Geotechnical Enlli".ering. Vol.

9, 1978

DIAGNOSIS OF PILE CONDITIONt CHIN FUNG KEE*I

SYNOPSIS

This Lecture presents a method by which the structural condition of a pile can be assessed from the load-settlement observations normally takenin a pile load test. A number of case histories are presented of test piles that have been extracted for examination and found to have been damaged. : It is shown that the application of the method for diagnosis of pile condition would have revealed their structural damage without having to extract them for examination.

A theoretical analysis is presented relating load and settlement at the pile head when plastic collapse occurs, How such a type of structural failure can be identified from the normal load-settlement observations is shown.

A method is produced by which the load-settlement relationship of a friction pile of any required length can be predicted from the load-settlement observations of a similar friction pile of known length embedded in the same homogeneous soil.

INTRODUCTION

A standard pile load test is usually carried out to determine one or all of the following;

(1) the load-settlement relationship within the range of the proposed working load;

(2) the proof load which is a certain multiple of the proposed working or design load; and

(3) the ultimate load, that is, the ultimate bearing capacity, in order to verify the value computed by soil mechanics methods.

In this Lecture, it will be shown that from the load-settlement observations normally made during such a load test, the structural condition of the pile can also be appraised, that is, whether the pile is structurally sound, or whether it has been damaged or has buckled during installation or during the load test. This method, by which the structural condition can be diagnosed by merely examining the load-settlement results without having to extract the pile for examination, is based on the stress-strain relationships of the materials of the pile and of the soil in which it is embedded.

t Guest Lecture at The Fifth Southeast Asian Conference on Soil Engineering, Bangkok,

July, 1977. .,

.. Jurutera Konsultant (S.E.A.) Sdn. Bhd., Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

85

CHIN

It has been shown (CHIN, 1970) that the stress-strain relationship of soils in direct compression or in shear, is hyperbolic. The stress-strain relationships of steel and of concrete, the two most common materials used in piles, are however, linear within the normal working ranges of stress. In general, under a compressive load P, applied at the pile head, the elastic compression of the materials of the pile is relatively small as compared to the deformation of the supporting soil. Consequently, the relationship between settlement at the pile head and the load P, will be approximately hyperbolic, viz:-

!!./ P = In!!. + C , (I)

where m and C are constants. A plot of !!./P against an abscissa of L\ will, therefore, produce a fairly linear relationship. For a pile in which the bearing capacity is provided substantially by skin friction, or if the range of the test load is confined well within the value of the ultimate skin friction, a stability plot of t3.jP against an abscissa of !!. will produce a single straight line.

If the soil conditions are such that the bearing capacity of a pile is substantially end-bearing, the stability plot will also be a single straight .line (Fig. 1).

.. o

.-.~. ~~

!!: •.•• w 60

12 <I /. II.

l ·Blows/ft·

e , ...: 0° 10 J4~

, ::; ~ I

.! /th 1 ..

V~StabilllY ptot . J

or 0

o 0,2 0'4 06 In.

n: $ETTl.EMENT AT PIl.E HEJ.D

II

Fig. 1. Stability plot for end bearing pile,

Toe or end resistance in piles requires relatively large displacements to mobilize as compared to that necessary for the full mobilization of skin friction in compression. For example in the case of London clay (WHITAKER et al, 1961), while fun base bearing is not attained until a settlement equal to

86

PILE CON1JITION

Gsome 10 to 15% of the base diameter '2:, has been reached, full shaft adhesion is -;;

mobilized when the settlement is about e:. ! 0.5 % of the shaft diameter. A small '<l initial load acting on the pile head will 6

almost entirely be borne by skin friction. This 'skin friction in compression will 4 substantially be mobilized before toe resistance begins to make appreciable contribution to bearing capacity. Such 2 behaviour wiII in the stability plot manifest itself as shown in Figure 2, 0 I......L.........I_-I-....I._.i..--L.........I--'

(CHIN et al, 1973) as consisting initially 0

of a straight line PQ, the inverse slope

of which gives the ultimate value of the skin friction in compression. This is followed by a second straight line RS which has a higher value of inverse slope. The inverse slope of RS is the ultimate total bearing capacity.

