Study on the Dynamic Soil-Pile-Structure Interactive Behavior in Liquefiable Sand by 3D Numerical Simulation

Abstract

The dynamic behavior of structures in liquefiable sand exhibits more complicated characteristics, due to the development of excess pore pressure caused by cyclic loading, than that in dry sand. Therefore, it is crucial to accurately predict the soil–pile structure behavior during liquefaction to prevent damage to the structures. In this study, three-dimensional numerical modeling was performed to predict the dynamic soil–pile behavior during liquefaction. To directly simulate pore pressure generation due to soil shear deformation, the Finn liquefaction model was applied and coupled with the Mohr-Coulomb elasto-plastic model. Soil nonlinearity was considered by applying hysteretic damping, and the interface model was applied to simulate various dynamic phenomena between the soil and pile. Simplified continuum modeling was introduced to prevent reflection wave generation and increase analysis efficiency. The applicability of the proposed numerical model was validated using the experimental results. Thereafter, a parametric study was conducted to provide a better understanding of the dynamic behavior of pile foundation during liquefaction. From a series of parametric studies, several important factors that can affect the dynamic pile responses in liquefiable sand were identified. Also, the characteristics of the dynamic soil–pile structure interactive behavior, which are significantly different from each other in liquefied and dry sand, were analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively.