A

SEMINAR REPORT
ON

PILE FOUNDATION

INTRODUCTION
Pile foundations consist of piles that are dug into soil till a layer of stable soil is
reached. Pile foundations transfer building load to the bearing ground with the
greater bearing capacity. Pile foundations are useful in regions with unstable
upper soil that may erode, or for large structures.
Pile foundations are often required to resist lateral loading. Lateral loads come from a
variety of sources including wind, earthquakes, waves, and ship impacts. The lateral
capacity of a pile is usually much smaller than the axial capacity and as a result groups of
piles are often installed to increase the lateral capacity of the entire foundation system.
When vertical or plumb pile groups do not provide sufficient lateral resistance the piles
can be battered in order to mobilize some of the higher axial capacity to resist the lateral
load.

Pile Foundation

Piles are relatively long, slender members that transmit foundation loads through
soil strata of low bearing capacity to deeper soil or rock strata having a high bearing
capacity. They are used when for economic, constructional or soil condition
considerations it is desirable to transmit loads to strata beyond the practical reach of
shallow foundations. In addition to supporting structures, piles are also used to
anchor structures against uplift forces and to assist structures in resisting lateral and
overturning forces.

HISTORY OF PILE FOUNDATION:

Pile foundation have been used for many years, for carrying and transferring the loads to soil
considered to be weak in structure due to the soil conditions. In the early stages of development,
villages and towns were located in the close vicinity of lakes and rivers due to the availability of
water , and, also, to ensure proper protection of the area. Therefore, the weak bearing ground was
reinforced by the use of timber piles that were manually forced into the ground, or fixed into the
holes that were filled with stones and sand. The primitive methods of pile installation were
modified after the industrial revolution, and the techniques of installation by steam or diesel
driven machines were introduced. With the advancement in the technologies of soil mechanics
and other related disciplines, superior piles and pile installation system have been developed
.

NECESSITY OF PILE FOUNDATION:

When the strata at or just below the ground surface is highly compressible
and very weak to support the load transmitted by the structure.

When the plan of the structure is irregular relative to its outline and load
distribution. It would cause non-uniform settlement if a shallow foundation
is constructed. A pile foundation is required to reduce differential settlement.

Pile foundations are required for the transmission of structure loads through
deep water to a firm stratum.

Pile foundations are used to resist horizontal forces in addition to support the
vertical loads in earth-retaining structures and tall structures that are
subjected to horizontal forces due to wind and earthquake.

Piles are required when the soil conditions are such that a washout, erosion
or scour of soil may occur from underneath a shallow foundation.

In case of expansive soil, such as black cotton soil, which swell or shrink as
the water content changes, piles are used to transfer the load below the
active zone.

Collapsible soils, such as loess, have a breakdown of structure accompanied

by a sudden decrease in void ratio, when there is increase in water content.
Piles are used to transfer the load beyond the zone of possible moisture
changes in such soils.

Pile foundation vs well foundation :

Well foundations provide a solid and massive foundation for heavy

loads as against a cluster of piles which are slender and weak
individually and are liable to get damaged when hit by floating trees
or boulder rolling in river bed.

Wells provide a large section modulus with the minimum cross

sectional area and hence efficient in taking large vertical and
horizontal loads even when the unsupported length is large.

Concreting of well steining is done under dry and controlled

conditions and hence quality of work is assured, however same
cannot hold good in case of cast-in-situ bored piles where concreting
is to be done under water or below ground level. Even in case of
precast piles, the concrete is subjected of heavy stresses during
driving operation and consequent damages cannot be ruled out.

When scour takes place, the piles act as long struts and have to be
designed for buckling stresses, which are quite heavy due to the
bending moments contributed by the longitudinal forces on the bridge
deck due to tractive effort and braking forces.

It is difficult to drive the piles through the strata having boulders and
tree logs which are frequently encountered in alluvial soil, whereas in
the case of a well foundation there is sufficiently access to remove
the obstruction. Quite often the skin friction developed is of much
magnitude as to prevent further driving of a pile although a firm
stratum has not been reached.

