8- Piles:

This is an element of construction placed in the ground either vertically or

slightly inclined to:

1. Increase the load carrying capacity of the soil.

2. Support the layer of subsoil subject to side force
3. Compact the subsoil

The reasons for use piles as foundations are:

1. When the soil is poor and cannot carry the load with other types of
foundation
2. When the soil is clay and has seasonal shrinkage and swell according to
the moisture content and ground water movement
3. When the structure construct above water like water intake
4. When we cannot excavate deep because of the existing building
foundation close to new building
5. When we need to equilibrium to tensile or lateral forces then the piles
called (anchor piles) when it is vertical and (batter piles) when it is with
slope
6. For earthquake region
7. When ground water not deep from natural ground level
8. When it need to support existing building foundation by used jacked piles
9. When it need to support side pressure like soil or water by used sheet
piles

Classification of piles:

Piles can be classified according to:

1. The method it transmit load to subsoil, then it classified to:

a. Bearing pile: These are transmitting the super-imposed load to stronger
strata below.
b. Friction pile: These are designed to transmit the loads by the frictional force
existing between the sides of the pile and the ground.
c. Combine work pile: These are transmitting the loads by the frictional force
and carry stronger strata below. Most of the piles designed like this type.

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2. Material used:
a. Wooden piles: Usually timber trees are used as piles after bark and the
branches are removed. Chemical preservation or mechanical protection is
commonly provided as a treatment of wooden piles.
Advantages of wooden piles:
i. They are less expensive as most of the timber available can be used
after suitable treatment.
ii. They can be made in longer lengths by joining the individual
pieces easily.
iii. Cutting of these piles is very easy.
iv. They can be driven quickly and with lighter machinery.

Disadvantages:

i. They deteriorate by the action of water or insects.

ii. They have a lesser load bearing capacity.
iii. Whenever long piles are to be driven, it if necessary to join a number
of small individual units and this entails lot of joining work and the
cost is high.
b. Concrete piles: Concrete piles can be broadly classified into two types:
i. Precast concrete piles: These are cast at a suitable place, cured and
afterwards driven like a timber piles.
ii. Cast-in-situ piles: These are cast at the place where they have to rest
finally. They may have a casting which also remains intact.

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 Precast concrete piles: Precast concrete piles are commonly of square
section with chamfered corners. Other shapes, e.g. octagonal types are also
available. Octagonal type has a better appearance and steel reinforcement can also
be placed in it easily. Whenever these piles are to be driven through hard soils, cast
iron or mild steel shoes are used at the end which is driven into the soil. Generally
for normal work 1:2:4 mix is used whereas for heavy loads and for driven through
harder soils 1:1½:3 mix is employed.
Precast concrete piles are constructed without taper but have pointed lower
ends. Whenever tapering is desired, it should not exceed 2cm per meter length of
the pile. The reinforcement consists of longitudinal bars with spiral at the top and
bottom ends and suitable ties in between.

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Advantages of precast concrete piles:
i. Best concrete can be prepared by proper workmanship. Any defect
can immediately repair.
ii. The reinforcement remains in proper position and does not get
displaced.
iii. The concrete has only to withstand loads after complete curing has
taken place.
iv. They can be cast before hand and a quick driving progress can be
ensured.
v. They are more convenient through wet conditions.
vi. They are more suitable when a part of their length is to remain
exposed.
vii. They are not affected by any other additional forces which act on
them while adjacent piles are driven.

Disadvantages of precast concrete piles:

i. They are heavy and difficult to transport.
ii. Lapping of additional length means extra cost, labor and energy.
iii. They have to be heavier in section to withstand the hand ling stresses.
iv. The shocks of driving make them weaker.
Advantages of cast- in- situ piles:
i. There is less wastage of material as exact length of pile is cast.
ii. The time spent on curing etc. is saved.
iii. They can bear heavier loads by improving upon their cross sectional
profile, e.g. Pedestal piles

Cast-in-situ piles: A Cast-in-situ pile is a concrete pile built in its permanent

location within a hole made for this purpose. The various types of cast-in-situ piles
are:
a. Driven cast in-situ concrete piles are constructed by driving a closed-ended
hollow steel or concrete casing into the ground and then filling it with
concrete. The casing may be left in position to form part of the pile, or
withdrawn for reuse as the concrete is placed.

