Analysis of Load Transformation Behavior of Stepped Rigid Pile

Volume 8, Issue 5, May 2023 International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology
ISSN No:-2456-2165
Analysis of Load Transformation Behavior

of Stepped Rigid Pile
Sathe Ravikat S., Jitendra Kumar sharma
Department of Civil Engineering,
Rajasthan Technical University,
Kota, India
Abstract:- In the present study, an analysis was Researchers have extensively studied settlement
conducted to assess the load-bearing capacity, shear analysis of axially loaded single circular piles using various
stress distribution along the pile and soil interface, and methods and approaches in both homogeneous and non-
load transmission to the depth for both conventional homogeneous soils. Available settlement analyses either
rigid piles and stepped rigid piles. The conventional pile assume soil resistance can be represented by a series of
had a diameter of 1m and a length of 20m. For the disjointed springs or that it is a continuum. Traditional
stepped rigid pile, the upper portion was reduced by continuum approaches require expensive numerical
0.1D and 0.2D of the pile diameter, while the diameter of techniques to obtain solutions, but efforts have been made to
the lower portion was adjusted to maintain the total solve this problem with mathematical rigor.
length and volume of the stepped rigid pile, similar to
the conventional pile. The results indicate that the [1] analyzed the settlement behavior of a single
stepped rigid piles demonstrate superior load-bearing granular pile at varying depths under axial loading,
capacities compared to the conventional piles. quantifying the effects of parameters on settlement
reduction for rational design. They presented results of end-
Keywords:- Stepped pile; shear stresses; load bearing and floating granular piles constructed in soft soil.
transformation. FEM. [2] presented a new empirical method to simulate the non-
linear point resistance and shear resistance response of
I. INTRODUCTION single piles in cohesionless soil using the concept of t-z
curve. [3] utilized an elastic continuum approach to study
Pile foundations are utilized when the topsoil lacks the the response of non-homogeneous floating granular piles in
ability to support loads of a structural foundation, either due homogeneous soil. [4] analyzed the bearing capacity and
to low bearing capacity or the potential for excessive load deformation of single piles under vertical loads in
settlement. The primary function of a pile is to transfer the granular soil, studying the mechanism of shaft friction and
weight of the foundation to deeper soil strata that possess the effect of deformation modulus on bearing capacity using
greater strength and load-bearing capacity and are less the FLAC program.
compressible. However, due to their higher cost compared
to shallow foundations, pile foundations should only be [5] presented the behavior of a perfectly plastic elastic
chosen when shallow foundations are unable to meet an model (Mohar Coulomb) and an elastoplastic model with
acceptable factor of safety against bearing failure in the strain hardening (Nova 1982) in terms of load settlement
foundation soil or acceptable settlement over the structure's and force distribution along pile surface and compare
lifespan. Several factors may contribute to these design numerical results with experimental ones. Rigorous analysis
criteria, such as the nature and magnitude of structural based on Mindlin's solution for a point load in an ideal
loads, settlement-sensitive structures, and soil type. Thus, elastic medium was used by [6] to obtain the response of
the objective of pile foundations is to fulfill the design rigid and compressible single piles embedded in a
criteria by transferring the structural loads to the deeper, homogeneous isotropic linear elastic soil medium. One
stable, and stronger soil strata. In some cases, the situation common assumption made in settlement analysis, as
may be more complicated when stronger soil layers of discussed [7], is that the soil resistance can be modeled as a
relatively small thickness exist above weak soil that extends series of disconnected springs.
to great depths. In this scenario, using pile foundations
entails some uncertainties, and the behavior of piles cannot This study analyzes the load transformation behavior
be predicted with certainty. The uncertainties in pile and stress distribution along the pile and soil interface of a
behavior arise from soil non-homogeneity and the alteration stepped rigid pile. In this study, the total length and volume
of soil properties following pile installation. Furthermore, of the pile were kept constant in all cases like conventional
most of the rules or approaches for estimating pile-bearing piles.
capacity and deformation take into account the general
scenario of weak soil overlaying strong soil. Since pile II. METHODS AND MATERIALS
behavior primarily depends on soil properties and the
method of pile installation, considerable efforts must be The study analyzed conventional and stepped rigid
undertaken to determine soil properties through laboratory circular piles with a length and diameter of 20m and 1m,
and field tests. respectively. The 100mm prescribed settlement was applied
on top of the pile in multilayered granular soil. The water
level was set at 10.4m from the top surface of the soil. The
IJISRT23MAY1124 www.ijisrt.com 3217

