Technical Papers
Nov 25, 2020

Numerical Simulation of a Ground Anchor Pullout Test Monitored with Fiber Optic Sensors

Publication: Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 147, Issue 2

Abstract

This paper presents a comprehensive study of the load transfer mechanism of a soil anchor during pullout test. The anchor was monitored with fiber optic sensors installed along the tendon and embedded in the grout, which enabled continuous measurements of strains with a spatial resolution of about 10 mm. The measured strain profile along the tendon indicates that the load is not transferred from the tendon to the grout at the same rate along the fixed length. Crack development was verified by measured peaks along the longitudinal strain profile. The in situ measurements were compared with results from finite-element simulations contributing to the interpretation of the in situ results. The load–displacement curves and strain distributions obtained with the numerical simulations compare well with measurements. The constitutive model selected for the grout is capable of reproducing the crack development and the numerical simulations suggest that debonding occurred during the anchor pullout test.

Get full access to this article

View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.

Data Availability Statement

Some or all data, models, or code that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request (in situ measurements and the numerical results).

Acknowledgments

The results presented herein have been developed within the framework of the FFG-Project (Bridge-24 No. 858505) with the support of ÖBB Infrastruktur and Asfinag.

References

ASI (Austrian Standards International). 2010. Testing hardened concrete—Part 6: Tensile splitting strength of test specimens. ÖNORM EN 12390-6. Vienna, Austria: ASI.
ASI (Austrian Standards International). 2012. Testing hardened concrete—Part 3: Compressive strength of test specimens. ÖNORM EN 12390-3. Vienna, Austria: ASI.
ASI (Austrian Standards International). 2013. Eurocode 7: Entwurf, Berechnung und Bemessung in der Geotechnik. Teil 1: Allgemeine Regeln. ÖNORM B 1997-1-1. Vienna, Austria: ASI.
ASI (Austrian Standards International). 2019a. Geotechnical investigation and testing—Identification and classification of soil. ÖNORM EN ISO 14688-1. Vienna, Austria: ASI.
ASI (Austrian Standards International). 2019b. Geotechnical investigation and testing—Testing of geotechnical structures—Part 5: Testing of grouted anchors. ÖNORM EN ISO 22477-5. Vienna, Austria: ASI.
ASTM. 2017. Standard practice for classification of soils for engineering purposes (unified soil classification system). ASTM D2487. West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM.
Barrias, A., J. R. Casas, and S. Villalba. 2016. “A review of distributed optical fiber sensors for civil engineering applications.” Sensors 16 (5): 1–35. https://doi.org/10.3390/s16050748.
Benmokrane, B., M. Chekired, and H. Xu. 1995. “Monitoring behavior of grouted anchors using vibrating-wire gauges.” J. Geotech. Eng. 121 (6): 466–475. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9410(1995)121:6(466).
Bennett, P. J., A. Klar, T. E. B. Vorster, C. K. Choy, H. Mohamad, K. Soga, R. J. Mair, P. D. Tester, and R. Fernie. 2006. “Distributed optical fibre strain sensing in piles.” In Proc., Int. Conf. on Reuse of Foundations for Urban Sites, 71–78. Bracknell, UK: BRE Press.
Benz, T. 2007. “Small-strain stiffness of soils and its numerical consequences.” Ph.D. thesis, Institute of Geotechnical Engineering, Univ. of Stuttgart.
Berenbaum, R., and I. Brodie. 1959. “Measurement of the tensile strength of brittle materials.” Br. J. Appl. Phys. 10 (6): 281–287. https://doi.org/10.1088/0508-3443/10/6/307.
Bersan, S., O. Bergamo, L. Palmieri, L. Schenato, and P. Simonini. 2018. “Distributed strain measurements in a CFA pile using high spatial resolution fiber optic sensors.” Eng. Struct. 160 (1): 554–565. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.engstruct.2018.01.046.
Brinkgreve, R. B. J., S. Kumarswamy, W. M. Swolfs, L. Zampich, and N. R. Manoj. 2019. PLAXIS 2D material models manual. Delft, Netherlands: Plaxis BV.
Carpinteri, A., and G. Colombo. 1989. “Numerical analysis of catastrophic softening behavior (snap-back instability).” Comput. Struct. 31 (4): 607–636. https://doi.org/10.1016/0045-7949(89)90337-4.
Fabris, C. 2020. “Numerical study on pullout tests of ground anchors monitored with fibre optic sensors.” Ph.D. thesis, Institute of Soil Mechanics, Foundation Engineering and Computational Geotechnics, Graz Univ. of Technology.
Fabris, C., B. Pulko, and H. F. Schweiger. 2018. “Numerical modelling of an anchor load test—Influence of the grout.” In Proc., 4th Int. Symp. on Computational Geomechanics. Rhodes, Greece: International Conference on Cloud Engineering.
