Pile Foundations

Building Construction Rishad Netarwala| 22

Typically, a pile is a column inserted in the ground to transmit structural load to a lower level of subsoil. Generally used in the case of unsuitable upper regions of subsoil. This may be a result of: 1. Low bearing capacity of the subsoil. 2. Heavy point loads of the structure exceeding the bearing capacity. 3. Presence of highly compressible soils near the surface such as filled ground and underlying peat strata. 4. Subsoils such as clay which may be capable of moisture movement or plastic failure. 5. High water table.

Design
As with other types of foundations, the purpose of a pile foundations is: 1. to transmit a foundation load to a solid ground. 2. to resist vertical, lateral and uplift load A structure can be founded on piles if the soil immediately beneath its base does not have adequate bearing capacity. If the results of site investigation show that the shallow soil is unstable and weak or if the magnitude of the estimated settlement is not acceptable a pile foundation may become considered. Further, a cost estimate may indicate that a pile foundation may be cheaper than any other compared ground improvement costs. In the cases of heavy constructions, it is likely that the bearing capacity of the shallow soil will not be satisfactory, and the construction should be built on pile foundations. Piles can also be used in normal ground conditions to resist horizontal loads. Piles are a convenient method of foundation for works over water, such as jetties or bridge piers.

Classification of Piles
Piles maybe classified by the way in which they transmit their loads to the subsoils or by the way they are formed. Pile may transfer their loads to a lower level by: 1. End bearing: shafts act as columns carrying the loads through the overlaying weak subsoils to firm strata into which the pile toe has penetrated. 2. Friction: any foundation imposes on the ground a pressure which spreads out to form a bulb of pressure. If a suitable load bearing strata cannot be found at an acceptable level, particularly in stiff clay soils, it is possible to use a pile to carry this bulb of pressure to a lower level of higher bearing capacity. This pile is mainly supported by the adhesion or friction action of the soil around the perimeter of the shaft.

Downdrag When piles are driven through weak soils, the long term settlement and consolidation of the ground can cause downdrag of the piles. This is a transference of the downdrag load of consolidating soil on to a pile shaft and is called negative skin friction since the resistance to this transfer of load is the positive skin friction of the pile shaft. Methods to counteract the effects of downdrag: 1. Increase the number of piles 2. Increase the number of piles designed for structural loads only. 3. Coating the external face of the shaft with a slip layer, thus reducing the negative skin friction.

Displacement Piles
General term applied to piles which are driver, thus displacing soil and includes piles which are performed, partially preformed or are driven in situ piles. Timber piles Square sawn hardwood or softwood in lengths up to 12.0m. They are easy to handle and can be driven to perfection with minimum of experience.

Precast concrete piles Used on medium and large contracts where soft soils overlying a firm strata are encountered and usually at least 100 piles are required. Lengths up to 18.0m can be reached. This pile has little frictional bearing strength.
Preformed concrete piles Available as precast concrete or prestressed concrete piles, but due to to problems of transportation through narrow streets, unnecessary noise and vibrations, restricted sites and difficulties which can be experienced in splicing or lengthening, their use has diminished considerably. Typical examples are Wests Hardrive and segmental piles. Steel preformed piles used mainly in conjunction with marine structures and where overlying soils are very weak. Composite piles These are formed by a method which combines the use of precast and in situ concrete or steel and in situ concrete. Used mainly where there is the presence of running water or very loose soils. Typical examples are Pestcore, Wests Shell and cased piles. BSP cased piles Typical composite piles using steel and in situ concrete. Cased piles are bearing piles consisting of a driven tube which is filled with in situ concrete. The casing is manufactured from steel strip or plate which is formed into a continuous helix with the adjoining edges butt welded. Driven in situ or cast in place piles An alternative to preformed displacement piles that are used where there are likely to be variations in the piles required.