ISSN No:-2456-2165
horizontal boundary is considered at 20m from the axis of configuration has been adopted, with the axis of symmetry
the center of the pile and its depth is 30m. aligned with the axis of the pile. The pile sides are
considered perfectly rough and rigid, and the analysis is
The current study assumes that there is no slip or carried out under no-tension conditions in the soil.
yields at the interface of pile and soil, the soil medium is
isotropic and non-homogeneous, and an axisymmetric
Table 1: Properties of soil and pile (Neves et al. 2001)

Para-meter Clayey sand Silty sand Clayey sand Deep sand Pile Unit
t 16.7 18.8 19.8 20 -- kN/m3
E 9150 13510 13570 19300 29.2x106 kN/m2
ν 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.15 --
C 13 12 14 17 -- kN/m2
Φ 26 23 23 23 -- 0
Fig. 1: The FEM model
Soil properties were utilized to analyze the load incorporated and the diameter of the upper portion of the
settlement for all cases mentioned in Table No.1. The first step is varied by 0.1 D to 0.2D i.e. it is kept as 0.9m and
layer had a thickness of 0.00m to 0.6m, the second layer 0.8m respectively.
0.6m to 5.7m, the third layer 5.7m to 7.7m, and the fourth
layer 7.7m to 30m. The analysis included the application of III. RESULT AND DISCUSSION
Mohr-Coulomb and drained condition to each layer of soil
and a linear elastic and non-porous condition for the pile. The analysis begins by modeling different types of
soils as elastic-perfectly plastic material based on the Mohr-
In this study, a numerical model was developed in Coulomb model, with drained behavior. The pile, on the
PLAXIS 2D and analyzed using the Mohr-Coulomb failure other hand, is modeled as a linear elastic material with non-
criterion due to its simplicity. An axisymmetric condition porous behavior. To model the deformation and stresses in
was considered with 15 nodded triangular elements and a soils, 15 node wedge elements are used, and exact values of
medium finite element distribution mesh. The sandy soil displacement, stress, and strain are extracted from the output
was considered drained, and a non-porous linear elastic tables. To restrict run time, the mesh is generated with
condition was assumed for the rigid pile. The initial stresses medium elements. In this analysis, the interface between the
in the sandy soil were generated according to the ko pile and surrounding soil is considered, and an
procedure (jacks formula). Here, a single step is axisymmetric model is used.

ISSN No:-2456-2165
Table 2: The different ratios of dia. of steps of 1m rigid pile
S. No. Name Upper Lower step Dia. (m)
step Dia. (m)
1 RP 1 1
2 SRP1 0.9 1.09
3 SRP2 0.8 1.16
A. Effect of step on LBC of Rigid Pile: (LPSRP) is increased to maintain the total volume like the
This section focuses on the analysis of a rigid pile with a rigid pile.
diameter of 1m and a length of 20m. The model is subjected
to boundary conditions with a radius of 20m and a depth of Fig. 3 shows that the loading bearing capacities for
30m. A single step is introduced by varying the stepped 100mm prescribed settlement are 655.78, 699.89, and
length to L/2. Corresponding loading-bearing capacities are 746.64kN/rad for RP, SRP1, and SRP2, respectively. The
obtained for a prescribed settlement of 100mm. The total results indicate an improvement in LBCs of 6.72% and
length and volume of the stepped pile remain the same as 13.85% SRP1 and SRP2, respectively, compared to the rigid
the rigid pile. The upper portion of the stepped rigid pile pile. The same properties are used for this analysis as in the
(UPSRP) is reduced by 0.1D and 0.2D, and accordingly, the Neves et al. 2001 study.
diameter of the lower portion of the stepped rigid pile
Fig. 2: Load settlement response of stepped rigid pile
B. Effect of step on load transformation of Rigid Pile: conventional piles. Fig. 3 illustrates load transformation for
The load-carrying capacity of stepped rigid piles exceeds a conventional rigid pile with a diameter of 1m and a
that of conventional piles due to the greater diameter of the stepped rigid pile with upper diameters of 0.9m and 0.8m
lower portion. The load transformation for conventional and lower diameters of 1.09m and 1.16m, respectively.
piles is a smooth curve, while for stepped rigid piles, it SRP2 performs better than SRP1 because the diameter of
increases rapidly in the upper portion up to the first half of the lower portion is greater. It can be concluded that the
the step and then changes abruptly at the change in diameter load-bearing capacity of stepped rigid piles can be improved
in the lower portion. The load transformation in the lower by increasing the diameter of the lower portion up to a
portion is less in stepped rigid piles compared to certain limit.

