Under-Ream Pile Foundations:

Objectives and Design | Soil

Engineering
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Under-ream piles are commonly used in India especially as a solution for

structures in black cotton soil regions.
Objective and Applications of Under-Ream Pile Foundations:
Under-reamed pile foundations are bored cast in-situ concrete piles with
one or more bulbs or under-reams. The bulb is formed by enlarging the
stem of the pile near the bottom in a double conical shape, as shown in Fig.
20.30.
The purpose of providing the bulb is as follows:
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1. To provide anchorage to the foundation for preventing its movement in a

vertical direction due to alternate swelling and shrinkage of the soil in
expansive soils caused by seasonal changes in the moisture content.
2. To provide additional bearing area through the enlarged bulb in firm
strata, underlying the top weak or filled-up ground.
3. To obtain adequate load-carrying capacity for downward, upward, and
lateral loads and moments.
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4. To take the foundation below the scour level.

Under-ream piles are very popular in India as they provide an effective
solution to the swelling and shrinkage due to seasonal changes in expansive
soil regions. The anchorage provided by the under-ream pile prevents
cracks in floors and walls of buildings in expansive soil areas. Single under-
ream piles have been extensively used for single- or double-storied
buildings. The provision of an additional bulb increases the load-carrying
capacity by about 50%. Figure 20.30 shows single and double under-ream
pile foundations.
Design Considerations of Under-Ream Piles:
Following are the design considerations of under-ream piles as
per IS – 2911 (Part III)—1980:
1. The concrete used for under-ream piles shall have a slump of 10-15 cm for
concreting in water-free unlined bore holes. For concreting by tremie, the
concrete used should have a slump of 15-20 cm for better workability. M-15
or M-20 concrete with respective minimum cement content of 350 or 400
kg/m3 may be used.
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2. The minimum length of under-ream piles, in deep deposits of expansive

soils, should be 3.5 m below the ground level.
3. The diameter of the under-ream is kept as 2.5 times the stem diameter.
4. The maximum vertical spacing between under-reams is 1.5 times the
diameter of the under-ream for piles up to 0.3-m diameter. For large-
diameter piles, the spacing may be reduced to 1.25 times the stem diameter.
5. The topmost bulb should be at a minimum depth of two times the bulb
diameter. For expansive soils, this depth should not be less than 1.75 m
below the ground level.
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6. The number of bulbs provided should be normally not more than 2.

7. The minimum center-to-center spacing of under-ream piles in a group is
1.5 times the diameter of the under- ream but usually kept at two times the
under-ream diameter. For a pile group with piles at a spacing of 2 Du, the
group capacity may be taken equal to the sum of the load-carrying capacity
of the individual piles in the group. For a pile group with piles at a spacing
of 1.5 Du, the safe load assigned per pile should be reduced by 10%.
Design of Under-Ream Piles:
The load-carrying capacity of under-ream piles is derived from
the following three components:
1. Point-bearing resistance at the toe of the pile.
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2. Skin friction resistance along the pile stem.

3. Skin friction on the soil cylinder between the extreme bulbs.
However, when piles are subjected to uplift, the point-bearing resistance at
the toe will not be present.
Under-ream piles should be designed on the basis of following
two considerations:
1. The piles should resist the imposed loads as a structural member with
adequate factor of safety.
2. The soil supporting the pile should withstand the loads without shear
failure or excessive settlements with adequate factor of safety.
Safe Load for Under-Ream Piles Using Static Formulae:
The estimation of safe load for under-ream piles is done in the
following procedure:
1. Piles in Clays:
The safe load on the under-ream piles may be computed using
the following three methods:
a. Computation of the ultimate load using Eqs. (20.61)-(20.66), based on
soil properties and considering the point-bearing and skin friction
resistance and applying adequate factor of safety.
b. Load test on the piles.
c. Safe load tables.
A factor of safety of 2.5 in compression and 3 in uplift should be used to
obtain the safe load from the ultimate load.
Ultimate load capacity of piles for single under-ream piles –

Ultimate load capacity of piles for multiple under-ream piles –

where cp is the cohesion of the soil at the base; Ap is the cross-sectional area
of the pile at the toe (base); Nc is the bearing capacity factor, usually taken
as 9; α is the reduction factor, usually taken as 0.5 for clays; Abs is the
surface area of cylinder circumscribing the under-ream bulbs applicable
only for multiple under-ream piles; cs is the average cohesion along the pile
stem; As is the surface area of the pile stem; cb is the average cohesion of soil
around under-ream bulbs; and Ab is the cross-sectional area of the bulb
excluding the stem.
Ab = π/4 x (Du2 – D2) …(20.63)
where Du is the diameter of the under-ream and D is the diameter of the pile
stem.
2. Piles in Sands:
Ultimate load capacity of piles in sands is given by –

where γ is the density of soil, df is the depth of foundation or the total length
of the pile below ground level, B is the width of the pile or the diameter of
the pile stem, dr is the depth of the center of different under-ream bulbs
below the ground level, K is the lateral earth pressure coefficient, usually
taken as 1.75 for sandy soils, δ is the angle of wall friction or ɸ, d1 is the
depth to the center of the first under-ream, dn is the depth to the center of
the last under-ream, Nq is the bearing capacity factor taken from Fig. 20.13,
and Nγ is the bearing capacity factor taken as per IS – 6403-1981.
From Eq. (20.64), ultimate load capacity of piles for single under-ream piles
–

