Plate Anchor Groups Pulled Vertically in Sand

Results are presented of model-scale vertical pulling tests carried out on groups of square anchor plates in row and square configurations. The tests were carried out at a single depth of embedment, which ensured shallow anchor behavior in the sand placed at a constant dry density. It is shown that the load-displacement relationships for all groups may be reduced to a common curve. The load-carrying capacity of a group of anchor plates increases with the spacing between the individual plates up to a limiting critical value, and it is demonstrated how the results of pulling tests with different numbers of plates in a group may be described in a simple unifying manner. A possible means of predicting the effect of interaction on the uplift capacity of both modeland full-scale anchors in row configurations is suggested. For laboratory tests on a linear group of five anchors, it is shown that the end anchors attain the highest loads but all loads converge to an equal value as the spacing increases to the critical value.