It must be remembered that it is the stress-strain relationship of the soil that is hyperbolic. In a pileload test, however, it is the settlement A at the pile head and not the settlement p of the supporting soil that is being measured. The displacement at the pile head not only reflects the displacement of the soil in which the pile is embedded, but also the deformation p, resulting from the elastic compression of the pile and Pe the deformation of the pile due to any eccentricity in the application of the test load with respect to the longitudinal axis of the pile. However, the magnitudes of p, and Pe are normally small as compared to the deformation P of the soil and a stability plot obtained from a normal load test on a structurally sound pile will yield a good linear relationship with a product-moment correlation coefficientvery close to the value of one (CHIN, 1972).

The measurement of settlement at the pile head, therefore also monitors the structural conditionof the pile, because any abnormal deviation of the plot of !!./P against L\ from a linear relationship will be an indication 9f a lack of soundness of the test pile as a structural member.

- I

-= 50 :. '.\

Q. "

" h"

e Ii

II: SETTLEMENT AT PILE HEAD

Fig. 2. Stability plot-the bearing capacity of pile is skin friction plus end bearing,

PILE STRUCTURAL FAILURE

Failure of a pile as a structural member can be due to a. number of causes.

In the case of a precast reinforced concrete pile, material damage can be the

.87

CHIN

result of poor concrete quality, bad handling and pitching or high driving stresses. High driving stresses result when there is a sudden change in driving resistance. This usually occurs when a pile penetrates a dense formation or meets rock after a relatively soft overlying stratum.

Damage 0/ Pile Joint

Figure 3 shows the stability plot and the load-settlement behaviour of a precast reinforced concrete pile which was damaged when it was being driven through soft alluvium into a relatively hard weathered granite soil. While the load-settlement relationship appears to indicate nothing unusual, the stability plot presents an indisputable picture that aU is not well.

~ ISO o

...

..

Q C IU

l: 100

~

4:

!;(

c 60 «

o

....I

a..

+

zoo

• ...t-""' ...

~ __ ~~ __ ~ ~_J~O

0.2 0·4 O'S

.A: SETTLEMENT AT PILE HEAD

Fig. 3. Stability plot; reinforced concrete pile damaged at joint.

The stability plot is far from the normal linear behaviour of a structurally sound pile as that shown in Figures I or 2. Extraction of this pile showed that there was considerable concrete damage and deformation of the welded connecting steel plates at a joint.

Crushing 0/ Pile Toe

An almost similar Ll-shaped stability plot (Fig. 4) manifests itself in the case of a short 14H x 141-" x 73 lb steel Hvpile which has its toe badly warped when it was being driven into rock.

88

PILE CONDITION
X
3 Load Settlement 200
CI)
z
0
II) ....
0
:;
Ie 0
Q. 4:
.... 0
'<1 Stability Plot ..J
..
Q.
2 100 ~: SETTLEMENT AT PILE HEAD

L-=::c=:::=i:==C::::::l 0

o·e i.n .

o

0·2

0·4

0·6

Fig. 4. Stability plot; steel pile toe badly crushed.

This pile was driven to a penetration of 27 feet below ground level. Over a depth of 20 feet, the soil offered only a small resistance during which the number of blows per foot of penetration varied from 1 to 5 using a Demag 12 hammer. At a penetration of 26 feet the blow count abruptly increased to 45. Thereafter it rapidly increased and at 27 feet, it was 113 when driving was terminated. The set was 0.6 inch for the last 10 blows.

Again, the load-settlement plot appears quite normal but on extraction the pile was found to have been seriously damaged at the toe with the stability plot clearly identifying structural failure.

Plastic Failure

Slender piles driven through soft soils to end bearing on some firm underlying stratum are liable to buckle or bow during heavy driving or during test loading. It is well known that the buckling load is not determined by the length of the pile but by the coefficient of lateral reaction of the soil and the value of the flexural rigidity EI of the pile. In the case of steel H-piles or rail piles, buckling frequently occurs during the process of driving when resistance to penetration of the lower end of the pile is increased. If the embedding

89

:-CHIN

soils are too soft to provide the necessary lateral restraint to the pile shaft, bowing results under each hammer blow. Bowing of the pile increases progressively with further driving which is often unknowingly continued so as to obtain the required set that is stipulated in many piling specifications.

When a steel H-pile which has developed such a large initial curvature is tested, the increasing test load rapidly results in high bending stresses and consequently at the cross-section of maximum bending moment, yielding of the extreme fibres rapidly extends towards the neutral axis of the steel cross-section. The stability problem then rapidly resolves into one involving flexural stresses.

