DEEP FOUNDATIONS

Lesson 09 - Topic 4
Drilled Shafts
Learning Outcomes

g At
the end of this session, the
participant will be able to:
- Contrast driven piles and drilled shafts
- Compare mobilization of base (tip) and
side (shaft) resistance
- Describe drilled shaft construction
processes
- Discuss the need for quality control for
drilled shaft construction
Definitions
Figure 9-56
Driven Piles vs Drilled Shafts

g Drilledshaft is installed in a drilled

hole, unlike the driven pile
g Wet concrete is placed in the drilled
hole and cures directly against the soil
forming the walls of the borehole
- Side-support (casing and/or slurry) may be
necessary for stabilization of the open
hole and may be left in place
g Installation
method and equipment
varies with the subsurface conditions
Advantages of Drilled Shafts

g Construction equipment is mobile and

construction can proceed rapidly
g Excavated geomaterials can be
examined
g For end-bearing situations, the soil
beneath the tip may be examined or
probed for weaker materials
g Changes in shaft size may be made
during construction
Advantages of Drilled Shafts

g Heave and settlement at the ground is

normally small
g Personnel, equipment and materials for
construction are readily available
g Noise and vibration level from the
equipment is less than other forms of
construction for deep foundations (e.g.,
driven piles)
Advantages of Drilled Shafts

g Applicable to a wide variety of

subsurface conditions, e.g., can be
constructed through cobbles and for
many feet into hard rock as well as
frozen ground
g Use of a large single drilled shaft
(without pile cap) is possible
g Extensive data bases documenting
load-transfer information are available
Advantages of Drilled Shafts

g Smaller footprint than a footing and can

thus be constructed near railroad,
existing structures and in constricted
areas
g Shafts may be more economical than
spread footing, particularly when the
foundation support layer is deeper than
10-ft below the ground or at water
crossings
Special Considerations for
Drilled Shafts
g Construction procedures are critical to
the quality of the drilled shaft
g Knowledgeable inspection is required
g Not normally used in deep deposits of
soft clay or in situations where artesian
pressures exist
g Static load tests to verify ultimate
capacity of large diameter shafts are
very costly
Effect of Subsurface Conditions
on Drilled Shafts
g Caving soils
- Temporary casing or other side support
g Flowing groundwater
- Leaching of concrete
- Use of slurry
g Artesian water conditions
- Could cause collapse of the shaft
excavation
g Cobbles and boulders
- Sometimes require special tools
Effect of Subsurface Conditions
on Drilled Shafts
g Presence of existing foundations and
structures
- Loss of ground volume into the exacation
g Landfill material that cannot be excavated
- e.g., an old car body
g Rock
- Specialized drilling tools
g Weak stratum below base of shaft
- May need to extend shaft through the weaker
layer
Estimating Ultimate Axial
Capacity of Shafts in Soils
g Ultimate capacity, Qult, in compression

Qult = QS + QT W

g Ultimate capacity, Qult, in uplift

Qult 0.7QS + W
Geotechnical Allowable Shaft
Load, Qall
Qall = Qult/ FS

g FS is the factor of safety

g Usually FS = 2.5 assuming a normal
level of field quality control during shaft
construction. Normal is based on the
minimum recommendations of FHWA
g If a static load test is performed, FS=2.0
may be used
Computation of Geotechnical
Axial Capacity
g Cohesive soils
- Total stress for undrained conditions
Similar to Tomlinson method for driven piles
- Effective stress for drained conditions
g Cohesionless soils
- Effective stress method for drained
loading conditions
Cohesive soils Side Resistance

g Side resistance (Eq. 9-36)

N
QS = D iS ui z i
i =1

g is the adhesion factor as follows:

= 0.55 for S u p a 1.5
= 0.55 0.1(S u p a 1.5) for 1.5 S u p a 2.5

g Ultimate unit side load transfer

fsi = i Sui
Non-contributing zones
Side Figure 9-58
Resistance
Mobilization
in Cohesive
Soils
Cohesive soils Tip Resistance

g Tip resistance (Eq. 9-39)

QT = qT AT = NcsutAt

g is the adhesion factor as follows:

Nc = 6.0[1+0.2(z/D)]; Nc 9
Unit Tip Resistance in Cohesive
Soils

qTR = (2.5/[aD/12 + 2.5b]) qT

where D is the diameter of shaft in inches,

a = 0.0071 + 0.0021 (z/D) with a 0.015, and
b = 0.45(sut)0.5 with 0.5 b 1.5
Tip
Resistance
Mobilization Figure 9-59

in Cohesive
Soils
Cohesionless soils Side
Resistance
g Side resistance (Eq. 9-44)
N
QS = D z i i z i
/
i
i =1

g is the adhesion factor as follows:

where: i = 1.5 0.135 z i with 1.2 > i > 0.25
g Ultimate unit side load transfer (4 ksf)
/
fsi = i vi
Side Resistance Mobilization in
Cohesionless Soils
Figure 9-60
Cohesionless soils Tip
Resistance
g Tip resistance (Eq. 9-47)
QT = qT AT
For N60 75: qT = 1.2N60 in ksf
For N60 > 75: qT = 90 ksf
g Reduced tip resistance for large size
shafts (D is shaft diameter in inches)
qTR = [50/(12D)] qT
Tip Figure 9-61
Resistance
Mobilization
in
Cohesionless
Soils
Axial Shaft Capacity in Layered
Soils
g Divide subsurface profile into layers
g In each layer use the appropriate
method
g Sum the resistances from each layer
Group Action, Group Settlement,
Downdrag and Lateral Loads
g Similar to driven piles
g Refer to FHWA (1999) publication for
guidance
Example 9-5
g UsingFS=2.5, size a shaft for resisting
170 tons of vertical design load
N60-values

