Simplified Calculation Method and 3D Numerical Analysis for Pile Group Under Uplift Loading

Pile foundations of ports, mooring systems for ocean surface or submerged platforms are subjected to amount of uplift loading, and prediction of the uplift capacity is one of the most important subjects in structure designs. The paper pertains to the development of a simplified theoretical method on prediction of the uplift capacity of pile group embedded in clay assuming a composite failure surface （inverted and tnmcated circular pyramidal and cylindrical sttrface）. Various pile and soil parameters such as the arrangement of pile group, pile spacing, length, diameter of the pile and the soil properties such as unit weight, angle of internal friction and the pile-soil interface friction angle, which have direct influence on the uplift capacity of the pile group, are incorporated in the analysis. A 3D numerical model is built by FLAC3D to analyze the pile group under uplift loading for comparison, and various effect factors, such as length to diameter ratio, pile spacing and pile numbers are considered. The predicted values of uplift capacity and failure surface of pile group with different length to diameter ratio, pile spacing and soil properties are then compared with numerical analysis results and tleld test results. The predictions are found to be in good agreement with numerical analysis and measured values, which validate the correctness of the developed method. It is also found that the uplift capacity is significantly influenced by the pile-soil friction coefficient, soil shear strength, etc.

Characteristic Test Study on Bearing Capacity of Suction Caisson Foundation Under Vertical Load

Suction caisson foundations are often subjected to vertical uplift loads,but there are still no wide and spread engineering specifications on design and calculation method for uplift bearing capacity of suction caisson foundation.So it is important to establish an uplift failure criterion.In order to study the uplift bearing mechanism and failure mode of suction caisson foundation,a series of model tests were carried out considering the effects of aspect ratio,soil permeability and loading mode.Test results indicate that the residual negative pressure at the top of caisson is beneficial to enhance uplift bearing capacity.The smaller the permeability coefficient is,the higher the residual negative pressure will be.And the residual negative pressure is approximately equal to the water head that causes seepage in the caisson.When the load reaches the ultimate bearing capacity,both the top and bottom negative pressures are smaller than Su and both the top and bottom reverse bearing capacity factors are smaller than 1.0 in soft clay.Combined the uplift bearing characteristics of caisson in sandy soil and soft clay,the bearing capacity composition and the calculation method are proposed.It can provide a reference for the engineering design of suction caisson foundation under vertical load.

Monotonic uplift behavior of anchored pier foundations in soil overlying rock

Rock-embedded foundations with good uplift and bearing capacity are often used in mountains or hilly areas.However,there are soil layers with a certain thickness on the rocks in these mountainous areas,and the utilization of those soil layers is a problem worthy of attention in foundation construction.Considering construction-and cost-related factors,traditional single-form foundations built on such sites often cannot provide sufficient resistance against uplift.Therefore,an anchored pier foundation composed of anchors and belled piers,specifically constructed for such conditions,can be invaluable in practice.This paper introduces an experimental and analytical study to investigate the uplift capacity and the uplift mobilization coefficients(UMCs)of the anchored pier foundation.In this study,three in-situ monotonic pullout tests were carried out to analyze the load–displacement characteristics,axial force distribution,load transfer mechanism,and failure mechanism.A hyperbolic model is used to fit the load–displacement curves and to reveal the asynchrony of the ultimate limit states(ULSs)of the anchor group and the belled pier.Based on the results,the uplift capacity can be calculated by the UMCs and the anchor group and pier uplift capacities.Finally,combined with the estimation of the deformation modulus of the soil and rock,the verification calculation of the uplift capacity and UMC was carried out on the test results from different anchored pier foundations.

Two-Dimensional Large Deformation Finite Element Analysisfor the Pulling-up of Plate Anchor

Based on mesh regeneration and stress interpolation from an old mesh to a new one, a large deformation finite element model is developed for the study of the behaviour of circular plate anchors subjected to uplift loading. For the deterruination of the distributions of stress components across a clay foundation, the Recovery by Equilibrium in Patches is extended to plastic analyses. ABAQUS, a commercial finite element package, is customized and linked into our program so as to keep automatic and efficient running of large deformation calculation. The quality of stress interpolation is testified by evaluations of Tresca stress and nodal reaction forces. The complete pulling-up processes of plate anchors buried in homogeneous clay arc simulated, and typical pulling force-displacement responses of a deep anchor and a shallow anchor are compared. Different from the results of previous studies, large deformation analysis is of the capability of estimating the breakaway between the anchor bottom and soils. For deep anchors, the variation of mobilized uplift resistance with anchor settlement is composed of three stages, and the initial buried depths of anchors affect the separation embedment slightly. The uplift bearing capacity of deep anchors is usually higher than that of shallow anchors.

Bearing and uplift capacities of under-reamed piles in soft clay underlaid by stiff clay using lower-bound finite element limit analysis

Ensuring a safe foundation design in soft clay is always a challenging task to engineers.In the present study,the effectiveness of under-reamed piles in soft clay underlaid by stiff clay is numerically studied using the lower-bound finite element limit analysis(LB FELA).The bearing and uplift capacities of under-reamed piles are estimated through non-dimensional factors N_(cul)and Fcul,respectively.These factors increased remarkably and marginally compared to N_(cul)and Fcul of the piles without bulbs when the bulb is placed in stiff and soft clay,respectively.For a given ratio of undrained cohesion of stiff to soft clay(c_(2)/c_(1)),the factors N_(cul)and Fcul moderately increased with the increase in the length-to-shaft-diameter ratio(Lu/D)and adhesion factors in soft clay(α_(s1))and stiff clay(αs2).The variation of radial stress along the pile-soil interface,distribution of axial force in the under-reamed piles,and state of plastic shear failure in the soil are also studied under axial compression and tension.The results of this study are expected to be useful for the estimation of the bearing and uplift capacities of under-reamed piles in uniform clay and soft clay underlaid by stiff clay.