Plastic Failure Analysis

Various stages in the bending of the rectangular cross-section of the flanges are shown in Figure 5. When the cross-section is partially plastic, then

Fig. 5. Various stages leading to plastic collapse.

the energy absorbed in the plastic areas for the two flanges : f~D4 (crosNectio~al area of fibre) (~bre stress) (fibre extensio~)

= f 4 (b.dx) (so) (roxL/D) = 2bDLsoro (1 - n2! ' (2)

where L is the length of the extreme fibre at WhICh the YIeld stress IS So corresponding to a strain roo

The energy absorbed in the elastic areas :

~. r:4 (b.dx) (sox/nD) (roxL/D) = 4 (bDLson2)/3 (3)

The total energy absorbed :

=i',2bDLsoro (3 -n2)/3 ...........•.• (4)

; ·'Let pi be the load and 11' be the corresponding settlement at the pile he~d. Then' .the work done by p" is' equal to. (PII1/)/2. The. work .done by the

90

PILE CONDITION

external load P' is equal to the energy absorbed to form and rotate the elastoplastic hinge; that is :

tP' A' = 2bDLsoro (3 -n2)/3 (5)

When the plastic hi?-ge is completely formed, that is when n =: 0, then:

pi 11' =: 4bDLsoro ••••••••••• (6)

The term 4bDL"Soro is of constant value for a given cross-section and

material; that is : ~

pi A' = C' where C/is a constant.

Equation 7 isa rectangular hyperbola.

Let A' = A + A pi = P-B,

and

AB+C' =: 0

...........•.... (7)

...... (8) ...... (9) . (10)

where A and B are constants. Then Equation 7 becomes :

. . I1jP =: alB + AjB ..•.......... (11)

which is a hyperbola of the same form as that of Equation 1.

Consequently in this type of pile structural failure, the relationship between tllP and tl is also linear. However, the deformations are large as compared to soil deformation and the inverse slope will hence be much smaller than that if such structural failure had not oc-

curred. Consequently such a plastic ~ A.;!~I

collapse can be identified in the stability M

A.

plot. This theoretical analysis is con- ~

firmed by the load-settlement observa- , P V.rouo A GO

tions obtained from load tests on steel, and reinforced concrete piles forwhich plastic collapse was established on .. extraction.

Plastic Collapse of Rail Pile

In Figure 6, the stability plot of I1/P against an abscissa of I:! is made from the load-settlement results on test pile No.2 reported by TING (1971). This was one of the rail piles which was tested to failure. It was driven through undisturbed alluvium of low strength

20

o

I

111ft.

A: ... :TTI..II:I4It:HT A.T PILI HEAD

Fig. 6. Stability plot indicating plastic collapse orrail pile.

91

CHIN

to underlying bed rock and was subsequently extracted and found to have buckled.

It is clear from Figure 6 that the stability plot consists of two straight lines. The inverse slope of the first or initial line is larger than that of the second one. This is the reverse to that for a structurally sound pile as shown in Figure 2 in which the inverse slope of the first line is smaller than that of the second.

In Figure 6, the first straight line of the stability plot reflects the soil response during which the pile behaves as a curved pile marshalling soil capacity of the overlying alluvium until increasing settlement and pile penetration establishes a firm toe resistance on the bedrock. The pile then buckled and the load-settlement observations taken thereafter at the pile head reflects the comparatively larger deformations of plastic collapse of the rail pile.

Plastic Collapse of Pile Shoe,

Another example in which the stability plot can diagnose structural failure of a pile where a normal load-settlement curve is unable to identify such structural weakness, is in the load tests on Piles A and B carried out by BRAND et al (1972).

These two steel piles are extruded steel tubes with a wall thickness of 0.875 inch. The separate steel shoe (Fig. 7) is made of 0.25 inch thick steel plate which has been pressed into a dome shape. It is reinforced by cross members. A steel ring welded to the dome is used as an upstand which slots inside the

. steel tube.

Pile A was driven to a depth of 24.3 m and was SUbjected to a maintained load test to a maximum load of 280 tons. The first straight line PQ of the stability plot (Fig. 7) indicates that the initial loading was being borne by skin friction until at about 120 tons, toe resistance begins to develop producing a significant increase in the inverse slope of the second straight line RS. However, at a test load of about 270 tons, there is a sudden and large reduction in inverse slope resulting in a third straight line TU, indicating that the gradual development of soil capacity was aborted by pile structural failure.