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The process of construction of driven cast in-situ concrete piles are shown in
figures below:

1. Permanent pile casing first made ready for driving

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2. Pile casing is then driven into the soil

3. Reinforcement cage is then lowered into the pile core

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 4. Concrete Pouring
Then the concrete is poured in the pile core to complete the construction of driven
cast in-situ piles.

b. Bored cast in situ pile is constructed by digging a hole in the ground by

suitable means such as percussive or rotary method with the use of
temporary or permanent casing or drilling mud. After that, the construction
is finalized by filling the hole with reinforced concrete.

Procedure for Construction of bored cast in situ pile

1. Prepare construction program that involves main project milestones.

2. Prepare and maintain all templates and quality check formats
3. Setting out pile points using total Station or theodolite to set out pile
position. Make sure to recheck these points before starting the piling
activity. Establish temporary reference points (TR) for this purpose.

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 4. Plan preparation for rig movement

 Prepare a layout that illustrate the expected path for rig movement based on
the work program and the planned deployment of resources.
 The layout shall guarantee easy movement of all rigs without causing
disturbances and problems to other rig operations.
 If the layout is prepared according to the above guidelines, then the team
will have a clear picture on planning the work of next day.

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 5. Boring process

 Position the rig over the established pile point. Check the accuracy of the
point by comparing it with other reference points.

 Diameter of the cutting tool shall not less than the required pile diameter by
more than 75mm.
 After rig positioning, drive the casing into the ground. Drive steel casing to a
minimum a depth of 1 m below the ground level to take lateral loads and
movements at site. The steel casing also combat difficulties due to
groundwater during piling.

 Additionally, provide permanent steel casing or liners in the case of loose

soils as per consultant’s advice.
 Stabilize the borehole during boring process using bentonite or other suitable
means.
 Estimate specific gravity of bentonite at regular intervals. Consistency of the
drilling mud shall be controlled throughout the boring as well as concreting
operations. This measure used to stabilize the borehole as well as avoid
concrete getting mixed up with the thicker suspension of the mud.
 Practiced great care to guarantee straight piles driven.

 It is recommended to carry out penetration tests to estimate ‘N’ value of the

founding strata. In addition to take and maintain soil or rock samples from
the founding strata, for future reference.

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 It is also advisable to take soil samples from each intermediate soil strata at
the depths specified in the soil test report.
 Finally, end the boring process upon reaching the designated boring depth.
Check the borehole depth through measuring bailer pipe length after its
removal from the borehole, and use sounding technique to recheck the
borehole depth.

6. Reinforcement placement

 Lower reinforcement cage into to the borehole vertically, without disturbing

the sides of the hole.

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 Provide sufficient cover blocks all around the cage to ensure sufficient
cover.

 Equip the reinforcement cage with adequate stiffener bars to avoid sideways
sway.
 Weld stirrups, stiffeners and laps to prevent breakage.

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 7. Bored cast in situ pile Concreting

 According to IS 2911, slump of concrete employed for pile concretingranges

from 152mm to`82mm.
 Prevent interruption of concreting from the start of the process till the end of
the work.
 Concreting begins by lowering tremie pipes in to the borehole. Common
tremie pipe diameter is around 222mm.

 Clean borehole bottom adequately before concrete pouring.

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 Connect a hopper to the top of tremie pipe. After that, close the joint
between hopper and tremie pipe with a steel plug before concrete first
charge.
 Then, fill the hopper with concrete to its full capacity. Once filled, remove
the steel plug to allow the concrete to flow down, and replace the bentonite
slurry present in the pipe.

 Keep the bottom end of the tremie pipe embedded, at least 2m, within the
laid concrete. To replace bentonite from bottom upwards and avoid mixing
concrete with water or bentonite.
 The tremie pipe remains hollow after the first charge and each subsequent
charge gets deposited within the already laid concrete.
 Extend pile concreting at least 62cm to 92cm above the cutoff level to ensure
good concrete for proper embedment into pile cap.
 If the cutoff level is at ground level, then permit spillover of concrete till
good concrete is visible.

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Applications of bored cast in situ concrete pile bored cast in situ pile is a strong
choice in the following conditions:

 If noise prevention to the buildings located around the construction is

mandatory or undesired, then the construction of bored cast in situ pile is the
most suitable option.
 Bored cast in situ pile is ideal as end bearing pile, exclusively when it need
to be socketed into rock.
 When high capacity pile is required, then this type of pile is an ideal choice.