Hauswirth, D., A. M. Puzrin, A. Carrera, J. R. Standing, and M. S. P. Wan. 2014. “Use of fiber-optic sensors for simple assessment of ground surface displacements during tunnelling.” Géotechnique 64 (10): 837–842. https://doi.org/10.1680/geot.14.T.009.
Iten, M. 2011. “Novel applications of distributed fiber-optic sensing in geotechnical engineering.” Ph.D. thesis, Institute for Geotechnical Engineering, ETH Zürich.
Iten, M., A. M. Puzrin, and A. Schmid. 2008. “Landslide monitoring using a road-embedded optical fiber sensor.” In Vol. 6933 of Proc., Smart Sensor Phenomena, Technology, Networks, and Systems. Bellingham, WA: International Society for Optics and Photonics. https://doi.org/10.1117/12.774515.
Ivanović, A., and R. D. Neilson. 2009. “Modelling of debonding along the fixed anchor length.” Int. J. Rock Mech. Min. Sci. 46 (4): 699–707. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijrmms.2008.09.008.
Lambe, T. W. 1973. “Predictions in soil engineering.” Géotechnique 23 (2): 151–202. https://doi.org/10.1680/geot.1973.23.2.151.
Lienhart, W., H. Woschitz, and F. Moser. 2014. “High sensitive monitoring of natural and engineered slopes.” In Proc., 5th Int. Forum on Opto-electronic Sensor-based Monitoring in Geo-Engineering, 8–14. Nanjing, China: Nanjing Univ.
Lin, Z., and L. Wood. 2003. “Concrete uniaxial tensile strength and cylinder splitting test.” J. Struct. Eng. 129 (5): 692–698. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9445(2003)129:5(692).
Littlejohn, G. S. 1980. “Design estimation of the ultimate load-holding capacity of ground anchors.” Ground Eng. 13 (8): 25–39.
Luna. 2014. Data sheet: Optical backscatter reflectometer (Model OBR 4600), Ver. LTOBR4600 REV. 004 02/13/2014. Roanoke, VA: Luna Technologies.
Marchetti, S. 1980. “In situ tests by flat dilatometer.” J. Geotech. Eng. Div. 106 (3): 299–321.
Marchetti, S. 2015. “Some 2015 updates to the TC16 DMT Report 2001.” In Proc., 3rd Int. Conf. on the Flat Dilatometer, 43–68. London: International Society of Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering.
Mohamad, H., P. J. Bennett, K. Soga, R. J. Mair, and K. Bowers. 2010. “Behaviour of an old masonry tunnel due to tunnelling-induced ground settlement.” Géotechnique 60 (12): 927–938. https://doi.org/10.1680/geot.8.P.074.
Mohamad, H., K. Soga, A. Pellew, and P. J. Bennett. 2011. “Performance monitoring of a secant-piled wall using distributed fiber optic strain sensing.” J. Geotech. Geoenviron. Eng. 137 (12): 1236–1243. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)GT.1943-5606.0000543.
Monsberger, C., H. Woschitz, and M. Hayden. 2016. “Deformation measurement of a driven pile using distributed fiber-optic sensing.” J. Appl. Geodesy 10 (1): 61–69. https://doi.org/10.1515/jag-2015-0021.
Monsberger, C. M., W. Lienhart, A. Kluckner, L. Wagner, and W. Schubert. 2018. “Continuous strain measurements in a shotcrete tunnel lining using distributed fibre optic sensing.” In Proc., 9th European Workshop on Structural Health Monitoring. Northampton, UK: British Institute of Non-Destructive Testing.
Ostermayer, H., and F. Scheele. 1978. “Research on ground anchors in non-cohesive soils.” Rev. Fr. Geotech. 3: 92–97. https://doi.org/10.1051/geotech/1978003092.
PTI (Post-Tensioning Institute). 2014. Recommendations for prestressed rock and soil anchors. DC35.1-14. Farmington Hills, MI: PTI.
Rabaiotti, C., and C. Malecki. 2018. “In situ testing of barrette foundations for a high retaining wall in Molasse rock.” Géotechnique 68 (12): 1056–1070. https://doi.org/10.1680/jgeot.17.P.144.
Schädlich, B., and H. F. Schweiger. 2014. “A new constitutive model for shotcrete.” In Proc., 8th European Conf. on Numerical Methods in Geotechnical Engineering, 103–108. Leiden, Netherlands: CRC Press.
Schanz, T., P. A. Vermeer, and P. G. Bonnier. 1999. “The hardening soil model—Formulation and verification.” In Proc., Int. Symp. Beyond 2000 in Computational Geotechnics, 281–296. Rotterdam, Netherlands: A.A. Balkema.
Schnaid, F., M. V. A. Belloli, E. Odebrecht, and D. Marchetti. 2018. “Interpretation of the DMT in Silts.” Geotech. Test. J. 41 (5): 868–876. https://doi.org/10.1520/GTJ20170374.
Smet, J., N. Huybrechts, G. Van Lysebetten, J. Verstraelen, and S. François. 2019. “Optical fiber strain measurements and numerical modeling of load tests on grouted anchors.” J. Geotech. Geoenviron. Eng. 145 (12): 04019103. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)GT.1943-5606.0002167.
Weerasinghe, R. B., and G. S. Littlejohn. 1997. “Load transfer and failure of anchorages in weak mudstone.” In Proc., Int. Conf. on Ground Anchorages and Anchored Structures, 34–44. London: Thomas Telford.
Woschitz, H., C. Monsberger, and M. Hayden. 2016. “Distributed fiber-optic strain measurements on a driven pile.” In Vol. 9916 of Proc., 6th European Workshop on Optical Fibre Sensors. Bellingham, WA: International Society for Optics and Photonics. https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2236986.