Examination of the structural detail of the pile reveals that the weakness lies in the thin protrusion on which the pile tube bears against the shoe (Fig. 7).

The inverse slope of the linePQ predicts an ultimate skin friction of about 312 tons; that of RS a total ultimate load of 687 tons and that of TU a load of about 362 tons.

92

PILE CONDITION

30

300

~J'

~ r x

<f' o

=

Q 0( a -l

20 ..

Q, ... <I

200

tl" SIQniflccnl SI •• 1 rlnQ

ond becrlnQ h ~

dev.lop.a. JSl ~

p tl"

\ /

Structural

weokno •• of .~oe

100

A: TOP SETTLEMENT

O'------L...-----L-----I __ _.l __ --l.___Jo

o

0-2

0·4

0·6

1-0 In.

Fig. 7. Plastic collapse of pile shoe-Pile A •

The stability plot (Fig. 8) of the load test results on Pile B also clearly shows a similar inability of the pile to harness the greater capacity of the supporting soil owing to .the structural weakness of the pile shoe. The predicted ultimate skin friction is about 319 tons and the potential total supporting capacity

of the soil is about 686 tons. .

Plastic Collapse of Reinforced Concrete Pile

Figure 9 shows the load .... settlement results of-a load test carried out on a 12~ x 12" precast reinforced concrete pile. The pile was driven with a drop hammer 3 tons in weight and after a penetration of 20 feet, the drop was maintained at 2 feet 6 inches. At a penetration of 28 feet, the number of blows per foot of penetration abruptly increased from 4 to 34. Driving was ~ontinued until a total penetration of 30 feet 6 inches. The set was 3/16 inch for the last 10 blows.

93

CHIN

lIOO

10

'"
;;c:
'It 0
s $1 ability Plot l-
to 200
.. oX- ~
Ii. co
" 0(
~ 0
/' PILE SHOE BEGINS ..J
..
R TO FAIL. a.
I Q \ SIGNIFICANT END BEARING
DEVELOPEs.
10 100
Pj A~TOP SETTLEMENT

o

------._----~----_.----~----~ 0

o 0·2 0'4 0'6 0'8 "0 in.

Fig. 8. Plastic collapse of pile shoe-Pile B.

The load-settlement curve would appear to indicate nothing untoward.

On the stability plot, however, there is clear evidence of structural failure. The first straight linePQ indicates that the initial test load was being supported by skin friction and with increasing test load, end bearing became significant as is indicated by the second line RS which has a higher inverse slope than that of PQ, However, with further increase of load the steel reinforcement begins to yield thereby resulting in abrupt increases in settlement measured at the pile head and generating for the third line TU an inverse slope much smaller than that of the previous line RS.

Subsequent extraction of the pile for examination confirmed the correctness of this diagnosis. The pile was found (Fig. 10) to be bent; the concrete on the concave side of the bend was completely fractured exposing the steel reinforcement.

94

PILE CONDITION

~ rJ')
J( z
0
Q. I-
..... Stability plot Q.
''''I
'0 U 100 !5

50

o 0

o 0·6 1·0 In.

A:SETTL!MENT AT FILE HEAD

Fig. 9. Load-settlement curve appears normal but stability plot clearly indicates pile damage.

Fig. 10. Damaged R.C. pile being extracted.

Friction Piles in Homogeneous Soils

It has been observed (WmTAKER et al, 1961; PHILCOX, 1962), that though the ultimate skin friction of piles embedded in a given soil increases with depth of embedment, their respective ultimate skin frictional capacities are mobilized at approximately the same settlement. This being the case, the load-settlement curves of two piles of different effective lengths of embedment in the same homogeneous soil would be distinctly separate with the curve of the longer pile appearing higher ina plot ofload against an abscissa of settlement.

It can be shown that the stability plots of two friction piles, in which their ultimate frictional capacities are proportional to their effective lengths of embedment and are mobilized at the same settlement, intersect at a common point on the abscissa.

Let q be the frictional capacity per unit effective length of pile. For a pile of effective length II' the ultimate frictional capacity is equal to 'lq:

= 1 ! m 1 where I ! m 1 is the inverse slope of the stability plot.

95

CHIN

. Therefore the stability plot of L\ / P against an abscissa of L\ has the equahan:

L\! P = L\j f1q + bl •••••••.• " (12)

This line intersects the abscissa at the point (0, - b1f1q).