Advantages of cast- in- situ piles:

iv. There is less wastage of material as exact length of pile is cast.
v. The time spent on curing etc. is saved.
vi. They can bear heavier loads by improving upon their cross sectional
profile, e.g. Pedestal piles
Disadvantages of cast- in- situ piles:
i. Good quality concrete cannot be easily obtained due to unusual height
of dumping.
ii. The reinforcement is liable to get displaced.
iii. They cannot use under water.
iv. The green concrete loses strength after coming in contact with the
soil.
v. The shells are affected by casting additional piles adjacent to them.

c. Steel Piles: Steel pile may be of I-section or hollow pipe. Because of a small
sectional area, steel piles are easy to drive. The pipes are driven with open ends.
Compressed air may be used to drive out the soil within the pipe and thus
facilitate driving. These pipes are filled with concrete. Steel piles are mostly
used as bearing piles because of their less available surface area to take the loads
by frictional forces.

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Types of Steel Pile Foundations
1. Pipe Piles
Pipe piles are employed to behave as friction or end bearing piles. These piles are
seamless and steel pipes that are formed by welding. The driving of these piles can
be carried out with the help of an open or a close ended bottom. Hence, we have:

 Open End Piles

 Closed End Piles
Open End Pipe Piles
These type of pipe piles is mostly used to penetrate a hard or a rock stratum. These
piles after driving is sunk in the soil. The soil that is within the steel pipe is
removed by means of compressed air or by means of water jetting process. After
driving the steel pipe to required depth, the steel pipe is filled with concrete of
standard specification.

Close End Pipe Piles

In this type of pipe piles, a conical element either made of steel or cast iron is
attached to the open bottom by means of welding. This is the conical shoe. Once
the pipe is driven into the soil, the pipe is filled with adequate amount of concrete.
The diameter of the pipe piles used can vary from 2225m to 122m. The thickness of
these pipe piles varies from 8 to 12mm. For pile foundation greater than 32 inches
this type of pile works best. The pile ends as mentioned might have a flat bottom or
a conical bottom. Here welded connections are provided.

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2. Screw Piles
The screw piles are made of steel or cast iron. These form a long shaft that are
terminating at the end in the form of a screw base or a helix. The shaft that is
employed in the screw piles can be either a hollow one or a solid one.

The base of the screw has a diameter ranging from 2245 to 125m. The screw bottom
is driven into the soil by means of an electric motor that help in easy penetration
into the strata.

The screw piles have great application in clay or loose soils. Screw piles in these
areas help in increasing the bearing area. The installation of pile foundation in
these types of soils are made easy by the steel screw piling.

3. Disc Steel Piles

The disc steel pipe has an arrangement similar to the screw piles, where it has cast
iron disc attached to the bottom. The pile sinks into the soil while penetration. So,
to facilitate the water jetting process a hole is made at the bottom. These types of
piles can be employed in soft or sandy soil. This area is well suited as it allows the
sinking of the disc piles during the water jetting process. Disc piles are more
applied for marine constructions, as these areas require for large amount of total
penetration.

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4. H-Piles
Rolled steel H-beams performed as a bearing pile is one of the new technology
developed in the piling industry. Hard driving of the pile into the soil strata results
in large amount of impact forces and stresses. The H-piles can sustain this stress to
a large extent. H-piles are mostly used to penetrate an area with rock or any other
hard strata. No extra process of jetting, coring or adopting methods need to used to
perform the penetration of H -piles. The small cross section of the H -piles make
the soil displacement process easier.

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Advantages of H-Piles

1. H-piles consume less space for storage

2. The handling of H-piles are performed easily
3. H-piles penetration can be performed closer to the existing structure
4. The amount of unusual displacement caused nearby area during the
penetration of the H -piles are very small.
5. The splicing process in H-piles can be performed easily.
6. The maximum depth to which H-piles can be driven is 122m.
7. H -piles perform the function of both friction and compaction piles
8. The Main application of H -piles are in trestles, retaining walls, cofferdams
and bridges.
Corrosion of Steel Piles
The steel pipes irrespective of what type is employed have great chance for
corrosion. In such situations the piles can be coated with coal tar or corrosion
protecting coating. Sometimes certain chemicals or materials are encased on
concrete to prevent the corrosion.

Pile cap:
A pile cap is a thick concrete mat that rests on concrete or timber piles that have
been driven into soft or unstable ground to provide a suitable stable foundation. It
usually forms part of the foundation of a building, typically a multi-story building,
structure or support base for heavy equipment. It is used to transfer the loads from
superstructure to the piling.

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