The adoption of pile foundations is advantageous over well

foundations where the soil characteristics and conditions of water
table are such that the phenomenon of blow occurs during
dewatering of the well.

Increased mechanization and advent of new machinery have brought

down the cost of foundation with piles considerably low in comparison
to well. New testing techniques for checking the integrity of piles and
information about strata through piles have passed or resting have
removed the uncertainty of load carrying capacity of piles to large
extent.

Pile foundations have a clear advantage over well foundations in

terms of speedy construction. Wherever time is the criterion, the pile
foundation is the natural choice.

CLASSIFICATION OF PILE FOUNDATION:

Pile foundations can be classified according to
the type of pile
(different structures to be supported, and different ground conditions, require
different types of resistance) and
the type of construction
(different materials, structures and processes can be used)
the type of material used

TYPES OF PILE:

End Bearing piles.

Friction piles.

Settlement reducing piles.

Tension piles.

Laterally loaded piles.

Piles in fill.

Piles are often used because adequate bearing capacity cannot be found at
shallow enough depths to support the structural loads. It is important to
understand that piles get support from both end bearing and skin friction. The
proportion of carrying capacity generated by either end bearing or skin friction
depends on the soil conditions. Piles can be used to support various different
types of structural loads.

END BEARING PILES:

End bearing piles are those which terminate in hard, relatively impenetrable material
such as rock or very dense sand and gravel. They derive most of their carrying capacity
from the resistance of the stratum at the toe of the pile.

FRICTION PILES:

Friction piles obtain a greater part of their carrying capacity by skin friction or adhesion.
This tends to occur when piles do not reach an impenetrable stratum but are driven for some
distance into a penetrable soil. Their carrying capacity is derived partly from end bearing
and partly from skin friction between the embedded surface of the soil and the surrounding
soil.

SETTLEMENT REDUCING PILES:

Settlement reducing piles are usually incorporated beneath the central part of a raft
foundation in order to reduce differential settlement to an acceptable level. Such piles
act to reinforce the soil beneath the raft and help to prevent dishing of the raft in the
centre.

TENSION PILES:

Structures such as tall chimneys, transmission towers and jetties can be

subjected to large overturning moments and so piles are often used to resist the
resulting uplift forces at the foundations. In such cases the resulting forces are
transmitted to the soil along the embedded length of the pile. The resisting
force can be increased in the case of bored piles by under-reaming. In the
design of tension piles the effect of radial contraction of the pile must be taken
into account as this can cause about a 10% - 20% reduction in shaft resistance.

LATERALLY LOADED PILES:

Almost all piled foundations are subjected to at least some degree of
horizontal loading. The magnitude of the loads in relation to the applied
vertical axial loading will generally be small and no additional design
calculations will normally be necessary. However, in the case of wharves and
jetties carrying the impact forces of berthing ships, piled foundations to bridge
piers, trestles to overhead cranes, tall chimneys and retaining walls, the
horizontal component is relatively large and may prove critical in design.
Traditionally piles have been installed at an angle to the vertical in such cases
providing sufficient horizontal resistance by virtue of the component of axial
capacity of the pile which acts horizontally. However the capacity of a vertical
pile to resist loads applied normally to the axis, although significantly smaller
than the axial capacity of that pile, may be sufficient to avoid the need for
such 'raking' or 'battered' piles which are more expensive to install. When
designing piles to take lateral forces it is therefore important to take this into account.

 PILES IN FILL:

Piles that pass through layers of moderately- to poorly-compacted fill will be affected
by negative skin friction, which produces a downward drag along the pile shaft and
therefore an additional load on the pile. This occurs as the fill consolidates under its
own weight.

