Liquefaction Assessment and Soil Spatial Variation

Soil liquefaction is investigated considering a saturated soil deposit and by implementing standard techniques of random field theory to distribute initial void ratio values and assess liquefaction risk. The soil domain is represented in a 2-dimensional (2D) random finite element model for the dynamic analysis of coupled behavior. Multiple...

Ultimate soil resistance of the laterally loaded pile in uniform sand

Piles have been widely used as foundations to resist lateral loads. For the design of a laterally loaded pile, one of the most important inputs is the ultimate soil resistance (p_ult = K_ultDσv^′,whereKult is the ultimate lateral soil resistance coefficient, D is the pile diameter, and σv^′ is the...

Unconfined compressive strength of clay soils at different temperatures: Experimental and constitutive study

Unconfined compressive strength (S_u) is one of the soil engineering parameters used in geotechnical designs. Due to the temperature changes caused by some human activities, it is important to study the changes in S_u at different temperatures. On the other hand, due to the differences in the mineralogical composition of...

A simple rotational spring model for laterally loaded rigid piles in sand

Monopiles are the most popular foundation for offshore wind turbines. These foundations typically have a low length to diameter ratio and undergo a rigid body rotation when subjected to lateral load. This paper presents results from an extensive numerical investigation involving 3D finite element analyses to demonstrate that the lateral...

Influence of Pile Diameter and Aspect Ratio on the Lateral Response of Monopiles in Sand with Different Relative Densities

The large-diameter monopiles are the most preferred foundation used in offshore wind farms. However, the influence of pile diameter and aspect ratio on the lateral bearing behavior of monopiles in sand with different relative densities has not been systematically studied. This study presents a series of well-calibrated finite-element (FE)...

Finite Element analysis of soft boundary effects on the behaviour of shallow foundations

The response of a shallow foundation has been investigated by numerical simulations in a series of 1g small scale tests using the Finite Element Method. In this numerical study, special attention has been given to the influence of soft boundaries as a measure to counteract boundary effects, since limitations of space were present in the...

Numerical simulations of static liquefaction in submerged slopes

The static liquefaction tank (SL-tank) is a unique large-scale facility that provides a means to simulate the conditions of a submerged soil slope under failure conditions. Static liquefaction (SL) may be defined as a significant loss of soil’s shear strength due to a substantial development of excess pore water pressure under monotonic loads....

Finite Element Modelling for Earthquake Loads on Dykes

In the last decades, induced earthquakes were caused by the extraction of gas in the Dutch province of Groningen. Both magnitude and frequency of these earthquakes are expected to increase in the following years, causing a threat for the flood defence system. To guarantee the safety against flooding, it is required to take the influence of...

Long Term Effects of Cyclic Loading on Suction Caisson Foundations

Significant financial investments are made in the offshore wind energy, in a race to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The trend is to install larger capacity wind turbines in deeper waters, further from shore. DTI (2001) states that 30% of this investment is represented by the foundation costs. Senders (2008) and Byrne & Houlsby (2003) found...

Modelling of Installation Effect of Driven Piles by Hypoplasticity

Driven piles have been selected as a powerful technique to deal with the construction on soft soil. Many case studies have been carried out to capture the soil behaviour during the pile installation, both numerical and experimental methods. In terms of the numerical method, it is proved to be difficult due to the large displacement in the...

Hypoplasticity Investigated: Parameter Determination and Numerical Simulation

Due to the weak soil deposits in the Netherlands, pile foundations consisting of driven displacement piles are often used to support the superstructure. The influence of pile installation process on the stresses and the soil properties is large. In geotechnical practise the effect of the pile installation and the interaction with neighbouring...