi-
neering Foundation of the University of Sydney.

References
Deane R., W. Schrier, and A. F. Williams. 1988. Development and implementation of grouted
section tests. Proceedings, International Conference on Calcareous Sediments, Perth, Vol. 2.
Rotterdam: A. A. Balkema.
Hewitt, C. M. 1988. Cyclic response of offshore pile groups. Ph.D. thesis, University of Sydney,
Australia.
Matlock, H., and C. C. Foo. 1980. Axial analysis of pile using a hysteretic and degrading soil
model. Proceedings, International Conference on Numerical Methods in Offshore Piling, pp.
165-185. London: Institution of Civil Engineers.
Nauroy, J. F. and P. Le Tirant. 1985. Driven piles and drilled and grouted piles in calcareous
sands. Proc. 17th Offshore Technology Conference, Houston, Paper OTC 4850, pp. 83-91.
Poulos, H. G. 1988. Cyclic stability diagram for axially loaded piles. Journal of Geotechnical
Engineering, ASCE 114(8):877-895.
 140 . H. G. Poulos and K. B. Sim

Poulos, H. G. 1988b. The mechanics of calcareous sediments. John Jaeger Memorial lecture,
Australian Geomechanics, special edition, pp. 8-41, Australian Geomechanics Society.
Poulos, H G., and C. Y. Lee. 1988. Model tests on grouted piles in calcareous sediments. Pro-
ceedings, International Conference on Calcareous Sediments, Perth, Vol. 1, pp. 225-260,
Rotterdam: A. A. Balkema.

Correspondence should be sent to H. G. Poulos.

Received: April 3, 1990; accepted: November 25, 1990.
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