Similarly it can be shown that the stability plot of a pile of effective length of embedment fz will intersect the abscissa at the point (0, - b2ltq).

At a load ri.q, (where r < I), close to the ultimate skin friction, the settlement is equal to:

b1 / (1/ rl1q - 1/1Iq) = Ilb1qr / (1 - r)

Similarly for a pile of effective length of embedment /z, at a load rizq close to the ultimate skin friction, the settlement is equal to lzbzqr / (1 - r).

Since these settlements at loads close to their respective ultimate skin frictional capacities are equal, then:

'lb1qr / (1 - r) = i2b2qr / (1 - r)

therefore:

fib! = 12b'i (13)

Since the two stability plots intersect the abscissa at the respective points (0, -bllJq) and (0, -b2Izq) and as lib! is equal to 12b2, the stability plots therefore intersect at the same point on the abscissa.

This finding can be used to determine the equation of the stability plot and hence the load-settlement relationship of a pile of any effective length embedded in the same homogeneous soil, if the load-settlement results of a similar pile of known effective length of embedment are available.

Figure 1 I presents the experimental results of three model steel piles of diameter 0.25 inch which are embedded in depths of 5.25, 9.25 and 14.25 inches in the same uniform remoulded weathered granite clay. Since the load-settlement relationship is hyperbolic, the settlement is infinite when the ultimate load is reached. The settlement at collapse is therefore not easy to identify accurately. Consequently a more finite settlement would be that at some value of load close to the ultimate value, for example, the settlement at 90 % of the ultimate value. At 90 % of their respective ultimate skin frictional capacities, the settlements of the three model piles measured at the pile heads are nearly equal (Table 1).

96

PILE CONDITION

Table 1. Settlements of model piles.

90 % of Ultimate Skin Friction (lb)

0.00293 0.00294 0.00299

Settlement at 90 % of Ultimate Skin Friction (inch)

55.9 39.6 21.3

The load-settlement curves are distinctly separate of one another and the three stability plots intersect at the same point on the abscissa (Fig. 11).

~I

so

20

a 20 40 60xl041n.

4: SETTLEMENT AT PilE HEAD

Fig. 11. Load test results on three model steel piles.

H-PILES FOR TOWER BLOCK

For the 60-storey tower block of a high-rise building complex, Hspiles' of nominal size 14" x 14.5" x 73 lb. of grade SOB steel were prescribed by the consulting engineers who had envisaged that with an average penetration of 180 feet, each pile would provide a working load of 180 tons. However, when the first three piles were load tested, unusually large settlements and permanent sets were registered, despite the respective long penetrations of 199, 270 and 256 feet and their attainment of a good set. Details of the pile driving and load tests on the three test piles A, Band C are given in Table 2.

Soil Profile

The site was an old river course that had been filled over more than fifty years ago. The successive soil strata are as follows:-

91"

ClfIN

Table 2. Pile driving and load tests.

Test Pile A B C
-
Details of Driving
1. Penetration 199 feet 270 feet 256 feet
2. Kobe hammer used K32 K42 to 264' K42
K32 there-
after
3. Final set for last 10 blows 2.45 in. 0.3 in. 0.875 in.
First Load Test
1. Maximum test load 180 tons 180 tons 270 tons
2. Settlement at maximum test load 1.26 in. 1.413 in. 2.43 in.
3. Permanent set 0.29 in. 0.14 in. 0.33 in.
Second Load Test
1. Maximum test load 230 tons 270 tons 360 tons
2. Settlement at maximum test load 2.62 in. 2.275 in. 4.21 in.
3. Permanent set 1.45 in. 0.114 in. 1.51 in.
Third Load Test
1. Maximum test load 360 tons 400 tons
2. Settlement at maximum test load 3.927 in. 5.92 in.
3. Permanent set 0.894 in. 2.92 in.
Fourth Load Test
1. Maximum test load 400 tons
2. Settlement at maximum test load 4.85 in.
3. Permanent set 1.291 in. Stratum I: Ground level to about 10 feet. This layer is mainly loose organic clayey sand.