N60 = 11

N60 = 14

N60 = 14
N60 = 22

N60 = 12

N60 = 19
N60 = 21
N60 = 37
Example 9-5
g FS=2.5
g Ultimate axial load = (2.5)(170) = 425 tons
g Assume a 3-ft diameter straight shaft
g Thus, circumference = d = 9.42-ft
g Assume a shaft length of 60-ft
g Use formulation as follows
N
QS = D z i i z i
/
i
i =1

where: i = 1.5 0.135 z i with 1.2 > i > 0.25

Example 9-5

g Compute side resistance with depth

Depth Surface Area Avg effective vertical QS
Interval, per depth (overburden) stress, i = 1.5 0.135 z i Tons
z, ft interval, /zi, tsf
with 1.2 > i > 0.25
z()(D), ft2
04 37.7 0.115 1.20 5.20
4 30 245.0 0.572 0.94 131.70
30 60 282.7 1.308 0.59 218.20
QS 355.10
Example 9-5

g Compute tip resistance

g At 60-ft, N60 = 21
g qT = 1.2 N60 = 25.2 ksf = 12.6 tsf
g Tip area, AT = 7.07 sq. ft.
g QT = qT AT = 7.07(12.6) = 89.1 tons

g Total axial resistance, Qult = QS + QT

g Qult = 355.1 tons + 89.1 tons = 440 tons
g Okay
Example 9-6

N60 = 20

N60 = 25

N60 = 50
Axial Capacity in Rocks

g Side resistance (Eq. 9-50, 9-51)

Q SR = D R L R q SR

q SR = 0.65 E p a (q u p a )0.5 < 0.65p a (f c p a )0.5

g Useinformation in Chapter 5 to
evaluate the elastic modulus of rock
mass
Axial Capacity in Rocks

g Tip resistance (Eq. 9-52, 9-53)

Q TR = A T q TR
qTR = 2.5 qu
Intermediate GeoMaterials
(IGMs)
g Cohesive IGM
- Su value of 2.5 to 25 tsf
g Cohesionless IGM
- N60 values > 50 blows/ft

g Referto FHWA (1999) publication for

further information and design
procedures for shafts in IGMs
Construction Methods

g Drymethod
g Wet method
g Casing method

g Cleaning of the shaft excavation is the

most important step in construction of
drilled shafts
Dry Method

Drill Clean Position Place

Cage Concrete
Wet Method

Drill Slurry Clean Position Place

Cage Concrete
Casing Method

Drill Case Clean Position Place

Cage Concrete
Effect of Shaft Cleaning During
Construction
Quality Assurance and Integrity
Testing
g Drilled shafts are manufactured at the
site
g Often anomalies develop during
construction
g An anomaly is deviation from an
assumed geometry of the shaft and/or
shaft properties (e.g., homogeneity)

g NHI 132070 2.5-day course

Types of Anomalies in Drilled
Shaft
g Necking
g Bulbing
g Soft-bottom
g Voids or soil intrusions
g Poor quality concrete
g Debonding
g Lack of concrete cover
over reinforcement
g Honey-combing
Non Destructive Tests (NDTs) for
Detection of Anomalies
g NDTs are geophysical tests
g External
- Sonic echo
- Impulse response
- Ultra-seismic
g Internal
- Crosshole Sonic Logging (CSL)
- Gamma Density Logging (GDL)
- CSL Tomography (CSLT)
- Perimeter Sonic Logging (PSL)
- Neutron Moisture Logging (NML)
Crosshole
Sonic
Logging
Gamma
Density
Logging
Load Testing of Drilled Shafts

g Static Load Tests

- Similar to driven piles
- Osterberg Load Cell test
g Statnamic test

g Mustperform caliper logging and NDTs

before load testing
Osterberg Load Cell Test
Osterberg Cell

g Table 9-11, Table 9-12

 Cage
Centralizers
Instrumentation
(strain gages)
O-cells between
two steel plates

CSL tubes
Statnamic Load Test
Statnamic Load Tests
Learning Outcomes

g At
the end of this session, the
participant will be able to:
- Contrast driven piles and drilled shafts
- Compare mobilization of base (tip) and
side (shaft) resistance
- Describe drilled shaft construction
processes
- Discuss the need for quality control for
drilled shaft construction
Any Questions?

THE ROAD TO
UNDERSTANDING
SOILS
AND
FOUNDATIONS
Inspector Qualification Courses