Similarly, ultimate load capacity of piles for double-under-ream piles –

3. Piles in c-ɸ Soil:

Ultimate load capacity for piles in soils having both cohesion and friction
may be computed by combining Eqs. (20.61)-(20.66).
Safe Load from IS Code Tables:
The safe load on under-ream piles as recommended by IS – 2911 (Part III)-
1980 in bearing, uplift, and lateral loads are given in Table 20.13. The
values are applicable for medium-compact sandy soils (N = 10-30) and
clayey soils of medium consistency (N = 4-8), including expansive soils and
for piles with Du = 2.5 D using M-15 concrete.
For dense sandy soils (N > 3) and stiff clayey soils (N > 8), the safe load in
compression and uplift given in Table 20.13 should be increased by 25%. No
increase is permitted for lateral thrust without detailed analysis. For piles in
loose sandy soils (N = 4-10) and soft clayey soils (N = 2-4), the safe loads
should be taken as 75% of those given in Table 20.13. For very loose sandy
soils (N < 4) and for very soft clayey soils (N < 2), the safe loads should be
taken as 50% of those given in Table 20.13.

Also, the safe loads should be reduced by 25% if the bore hole is full of
drilling mud or groundwater during concreting. No reduction will be
necessary if the water is confined up to the shaft portion below the
bottommost bulb.
The safe loads in compression and uplift given in Table 20.13 should be
reduced by 15% for under-ream piles with a bulb of diameter twice that of
the stem. No such reduction is necessary for lateral thrust.
Reinforcement for Under-Ream Piles:
Following recommendations are made by IS–2911(Part III)-1989
for reinforcement to be provided in under-ream piles:
1. The minimum longitudinal reinforcement in the stem portion is 0.4% of
the cross-sectional area, with minimum 3 bars of 10-mm diameter mild
steel or 3 bars of 8-mm diameter high yield strength deformed (HYSD)
bars.
2. The maximum clear spacing of transverse reinforcement in the form of
circular stirrups is the diameter of the stirrups or 30 cm, whichever is less.
3. The minimum clear cover for reinforcement is 4 cm under normal
conditions and 7.5 cm in the case of concrete subjected to sulfate attack.
Construction of Under-Ream Piles:
The procedure for construction of under-ream piles is as follows:
1. Bore holes are made by earth augers. In ground with high water table
with unstable bores, bentonite slurry may be used as a drilling mud. Casing
may be required for permeable stratum overlying a thin clayey stratum;
casing may be used over the permeable stratum. In very loose strata at the
top, temporary casing of required length may be used during boring and
concreting to avoid an irregular shape and widening of the bore hole.
2. After the bore is made to the required depth, the base may be enlarged
made by using an under-reaming tool.
3. In empty bore holes, a small quantity of concrete is first poured to form a
concrete layer of about 0.1-m thickness at the bottom. Reinforcement is
then lowered and positioned correctly. Concrete is then poured to fill the
bore hole. Care should be taken during compaction of concrete that soil is
not scrapped from sides.
4. If a small quantity of water is present at the bottom of the bore hole, it
should be bailed out and concreting should be done as in the case of an
empty bore hole.
5. In case the pile bore is stabilized with drilling mud or by maintaining
water head within the bore hole, concreting should be done by the tremie
method.
6. A tremie pipe of minimum 15-cm diameter with a flap valve at the bottom
should be used for placing concrete in bore holes full of drilling mud or
groundwater. Concreting should be done immediately after the bore hole is
made, within 12-24 h in the case of bores filled with drilling mud.
7. The top of concrete in a pile should be brought above the cutoff level to
permit removal of all laitance and weak concrete before construction of the
pile cap to ensure good concrete at the cutoff level for proper embedment of
the pile into the pile cap.
Pile Caps:
The pile cap should be designed by assuming that the load from the column
or pedestal is dispersed at 45° from the base of the column/pedestal up to
the mid-depth of the pile cap.
The clear overhang of the pile cap beyond the edge of the outermost pile
should be about 10-15 cm.
A leveling course of 7.5-cm thickness should be provided between the pile
cap and the pile. The minimum clear cover for main reinforcement in the
pile cap is 7.5 cm. The pile should project 4 cm into the cap concrete.
Grade Beams:
Grade beams are provided to support the walls of the building and transfer
their load to under-ream piles. Thus, grade beams are provided,
interconnecting all piles/pile caps and constructed monolithic with them.
The minimum depth of grade beams is 0.15 m. A minimum longitudinal
reinforcement of 3 bars of 10-mm diameter mild steel or its equivalent
HYSD bars both at the top and at the bottom should be provided. The
maximum spacing of 6-mm diameter stirrups is 0.3 m, which should be
reduced to 0.1 m at the door openings near the wall edge up to a distance of
three times the depth of the beam.
Grade beams should be provided at a height of 80 mm above the ground
level in expansive soils. Alternately, they should be provided over a leveling
concrete course of 80-mm thickness, as shown in Fig. 20.31(a).

In the case of exterior beams over piles in expansive soils, a ledge projection
of 75-mm thickness should be provided on the outer side of the beam,
extending 80 mm into the ground, as shown in Fig. 20.31(b).