SPT 0-20

o

Very soft dark grey organic clay

- Sot I orey clay

MMium stiff sandy clay

2 5

6

9 10

Stratum II: 10 feet to about 40 feet below ground level. This layer is soft t;j

~ 50 organic alluvium of recent origin formed :z:

by fluvial deposition. li:

UJ o

Stratum III: 'From 40 feet below ground level. Weathered granite soils underlie the alluvium. They vary from fine sandy clay at the top to dense and coarse sandy clay below.

Figure 12 gives a typical borehole log.

100

Stiff clay with quartz gravel

150

Very denn clayey sand

Structural Inadequacy 200 _

From an examination of the load test Fig. 12. Typical borehole log.

98:

PILE CONDITION

results and ofthe soil data, the following evidence is deduced that the test piles had failed structurally:-

(1) Stability plots characteristic of plastic col/apse. Structural failure is clearly indicated in the stability plot. As is seen in Figure 13 which gives the stability plots of the test piles Band C, the inverse slope of the first line PQ is greater than that of the second line RS. This is characteristic of plastic failure. Plastic collapse of these two piles had occurred at a test load of about 300 tons.

0-008

~t

0·012

P

0'004 0 256 Feet • 270 Feet

o

o 2 4, 6 In.

A: SETTLEMENT A T PILE HEAD

Fig. 13. Stability plots of H-piles B and C.

The H-pile concerned has a moment of inertia of 261.9 in4. about the minor axis and it can be shown that it will buckle unless·the soil in which it is embedded can provide a lateral resistance greater than 38.8 lb/in2. per unit lateral deflection of pile. Neither the soft alluvium nor the loose material of Stratum I could offer such a lateral restraint. In fact the material of Stratum I is so loose that the vibrations set up by the pile driving caused the material surrounding the pile to collapse and resulted in a hole being formed around the pile and extending a few feet deep from the ground surface. Further, the moisture content of the a~lluvium in the upper layers of Stratum II was greater than its liquid limit and was, therefore, inherently unstable. A H-pile driven into such soil conditions would therefore tend to buckle or bow as soon as sufficient toe resistance had developed with the pile toe penetrating into the very stiff weathered granite soils below. TheH-piles were

99;

CHIN

lengthened in lengths of 40 feet. Such a pile would, under the soil conditions prevailing at the site, be most susceptible to instability or to bowing when driving commenced after a new length has been added to produce some 80 feet of slender column with practically no effective lateral restraint - with the pile meeting the stiff resistance of the weathered granite at its lower end and at the top end being pounded by a diesel hammer of weight 4.2 metric tons with an energy rating of some 90,000 ft. lb. per blow.

C/I Z o I-

a.. o

I-

ILl

= 300 II..

I-

'"

C

'" o

.....

II..

o

o 2 4 6 In.

A:SETTLEMENT AT PILE HEAD

Fig. 14. Coalescence of load-settlement plots; H-piles A, B, and C.

(2) Coalescence of load-settlement plots. If the load-settlement observations for the three piles are plotted on the same figure as shown in Figure 14, it will be seen that thethree plots almost coalesce over the part of the plots (XYZ in' Fig. 1~), at which- the test loads are being increased. These sections of the three plots should not be coincident but should distinctly be separate of one and another for structurally sound piles which are embedded in different lengths in the same soilformation in which skin friction remains constant or increases. with depth.

Engineering Requirements of New Pile

Having identified the weaknesses of the piling system prescribed by the consulting engineers, the next step is to design a pile that would be the most economical and structurally suitable for the soil conditions prevailing at the site. From the diagnosis, it is apparent that the pile must meet the following main engineering requirements:

109

PILE CONDITION

(1) it must have a coefficient of lateral restraint that is small enough to prevent its buckling in the soft and loose soils of Strata I and II; (2) its flexural rigidity must be such that bowing and pile flutter are minimised;

(3) it must have a displacement capacity capable of more effective mobilization of the supporting capacity of the soils in Strata I and II than the steel If-pile; and

(4) it must present a concrete-soil interface rather thana steel-soil interface as the former will more rapidly mobilize the supporting capacity of the soils in Stratum II. Though the sensitivity of these alluvial soils is not greater than 4, there is considerable loss of supporting capacity due to the pile driving process. This loss is more significant in the case of piles with enlarged bases where the soil upheaval would clearly be more serious and extensive. This loss is not so much the result of the remoulding process but is due to the formation of a waterfilled gap between the pile faces and the soil. This water layer prevents the development of adhesion over a short or long period depending on the characteristics of the clay and the materials of the pile. Dry concrete surfaces will more readily absorb than steel surfaces, the moisture that has been squeezed out from the-soils, thereby more quickly closing up this water interface as the soil reconsolidates around the pile. In the case of concrete piles. it will be noticed that impact resistance increases abruptly when driving is resumed after an interruption. This increase is due to the absorption of moisture from the water interface by the concrete surfaces. This distinct increase in driving resistance, however, is maintained for only a short length of penetration after which the emergence of further moisture from the soil arising from the driving process will re-establish the water interface and the driving resistance returns to the value before driving was interrupted.

