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Flexural response of piles under liquefied soil conditions

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Abstract

The paper pertains to the development of a generalized procedure to analyze and predict the flexural behavior of axially and laterally loaded pile foundations under liquefied soil conditions. Pseudo-static analysis has been carried out taking into consideration the combined effect of axial load and lateral load. Based on the available literature effect of degradation on the modulus of subgrade reaction due to soil liquefaction has been incorporated in the analysis. The developed program was calibrated and validated by comparing the predicted behavior of the pile with theoretical and experimental results reported in literature. The predicted behavior has been found to be in excellent to very good agreement with the theoretical and observed values in the field, respectively. The present study highlights the importance of considering the axial load from the superstructure along with the inertia forces from the superstructure and the kinematic forces from the liquefied soil in the design of pile foundations in liquefiable areas. The significance of densification of the soil in the liquefiable areas and presence of an adequate top non-liquefied soil cover causing appreciable reduction in deflection and bending moment experienced by the piles has been highlighted.

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Abbreviations

a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h :

Coefficients of boundary conditions;

A :

Stiffness matrix

B :

Force vector

C :

Modified displacement coefficient matrix

D :

Diameter of the pile

E p :

Modulus of elasticity of the pile

E s :

Modulus of elasticity of the soil

E 0 :

Modulus of deformation of the soil

F :

Displacement coefficient matrix

{g}:

Ground displacement vector

g max :

Maximum possible permanent horizontal ground displacement of the liquefied soil

g rs :

Permanent horizontal displacement of the level ground far away from the water front

g w :

Displacement of the quay wall

g x :

Horizontal ground displacement at a distance x from the waterfront

g (z, x) :

Permanent horizontal ground displacement profile with depth, z at a distance, x from the waterfront

g 0 :

Permanent horizontal ground displacement at the waterfront

G :

Modification factor

H :

Horizontal load factor

H T :

Horizontal load applied at the pile top

I p :

Moment of inertia of the pile

J :

Coefficient matrix

k :

Matrix for the modulus of subgrade reaction

k h :

Modulus of subgrade reaction

k hn :

Modulus of subgrade reaction for non-liquefied soils

K :

Stiffness factor

L :

Length of the pile

L s :

Affected distance of lateral spreading

L x :

Location factor

L 1 :

Thickness of the top non-liquefiable soil cover

L 2 :

Thickness of the liquefiable layer

L 3 :

Length of pile embedded into the bottom non-liquefiable layer

L/D :

Length to diameter ratio

M :

Moment factor

M D :

Developed bending moment

M T :

Moment applied at the pile top

M′:

Non-dimensional bending moment coefficient

M*:

Maximum non-dimensional bending moment coefficient

n + 1:

Number of elements

N :

Standard penetration test value

N a :

Axial load distribution matrix

O :

Applied force vector

p :

Soil pressure

P :

Axial load applied at the pile top

P z :

Axial load variation with depth z

Q :

Soil modulus to soil strength ratio

r :

Non-liquefied depth factor

R :

Pile flexibility factor

s :

Liquefied depth factor

sl:

Gradient of the surface topography

S f :

Stiffness degradation parameter

S u :

Un-drained strength of the soil

t :

Embedded depth factor

T :

Lateral soil force vector

U :

Matrix for the equilibrium conditions

V :

Vertical load factor

x :

Distance of the location of the pile from the waterfront

y :

Deflection of the pile

y r :

Relative displacement of the pile and the soil

y 1 :

Reference value for y r

Y :

Non-dimensional deflection coefficient

Y*:

Maximum non-dimensional deflection coefficient

z :

Depth

Z :

Non-dimensional depth coefficient

β:

Axial load variation coefficient

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Civil Engineering Department, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Kanpur, 208016, India

    R. S. Meera, K. Shanker & P. K. Basudhar

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  1. R. S. Meera
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  2. K. Shanker
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  3. P. K. Basudhar
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Correspondence to P. K. Basudhar.

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Meera, R.S., Shanker, K. & Basudhar, P.K. Flexural response of piles under liquefied soil conditions. Geotech Geol Eng 25, 409–422 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10706-006-9118-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10706-006-9118-z

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