Pile Driving
Displacement piles are generally driven into the ground by holding them in the correct position against the piling frame and applying hammer blows to the head of the pile. Exceptions maybe encountered in the cased piles. Pile hammers come in a variety of types and sizes powered by steam, gravity compressed air or diesel. Drop hammers: Blocks of cast iron or steel are raised by a cable attached to a wench. The hammer, which is sometimes called a monkey or ram, is allowed to fall freely by gravity on the pile load. It may be raised by a piston as well. Single acting hammers: Activated by steam or compressed air having the same effect as drop hammers in that the hammer falls freely by gravity. Double acting hammers: Activated by steam or compressed air consist of a heavy fixed cylinder in which there is a light piston which delivers a large number of rapid blows in a short span of time. The objective is to keep the pile constantly on the move.

Diesel hammers: Designed to give a reliable and economic method of pile driving. Various sizes giving different energy outputs per blow are available. This hammer can be suspended from a crane or mounted in the leaders of the piling frame.
Vibration techniques: Can be used in driving displacement piles where soft clays, sands and gravels are encountered. The equipment consists of a vibrating unit mounted on the pile head transmitting vibrations of the required frequency and amplitude down the length of the pile shaft.. These vibrations are in turn transmitted to the surrounding soil reducing its shear strength. Water jetting techniques are required to be used for this process.

Replacement Piles
Some times referred to as bored piles and formed by removing a column of soil and replacing with in situ concrete or in the case of composite piles with separate precast and in situ concrete. Usually carried out at sites where vibrations and noise are restricted. Percussion bored piles: Suitable for small and medium sized contracts. Dimensions from 300-950mm

Replacement Piles
Rotary bored piles: These can range from short bored piles in case of domestic dwellings to the very large diameter piles used for concentrated loads in multistoried buildings. This method is suitable for most cohesive soils such as clay and is formed using an auger which may be operated in conjunction with the steel tube liner according to the subsoil conditions.

Replacement Piles
Prestcore piles: A from of composite pile consisting of precast and in situ concrete. The formation of the bore hole is similar to that of percussion bored pile, using light, easy to handle equipment requiring a low working head room. Formation of prestcore piles are divided into four stages: 1. Boring 2. Assembly 3. Pressing the core:raising and lowering of the pile core to consolidate bearing stratum 4. Grouting: withdrawal of the lining tube and grouting with the aid of compressed air to remove water.

Pile Caps
In the case where piles are not usually used single but are formed into a group or cluster, the load is distributed over the heads of the piles in the group by means of a reinforced cast in situ concrete pile cap. 1. Friction piles: 3 pile diameters or 1.0m, whichever is greater. 2. End bearing piles: 2 piles or 750mm, whichever is greater.

The main reinforcement is two directional, formed in bands over the pile heads to spread the loads and usually take the form of a U shaped bar suitably bound to give a degree of resistance to surface cracking of the faces of the pile cap.

Design
As with other types of foundations, the purpose of a pile foundations is: 1. to transmit a foundation load to a solid ground. 2. to resist vertical, lateral and uplift load A structure can be founded on piles if the soil immediately beneath its base does not have adequate bearing capacity. If the results of site investigation show that the shallow soil is unstable and weak or if the magnitude of the estimated settlement is not acceptable a pile foundation may become considered. Further, a cost estimate may indicate that a pile foundation may be cheaper than any other compared ground improvement costs. In the cases of heavy constructions, it is likely that the bearing capacity of the shallow soil will not be satisfactory, and the construction should be built on pile foundations. Piles can also be used in normal ground conditions to resist horizontal loads. Piles are a convenient method of foundation for works over water, such as jetties or bridge piers.

Classification of Piles
As with other types of foundations, the purpose of a pile foundations is: 1. to transmit a foundation load to a solid ground. 2. to resist vertical, lateral and uplift load A structure can be founded on piles if the soil immediately beneath its base does not have adequate bearing capacity. If the results of site investigation show that the shallow soil is unstable and weak or if the magnitude of the estimated settlement is not acceptable a pile foundation may become considered. Further, a cost estimate may indicate that a pile foundation may be cheaper than any other compared ground improvement costs. In the cases of heavy constructions, it is likely that the bearing capacity of the shallow soil will not be satisfactory, and the construction should be built on pile foundations. Piles can also be used in normal ground conditions to resist horizontal loads. Piles are a convenient method of foundation for works over water, such as jetties or bridge piers.