Integrity Assessment

of Deep Foundations
High Strain
-&-
Low Strain
Testing
For Foundation to Be Adequate
• Must have adequate soil
support (capacity)
Can be determined by:
• Static Load Tests
• Dynamic Load Tests
• Dynamic Analysis (Wave
equation or Formula)
• Static Analysis (caution:
be very conservative)
For Foundation to Be Adequate
• Must have adequate
structural strength:
• Sufficient cross section
• Sufficient material
strength
• Integrity - Lack of major
defects
• how to assess?
 Why Test?
• Duty of Care to the public to build safe
structures.
• An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of
cure. We spend lots of money. Testing is
cheap compared to remediation.
• Uncertainty in foundation
 Increases Risk
• Testing answers unknowns
 Reduces Risk
 Why Test?
Defects aren’t uncommon for pile construction
 Why Test?
Prof. Mike O’Neill indicated 20% of shafts
have defects, and “since these flaws
are identifiable by NDE, they are, by
definition, not ‘minor’ ”

20% of shafts tested by CALTRANS

were rejected

O’Neill & Sarhan, 2004, “Structural Resistance Factors for

Drilled Shafts Considering Construction Flaws”,
ASCE Geotechnical Special Publication No. 125
 Why Test?

Augercast pile failed static test due to defect

Integrity – Deep Foundations
What ?
• Driven Piles
• Drilled Shafts
• CFA – Augercast Piles
When ?
• Test during installation
• Test soon after installation
• Test existing foundation (years after installed)
• Element free from structure ?
• Element embedded in structure ?
 What Tools Are Available?
• Visual Inspection
 What Tools Are Available?
• Visual Inspection
• Extraction
 What Tools Are Available?
• Visual Inspection
• Extraction
 What Tools Are Available?
• Visual Inspection
• Extraction
• Sample Testing
• i.e., - Coring
• Non-Destructive Testing
 What Tools Are Available?
• Non-Destructive Testing:
• High Strain Integrity Testing
• Low Strain Integrity Testing
• Pulse Echo / Transient Response
• Automated Monitoring Equipment
• Cross-hole Sonic Logging
• Single-hole Sonic Logging
• Thermal Integrity Profiling
High Strain Integrity Testing
• Driven Piles assessed during
construction
• Adjust procedures or driving
criteria to avoid high stresses or
damage
• Test uses pile driving hammer
impacts
• Use hammer or large drop
weights on drilled shafts
 High Strain Integrity Testing
Preparation: Attach Strain and Acceleration Sensors
 High Strain Integrity Testing
Preparation: Attach Strain and Acceleration Sensors
High Strain Integrity Testing

Beginning of Impact
(Pile Top)
High Strain Integrity Testing

Impedance Loss
(Pile Toe)
 High Strain Integrity Testing
• “Wave Up” reflection is affected by:
• Change in Pile Impedance
• Change in Soil Resistance
 High Strain Integrity Testing
• “Wave Up” reflection is affected by:
• Change in Pile Impedance
• Change in Soil Resistance
• Pile Impedance is defined by the
function:
• Z = EA/c
• Sudden changes in impedance
indicate a change in pile cross-
sectional area.
 High Strain Integrity Testing
• Expect the pile toe to appear at time
2L/c after impact.
• Twice the distance of the pile,
enough time for the stresswave to
go down and come back.

2L/c
High Strain Integrity Testing
Generally Increasing Wave Up:
No Integrity
Issues
Detected

Early Impedance Reduction: Pile Integrity

Issue Indicated
With Concrete Piles, determine wavespeed and
elastic modulus at beginning of driving.
 2L/c

Early return (BTA Warning)

12 x 53 H, 120 ft spliced in middle.

