Minimum Thickness of Welding Patches to Recover Structural Performance of Steel Pipe Piles under Compression

Abstract

This paper presents an analytical study on a minimum patch thickness necessary to fully recover structural performance of corrosion-damaged pipe piles under axial compressive loads using welding repair. Load transfer mechanism, the repaired stiffness and strength of pipe piles are examined. An accurate calculation of load share ratio of patch plates considering weld stiffness is derived, and the results are compared with experimental results and finite element analysis results. The minimum thickness of patch plates to fully recover the stiffness and the design strength of the corrosion-damaged piles to their intact state considering the existing loads is proposed.