Extraction of Spudcan Foundations in Single and Multilayer Soils
Publication: Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 140, Issue 1
Abstract
Difficulties are often encountered in a variety of seabed sediments during extraction of spudcan foundations of mobile jack-up rigs. This paper reports results from centrifuge model tests undertaken to provide insight into spudcan foundation behavior during vertical extraction through single, double, and multilayer soils. The model tests included half-spudcan tests against a transparent window, allowing the soil flow to be captured continuously by a digital camera and subsequently quantified through particle image velocimetry (PIV) analysis and separate full-spudcan tests to measure the uplift resistance. The observed soil-failure mechanisms provide insight with respect to the profile of extraction resistance. The mechanisms reveal evolving failure modes at different spudcan extraction depths and, in particular, changes in the failure patterns because of varying layer geometry, soil types, and properties. For single, double, and multilayer clays, suction at the spudcan base, shearing along a truncated cone above the spudcan, and weight of the soil above the spudcan constitute the extraction resistance. Maximum extraction resistance occurs in the stiffer soil layer. The extent to which suction is sustained at the spudcan base is critical in determining the extraction resistance. The presence of a sand layer beneath the penetrated spudcan, for example as part of the soil plug pushed down during spudcan penetration, allows the base suction to be released within a short distance of uplift and results in relatively low extraction resistance. Improved understanding of spudcan extraction mechanisms through layered soils resulting from this study will allow development of analytical solutions to model spudcan extraction behavior, assisting jack-up operators to plan properly for leg extraction based on seabed conditions.
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Acknowledgments
The research presented herein was undertaken with support from the Australian Research Council (ARC) through the Discovery and Federation Fellowship programs and the University of Western Australia through a Research Development Award (RDA12104358). The first author is an ARC Postdoctoral Fellow (APDI) and is supported by an ARC Linkage Project (LP110100174). The work forms part of the activities of the Centre for Offshore Foundation Systems (COFS), currently supported as a node of the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Geotechnical Science and Engineering through Centre of Excellence funding from the State Government of Western Australia and in partnership with The Lloyd’s Register Educational Trust. These supports are gratefully acknowledged, as is the assistance of the drum centrifuge technician, Mr. Bart Thompson.
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Information & Authors
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Published In
Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 140 • Issue 1 • January 2014
Pages: 170 - 184
Copyright
© 2014 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Oct 26, 2012
Accepted: Jun 21, 2013
Published online: Jun 24, 2013
Published in print: Jan 1, 2014
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