Centrifugal testing of laterally loaded piles in sand

Abstract

Results of an investigation of the response of piles in sand, under lateral loads, are presented. Model piles of three different diameters and flexural stiffnesses were tested in a centrifuge apparatus to determine prototype pile behavior. The experimental results, consisting of pile head displacements and bending moment distributions along the pile length, were interpreted, analyzed, and compared with the results of several numerical analyses. The piles were treated as elastic beams on nonlinear springs, examining several different types of soil reaction relationship (p-y curves). A new p-y relationship was developed for piles in cohesionless soil which provided very satisfactory results. Key words : pile, sand, lateral loading, centrifuge, numerical analysis.