Splice failed and tore flanges.
Extraction confirmed extent of
damage.
800 mm Bored Pile—Low Beta
 High Strain Integrity Testing
Advantages
• Generally definitive integrity answers
• Stress information to avoid damage
• Assesses pile capacity at same time
• Only NDT method with this ability

Limitations / Disadvantages
• Best use: uniform Driven Piles
• Driven pile integrity usually not of concern
• Relatively high cost
 Low Strain Integrity Testing
• Pile Integrity Test (time domain)
• Sonic Integrity Test
• Impact Echo
• Pulse Echo

• Transient Response (frequency domain)

• Application to solid concrete sections

• (main use: augercast piles and drilled shafts)
 Pile Integrity Testing (PIT)
Small hammer looks for major defects
impact device
Accelerometer
measures response

(defect)
 Pile Preparation

Remove fractured or
contaminated concrete
Grind a flat spot to
attach accelerometer
 PIT – Basic Interpretation

Local Defect: small medium large

Local Bulge: small medium large

 PIT – Basic Interpretation
Normal test (pile top “free”)
800 mm drilled shafts
L = 25 m (L/D = 31)

Good Pile

Bad Pile

Exponential signal amplification

Failed Static Test often Prompts Testing

8#

2#

Static test failed to

hold design load
( S.F. < 1 )
1#
Soils: loose silty sand;
N=1 at 25 ft
PIT detected defect at 4.1 m depth; confirmed by core
 PIT shows
major defect

coring confirms defect

as contaminated conc.
over soil at same
location

900 mm dia.
SLT failed at L=25m
less than half 6m rock socket
required
 Good pile with local bulge
at about 25 ft and clear toe

Major defect
near top

Excavation reveals neck

 Classification of Results
• AA – Good pile, clear toe
• ABx – No defect to Depth x, no toe signal
(long pile, high resistance, major bulges)
• PFx – Probable Flaw at Depth x, toe apparent
• PDx – Probable Defect at Depth x, no toe signal
• IVx – Inconclusive below Depth x due to
Vibrations (machinery, reinforcement)
• IR – Inconclusive Record
 What to do if find a “problem” ?

• Compare with other observations

• Re-test with PIT (trim to good concrete)
• Excavate if near top, Request pile core
• Request a PDA test or a static test
• Replace pile (or repair)
• Other?
 Testing pile in structure

Tests : pile length 54 ft

CSL identified a “weak toe” for bridge piles in Arkansas.
PIT test shows good pile integrity with large toe signal.
PDA was used to estimate capacity on 7 suspect piles.

PDA 680 > 436 required

 “Pile Profile”
in ideal conditions may estimate pile shape
40 FT BAD
5: # 13
1.55 LB
-0.04 0.00 0.04 0.08 in/s

0 0 High Pass: 100.0 ft 63.5 Hz

Low Pass: 2.00 ft 3175 Hz
5 5

10 10

15 15

20
20

25
25
30
30
Relative Vol.: 0.96
35 Construct. Vol. 1.00
35 Max Profile: 1.08 at 14.53 ft
40 Min Profile 0.79 at 30.08 ft
40.00 ft (12700 ft/s)
40
x2
45
45
50
50
55
55
60

60
Magn V 0.076 in/s (0.080) ft diam
 Low Strain Integrity Testing
Advantages
• Cost Effective
• Apply to any or even all concrete pile/shaft
• Minimal pile preparation
• Finds MAJOR defects
• Sometimes can test piles in structure

Limitations / Disadvantages
• Best use: CFA/ACIP or drilled shafts
• Solid section of concrete needed
• Limited to 30 to 50 L/D
• Difficult interpretation for highly non-uniform
• Cannot locate defect quadrant
 Conclusions
• Significant portion of drilled foundations have
defects
• Testing & remediation reduces risk of foundation
failures
• High strain testing evaluates integrity with large
driving hammer or drop hammer. May be used
with any slender foundation (Steel, concrete,
timber, etc).
• Low strain testing evaluates with a hand-held
hammer, only applicable for concrete
foundations.
– Sometimes applicable for foundations in service