Experimental Investigation and Nonlinear Finite Element Analysis on Seismic Performance of PHC Piles

摘要

Cyclic tests and finite-element method (FEM) analyses were used to study the effects of varying the type of pile, stirrup ratio and reinforcement technique- concrete infilling, steel fibers or deformed steel bars-on the seismic performance of prestressed high-strength concrete (PHC) piles. The failure modes, hysteretic performance, ductility, bearing capacity, stiffness degradation and energy dissipation capacity were observed and analyzed. The results show that the PHC piles were damaged by bending, and that the bearing capacity and ductility of the PHC piles increases with the reinforcement ratio of the prestressed tendons. It was found that adding concrete infilling into the hollow section improves the bearing capacity and hysteretic performance of the PHC piles, whereas the steel fibers have little effect. It was also found that the hysteretic loops of the PHC piles reinforced with deformed steel bars are fuller, and that the energy dissipation is good. An FEM analysis was used to simulate the nonlinear behavior of the PHC piles under cyclic loading, and the predictions agree relatively well with the experimental results.