Proposals for a Better Pile

On" the basis of the above diagnosis, the following types of pile were considered as being suitable for the soil conditions at the site.

(1) 16" x 16" reinforced concrete pile. A 16" x 16" precast reinforced concrete pile presents a coefficient of lateral reaction of as low as 2.3 Ib./in2 and would be the most economical pile to use for the soil conditions at the site.

(2) Composite pile. However, it appeared that there were contractual commitments which would not permit the use of reinforced concrete piles as 101

CHIN

consideration had to be given to utilising a composite pile which would incorporate the use of the H steel sections. Such a composite pile could be formed either:

(i) by encasing the H steel section in concrete to an overall size of 16N x 16" suitably provided with links and reinforcement and end plates such that composite behaviour was attained both during driving and during service, or

(ii) by filling up the two spaces of the II cross-section between the web and the flanges with concrete to form a composite section of about 14" by 14" with suitable shear links and plates and end plates welded to the H section to ensure complete composite behaviour. It would be smaller pile than (i) but its production would not require formwork,

The composite pile of type 2(U) was found to be the cheaper of the two an~ a test pile was a:cordingly fabricated and cast. It was driven to a penetraion of 198 feet WhICh was about the same depth of penetration as Test Pile A_ so that the performance of the original H pile and that of the composite pile could be compared on an equitable basis of length.

16"]( lSuRc PU.

SOO pe n, HI8'

Composite pile penelratlon:19a' /\

/ I tt3 / I

/ /

/ / _._',

/ j'/' i

~ / II H Pile /

_J 100 '/,/'/ penetration

Q.. I, 199'

V

~ 400 o

I-

..

o

~ 300 ::t

Q..

I- 200 -e

./

o

.0 1

9-045t-1<45'--l J.:SETTL.EMENT AT PIL.E

2

. Fig. 15. Comparative load-settlement relationships for 16" x 16" reinforced concrete, composite and H steel piles.

102

3

This composite pile was tested 7 days after it was driven. At the second cycle of the CRP test, the settlement at a load of 440 tons was 1. 57 inches. The permanent set was only 0.045 inch when the load was brought back to zero. At a load of 180 tons the settlement at the pile head was 0.45 inch as compared to 1.~6 inches in the case of the H-pile (Test Pile A). The test results showed that the working load of the composite pile could be upgraded to 240 tons thereby reducing the total number of piles to two-thirds of the original total number.

If a 16" x 16" precast reinforced concrete pile of the same depth of penetration were> used, the settlement would be even smaller-about 0.12 inch at a load of 180 tons. The superiority of the 16" x 16'" reinforced concrete pile or the composite pile over the H steel

HEAD

PILE CONDITION

pile for the soil conditions at the site concerned is clearly seen from Figure 15 in which the load-settlement behaviour of these three types of piles are plotted for comparison. The load-settlement relationship of the reinforced concrete pile of 198 feet penetration was computed from the load-settlement

, test results of a similar pile of shorter penetration.

CONCLUSIONS

The strength of a piled foundation depends not only on the supporting . capacity of the soil in which the piles are founded but also on the structural capacity of the piles. The piles must be of such structural design that they can fully marshall the supporting capacity of the soil.

A method has been presented by which the structural condition of a test pile can be determined from the load-settlement observations normally made in a load test. Though the load-settlement plot inay not indicate anything unusual, the stability plot can reveal pile structural integrity. Departure from a linear relationship in the stability plot is a manifestation of pile damage. The successive straight lines of the stability plot should have increasing inverse slopes for a structurally sound pile. If the inverse slope of one straight ~ine is greater than that of the line that follows, plastic collapse is indicated.

As structural collapse may occur well before the capacity of the supporting soil is mobilized, it is necessary that the test load should be extended to a reasonable value beyond the proposed working load. Where there is likelihood of pile damage, the test load should not be reduced by taking advantage of the method of predicting the soil collapse load by extrapolating from the initial low values of the test loading.