ISSN No:-2456-2165
Fig. 3: Load transformation of stepped rigid pile
Fig. 4: Shear stress distribution for stepped rigid pile
Fig. 4 illustrates the shear distribution variation along of the step is somewhat similar to that of the conventional
the normalized depth of a rigid pile and a stepped rigid pile. rigid pile. However, there is an abrupt change in shear stress
The depth of the pile is normalized based on the height of with the change in the diameter of the step. Furthermore, at
different points. For the conventional rigid pile, the shear the lower side of the stepped pile, the shear stress behaves
stress distribution at the upper part is lower, gradually similarly to the conventional rigid pile.
increasing with the depth of the pile. However, in the case
of the stepped rigid pile, the shear stress at the upper portion

ISSN No:-2456-2165
IV. CONCLUSIONS
In the present study, a numerical investigation was

carried out to analyze the vertical bearing capacity, Shear
stress distribution along the soil–pile interface, and load
transformation of a stepped pile under axial load. The
findings of this study are presented below.
 The stepped pile exhibits a higher load-carrying capacity
in comparison to the conventional pile.
 The shear stress distribution curve undergoes an abrupt
change at locations where there is a variation in diameter
between the steps.
 In the case of the stepped pile, the load transfer to the
underlying layers is reduced due to the larger diameter of
the step. This increase in diameter enhances the skin
friction, resulting in a greater portion of the load being
carried by the skin friction mechanism.
REFERENCES
[1.] Kiran K Vijay and Madhav M. R., [2015],

“Settlement of single granular pile at different
depths”, Indian Geotechnical Conference.
[2.] Armaleh Sonia and Desai C. S., [1987], “Load
deformation response of axially loaded piles”,
Journal of Geotechnical Engineering, vol. 113.
[3.] Gupta Pooja and Sharma J. K., [2017], “Non linear
analysis of single floating granular pile”, IJRTER,
Volume 03, 103-111.
[4.] Kirzhner F and Rosenhouse K., [2001], “Analysis of
the ultimate bearing capacity of a single pile in
granular soils”, Transaction on engineering sciences,
ASCE, vol. 32, 207-214.
[5.] Neves M. D. et. al., [2001], “Behavioral study of
bored piles”, Bulletin des laboratoires des ponts et
chaussées – 231, 55-67.
[6.] Butterfield R and Banerjee P. K., [1971], “The
Elastic analysis of compressible piles and pile
groups” Geotechnique, 21, 43-60.
[7.] Polous H. G., [1979], “Settlement of single piles in
Non homogeneous soil”, journal of the Geotechnical
engineering division, ASCE, vol. 105.

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Volume 8, Issue 5, May 2023 International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology

Analysis of Load Transformation Behavior

IJISRT23MAY1124 www.ijisrt.com 3217

Table 1: Properties of soil and pile (Neves et al. 2001)

Fig. 1: The FEM model

IJISRT23MAY1124 www.ijisrt.com 3218

Fig. 2: Load settlement response of stepped rigid pile

IJISRT23MAY1124 www.ijisrt.com 3219

Fig. 3: Load transformation of stepped rigid pile

Fig. 4: Shear stress distribution for stepped rigid pile

IJISRT23MAY1124 www.ijisrt.com 3220

In the present study, a numerical investigation was

[1.] Kiran K Vijay and Madhav M. R., [2015],

IJISRT23MAY1124 www.ijisrt.com 3221

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