Behavior of a Large-Scale Pile Group Subjected to Cyclic Lateral Loading

摘要

A large-scale group of nine steel pipe piles in a closely spaced arrangement was subjected to cyclic lateral loading with water above the ground surface. The piles were 10.75 in. in diameter and 40 ft long and were installed at a center-to-center spacing of 3-pile diameters. The soils at the Houston, Texas site consisted of a stiff, overconsolidated clay. In an attempt to model storm loading of offshore structures, the loading was electronically controlled to follow a sinusoidal curve of deflection versus time with a 30-sec period. All of the piles in the group were extensively instrumented to obtain measurements of shear in the individual piles and bending moment as a function of depth. Results were compared with the results of a similar load test on a single pile that was about 30 ft away.