Since the stability plot can be made from the normal observations made in a pile loading test, diagnosis of the pile condition can be made expeditiously. Expeditiousness is necessary and important in actual practice, especially as the piling contractor, having taken possession of the site has already put into gear the delivery of the materials and the equipment and the works programme in accordance with the piling system which the test piles have proven to be unsuitable and inadequate. Under the normal conditions of most piling contracts, the diagnosis and the need to prove, by fabricating the new pile and load testing it, to the consulting engineers that the new prescription is in fact the cure, have all to be completed within a very limited time. Under such circumstances, the method presented in this Lecture by which the load-settlement relationship for a pile of any required length of effective embedment can be predicted. can prove most useful.

103

CHIN REFERENCES

BRAND, E.W. and APICHAI Jl,JTA-SIRIVONGSE (1972), Performance of Some Driven and Cast-in-Situ Piles in Bangkok Clay, Research Report No. 20, Asian Institute of Technology, Bangkok.

CHIN, F.K. (I970), Estimation of the Ultimate Load of Piles from Tests not Carried to Failure, Proceedings of the Second Southeast Asiall Conference OIl Soil Engineering, Singapore, pp. 81·90.

CHIN, F.K. (1972), The Inverse Slope as a Prediction of Ultimate Bearing Capacity of Piles, Proceedings of the Third Southeast Asian Conference 011 Soil Engineering, Hong Kong, pp. 83·91.

CHIN, F.K. and VAIL, A.J. (1973), Behaviour of Piles in Alluvium, Proceedings of the Eighth International Conference 011 Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineerillg, Moscow, Vol. 2.1, pp. 47-52.

PHILCOX, K.T. (1962), Some Recent Developments in the Design of High Buildings in Hong Kong, The Structural Engineer, Vol. II, No.3, pp. 303-323.

TING, W.H. (1971), A Case History of the Buckling of Steel Rail Piles in Soft Ground, Proceedings of the Fourth Asian Regional Conference on Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering, Bangkok, Vol. 2, pp, 179-181.

WHITAKER, T. and. COOKE, R.W. (1961), Experiments on Model Piles with Enlarged Bases, Geotechnique, Vol. I, pp. 1-13.

104

Geotechnical Engineering, Vol. 9, 1978

THE BEHAVIOUR OF ROCKFILL DAMSt

A.D.M. PENMAN*

SYNOPSIS

The paper points out the growing importance of rockfill dams in relation to other types of dams and discusses two aspects of them: the behaviour of the rockfill itself and that of the water retaining element.

The presence of fines in rockfill, at one time regarded as bad, is now recognised as being a desirable feature. They reduce contact stress and minimise relative movement between the larger rock pieces thereby limiting settlement and improving shear strength of the rockfill, Fines also help construction plant, but they must not be allowed to reduce the permeability of the rockfill below 10-3 cm/sec. Deformationproperties of the rockfills from three dams have been measured by a large cedometer and field behaviour measured by comprehensive instrumentation.

Narrow cores may become partiy supported by the rockfill by silo action so that the total stress in them falls to a value lower than reservoir pressure, allowing hydraulic fractuer to occur. It is suggested that to avoid this, cores should be placed wet enough to ensure an end of construction pore pressure equal to the reservoir pressure. Field measurements have shown negligible downstream movement of wet cores during first filling of the reservoirs, which indicates that the horizontal pressures from the core on the rockfill exceeded the horizontal pressures imposed by the reservoir water.

To control core placement conditions it may be better to specify a required shear strength rather than a placement water content.

INTRODUCfION

All dam sites are individuals. It is very difficuit to find two that can be called the same and so each dam must be individually designed. In general arch dams require the best sites because they rely on the competence and strength of the rock abutments to carry their springing thrusts: Malpasset is the example of what happens when the rock fails.

Buttress dams are less demanding of their foundations, gravity dams even less so, but the dam that can be used anywhere is the embankment dam and perhaps supreme amongst embankment dams is the rockfill dam. With the ever increasing size of excavating, transporting and placing machines the volume of fill that can be handled by one man is increasing and hence its cost

+Guest Lecture at the Fifth Southeast Asian Conference on Soil Engineering, Bangkok,

1977. .

"Building Research Station, Watford, Herts, England.

II)':;: