3.2 Pile Foundation II - Pile Capacity

FOUNDATION ANALYSIS
Pile Foundation
Estimating Pile Length
Selecting the type of pile to be used and estimating its necessary length are fairly difficult tasks that
require good judgment. In addition to being broken down into the classification, piles can be divided into
three major categories, depending on their lengths and the mechanisms of load transfer to the soil:
(a) point bearing piles, (b) friction piles, and (c) compaction piles.
Point Bearing Piles

If soil-boring records establish the presence of bedrock or rocklike material at a site within a reasonable
depth, piles can be extended to the rock surface. (Figure a.) In this case, the ultimate capacity of the
piles depends entirely on the load-bearing capacity of the underlying material; thus, the piles are called
point bearing piles. In most of these cases, the necessary length of the pile can be fairly well established.
If, instead of bedrock, a fairly compact and hard stratum of soil is encountered at a reasonable depth,
piles can be extended a few meters into the hard stratum. (Figure b.)
Piles with pedestals can be constructed on the bed of the hard stratum, and
the ultimate pile load may be expressed as
Qu = Qp + Qs
where:
Qp = load carried at the pile point
Qs = load carried by skin friction developed
at the side of the pile (caused by shearing
resistance between the soil and the pile)
Friction Piles
When no layer of rock or rocklike material is present at a reasonable depth at a site, point
bearing piles become very long and uneconomical. In this type of subsoil, piles
are driven through the softer material to specified depths. (Figure c). These piles are
called friction piles, because most of their resistance is derived from skin friction.
Compaction Piles
Under certain circumstances, piles are driven in granular soils to achieve proper compaction
of soil close to the ground surface. These piles are called compaction piles. The
lengths of compaction piles depend on factors such as (a) the relative density of the
soil before compaction, (b) the desired relative density of the soil after compaction, and
(c) the required depth of compaction. These piles are generally short; however, some
field tests are necessary to determine a reasonable length.
Equations for Estimating Pile Capacity
The ultimate load-carrying capacity Qu of a pile is given by the equation:
Qu = Qp + Qs
where
Qp = load-carrying capacity of the pile point
Qs = frictional resistance (skin friction) derived from the soil–pile interface (see Figure 9.11)
Numerous published studies cover the determination of the values of Qp and Qs. Excellent reviews of
many of these investigations have been provided by Vesic (1977), Meyerhof (1976), and Coyle and
Castello (1981). These studies afford an insight into the problem of determining the ultimate pile
capacity.
POINT BEARING CAPACITY, Qp
The point bearing of piles is

Qp = Apqp = Ap(c'Nc* + q'Nq*)
where:
Ap = area of pile tip
c' = cohesion of the soil supporting the pile tip
qp = unit point resistance
q' = effective vertical stress at the level of the pile tip
Nc*, Nq* = the bearing capacity factors
FRICTIONAL RESISTANCE, Qs
The frictional, or skin, resistance of a pile may be written as
Qs = Σ (p ΔL f)
where
p = perimeter of the pile section
ΔL = incremental pile length over which p and f are taken to be constant
f = unit friction resistance at any depth z
The various methods for estimating Qp and Qs are discussed in the next several
sections. It needs to be reemphasized that, in the field, for full mobilization of the point
resistance (Qp), the pile tip must go through a displacement of 10 to 25% of the pile
width (or diameter).
ALLOWABLE LOAD
The total allowable load for each pile is,
Qall = allowable load-carrying capacity for each pile

FS = factor of safety
Meyerhof’s Method for Estimating Qp
Sand
The point bearing capacity, qp, of a pile in sand generally increases with the depth of
embedment in the bearing stratum and reaches a maximum value at an embedment
ratio of Lb/D = (Lb/D)cr.
For piles in sand, c' = 0, and load-carrying capacity of the pile point simplifies to
Qp = Apqp = Apq'Nq* ≤ Apql
However, Qp should not exceed the limiting value Apql .The limiting point resistance is
ql = 0.5 paNq* tan Ø'
where
pa = atmospheric pressure (=100 kN/m2 or 2000 lb/ft2)
Ø' = effective soil friction angle of the bearing stratum
Clay
For piles in saturated clays under undrained conditions (Ø = 0), the net ultimate load
can be given as
Qp = Nc*cuAp = 9cuAp
Vesic’s Method for Estimating Qp
Sand
Vesic (1977) proposed a method for estimating the pile point bearing capacity based on the
theory of expansion of cavities.
Clay
In saturated clay (Ø = 0 condition), the net ultimate point bearing capacity of a pile can
be approximated as
Qp = Apqp = ApcuNc*
For saturated clay with no Approximate relationships for Ir

volume change, Δ = 0. and the undrained cohesion, cu
(O’ Neill and Reese 1999)
For Ø = 0
Coyle and Castello’s Method for Estimating Qp
Sand
The net ultimate point bearing capacity of a pile can be approximated as
Qp = Apq’Nq*
Coyle and Castello’s Method for Estimating Qp
Sample Problem no. 1
Sample Problem no. 1 (cont’d)
Correlations for Calculating Qp with SPT
and CPT Results in Granular Soil
Correlations for Calculating Qp with SPT
and CPT Results in Granular Soil
Frictional Resistance (Qs) in Sand
Sample Example 4
Refer to Sample Example 1 (Example 9.1 in textbook):
Sample Example 1 :
Sample Example 4 (cont’d)
Correlation with Standard Penetration Test Results
Correlation with Standard Penetration Test Results
Sample Example 5
Refer to Sample Example 3 (Example 9.3 in textbook):

Sample Example 3:
Frictional Resistance (Qs) in Clay
λ Method
This method, proposed by Vijayvergiya and Focht (1972),
is based on the assumption that the displacement of soil
caused by pile driving results in a passive lateral pressure
at any depth and that the average unit skin resistance is
fav = average unit frictional resistance
total frictional resistance may be calculated as

Qs = pLfav
α Method
According to the α method, the unit skin resistance in clayey

soils can be represented by the equation
f = αcu
where, α = empirical adhesion factor
From Sladen (1992):
The ultimate side resistance can thus be given as

α Method
β Method
When piles are driven into saturated clays, the pore water pressure in the soil around the piles
increases. The excess pore water pressure in normally consolidated clays may be four to six times cu
β Method
β Method

3.2 Pile Foundation II - Pile Capacity

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FOUNDATION ANALYSIS

Point Bearing Piles

The ultimate load-carrying capacity Qu of a pile is given by the equation:

POINT BEARING CAPACITY, Qp

The point bearing of piles is

The total allowable load for each pile is,

Qall = allowable load-carrying capacity for each pile

For saturated clay with no Approximate relationships for Ir

Refer to Sample Example 1 (Example 9.1 in textbook):

Refer to Sample Example 3 (Example 9.3 in textbook):

fav = average unit frictional resistance

total frictional resistance may be calculated as

According to the α method, the unit skin resistance in clayey

The ultimate side resistance can thus be given as

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