Information & Authors

Information

Published In

Go to Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 147Issue 2February 2021

History

Received: Jan 9, 2020
Accepted: Aug 25, 2020
Published online: Nov 25, 2020
Published in print: Feb 1, 2021
Discussion open until: Apr 25, 2021

Permissions

Request permissions for this article.

Authors

Affiliations

Carla Fabris [email protected]
Project Assistant, Institute of Soil Mechanics, Foundation Engineering and Computational Geotechnics, Graz Univ. of Technology, Rechbauerstraße 12, Graz 8010, Austria (corresponding author). Email: [email protected]; [email protected]
Helmut F. Schweiger [email protected]
Professor, Institute of Soil Mechanics, Foundation Engineering and Computational Geotechnics, Graz Univ. of Technology, Rechbauerstraße 12, Graz 8010, Austria. Email: [email protected]
Assistant Professor, Faculty of Civil and Geodetic Engineering, Univ. of Ljubljana, Jamova cesta 2, Ljubljana 1000, Slovenia. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2485-3038. Email: [email protected]
Senior Scientist, Institute of Engineering Geodesy and Measurement Systems, Graz Univ. of Technology, Steyrergasse 30, Graz 8010, Austria. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6187-8712. Email: [email protected]
Václav Račanský [email protected]
Chief Design Engineer, Keller Grundbau GmbH, No. 15, Guglgasse, Vienna 1110, Austria. Email: [email protected]

Metrics & Citations

Metrics

Citations

Download citation

If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.

Cited by

View Options

Get Access

Access content

Please select your options to get access

Log in/Register Log in via your institution (Shibboleth)
ASCE Members: Please log in to see member pricing

Purchase

Save for later Information on ASCE Library Cards
ASCE Library Cards let you download journal articles, proceedings papers, and available book chapters across the entire ASCE Library platform. ASCE Library Cards remain active for 24 months or until all downloads are used. Note: This content will be debited as one download at time of checkout.

Terms of Use: ASCE Library Cards are for individual, personal use only. Reselling, republishing, or forwarding the materials to libraries or reading rooms is prohibited.
ASCE Library Card (5 downloads)
$105.00
Add to cart
ASCE Library Card (20 downloads)
$280.00
Add to cart
Buy Single Article
$35.00
Add to cart

Get Access

Access content

Please select your options to get access

Log in/Register Log in via your institution (Shibboleth)
ASCE Members: Please log in to see member pricing

Purchase

Save for later Information on ASCE Library Cards
ASCE Library Cards let you download journal articles, proceedings papers, and available book chapters across the entire ASCE Library platform. ASCE Library Cards remain active for 24 months or until all downloads are used. Note: This content will be debited as one download at time of checkout.

Terms of Use: ASCE Library Cards are for individual, personal use only. Reselling, republishing, or forwarding the materials to libraries or reading rooms is prohibited.
ASCE Library Card (5 downloads)
$105.00
Add to cart
ASCE Library Card (20 downloads)
$280.00
Add to cart
Buy Single Article
$35.00
Add to cart

Media

Figures

Other

Tables

Share

Share

Copy the content Link

Share with email

Email a colleague

Share