Pile Behavior—Consequences of Geological and Construction Imperfections1
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Volume 131, Issue 5
Abstract
This paper identifies some of the causes of imperfections in real pile foundations and then examines their possible effects on pile behavior. The imperfections considered arise from two main sources, natural imperfections caused by the geological circumstances and imperfections related to the construction of the piles. In each case, single piles are considered first, and then pile groups are addressed separately. Case histories are presented to illustrate the effects on pile performance which are predicted by theoretical analyses. The analyses with which these examinations are carried out will still inevitably involve some degree of idealization, but at least attempt to incorporate the key “nonideal” aspects. The paper also discusses the particular problems involved in investigating and analyzing underperforming pile foundations and reviews some methods by which the consequences of imperfections may be overcome or ameliorated.
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Acknowledgments
The writer is grateful to John P. Carter, John C. Small, Patrick Wong, and Masoud Makarchian for their constructive comments, and to Charles C. W. Ng for providing details of the RSS centrifuge tests.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 131 • Issue 5 • May 2005
Pages: 538 - 563
Copyright
© 2005 ASCE.
History
Received: Jul 7, 2004
Accepted: Nov 1, 2004
Published online: May 1, 2005
Published in print: May 2005
Notes
Presented at the GeoSupport 2004 Conference, Orlando, FL.
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