TYPES OF PILE COSTRUCTION:

Precast Driven Piles These are usually of RCC or pre-stressed

concrete and generally small in size for ease in handling. The main
advantage of this type of pile is that its quality, in terms of dimension,
use of reinforcement and concrete, can be ensured as the piles are
cast in a yard under controlled conditions. However care is needed
while handling, transporting and driving the pile to avoid damages.
More to it, the limitation of length depending upon the capacity of the
driving equipment is a disadvantage as these cannot be taken very
deep except by joining. Generally, the depth over which these are
used is restricted to 36 mt.

Driven Cast-in-Situ Piles- A steel casing pile with a shoe at the

bottom is driven first to the required depth. The reinforcement cage
for the pile is then lowered inside the casing and the pile is concreted.
As the concreting of the pile proceeds upwards, the casing is
withdrawn keeping a suitable overlapping length. When such piles
are driven in soft soil and the tube is withdrawn while concreting, it
affects resistance and changes the property of the soil and this also
affects the capacity of individual piles. These are not suitable for use
in soft soils, in greater depths or where keying with the rock is
required.

Bored cast-in-situ piles In the bored cast-in-situ process, a larger

diameter casing is used. A casing of 3 to 4 m in length is provided on

top of the bore hole which is driven with the help of a bailor. Boring
further below this casing is carried out by chiseling and the side walls
are kept stable by circulating bentonite slurry inside the bore hole.
The boring is continued up to the layer decided for founding the
structure. After reaching the desired founding level, the chisel is
removed, bore-hole flushed, reinforcement cage lowered into the
hole, and held in position by tack welding it to the support bars at the
top of the casing.
After this, concreting is carried out by using tremie, keeping its end
always below the top level of rising concrete. The concreting is
continued till a good quality concrete is seen at the top of the bore
hole. After this, the tremie is removed and when the concrete has
reached the top, the casing pipe on the top is also removed. The
bentonite mix should be periodically checked for its specific gravity
and changed as, due to constant use, it can get mixed with the soil
and deteriorate in quality. This type of pile can be used even where
the pile is keyed into the rock as chiselling in the rock can be carried
out more easily. These piles serve as bearing-cum-friction piles. The
diameters of such piles are generally more than 1.0m and can go up
to 3.6m or more. They can be used singly or in group and are good
replacements for well foundations required for bridge piers in rivers
with clayey and mixed soils.

Bored pre-cast piles In this, as the name itself suggests, a hole is

bored using a casing and a pre-cast pile is inserted into it. After
securing it in position, the casing is withdrawn. A particular process
used for bored pre-cast piles is the Benoto process which involves a
steel tube being pushed into the soil, turned and reversed using
compressed air. The tube is in the form of a casing and is driven for
the entire depth after the soil is progressively grabbed from the tube.
The process is continued till the tube reaches the pre-determined
level. Then the pre-cast pile is lowered inside and held in position.
The tube is lifted gradually after filling the annular gap between the
pre-cast pile and the soil by grouting.

Driven steel piles Steel piles can be circular or in other structural

shapes. The circular ones are made in the form of either welded or
seamless piles. Usually steel or cast iron piles used earlier for bridge
structures are of longer diameter and screw type. These were used in
past when loading was less. These piles are suitable for being driven
through cohesive soil to reach up to the hard strata and to serve as
bearing piles. They are not suitable where heavy scour is expected
and for foundation for bridges when foundations are situated wide
apart.

Driven timer piles Timber piles have been extensively used in

America. These have been used in India on the railways and
highways, for temporary bridges. Timber piles are of hard wood, and

used in natural form with thin end cut or suitably sized. They are used
mostly as end-bearing piles in clusters. They are normally used in
lengths of 12m and extended by splicing for use in deeper channels.
The piles protruding above bed/low water level are suitably braced in
cluster.

TYPE OF MATERIAL USED

TIMBER
As the name implies, timber piles are made of wood.
Historically, timber has been a plentiful, locally-available resource in many areas. Today,
timber piles are still more affordable than concrete or steel. Compared to other types of piles
(steel or concrete), and depending on the source/type of timber, timber piles may not be
suitable for heavier loads.
A main consideration regarding timber piles is that they should be protected
from rotting above groundwater level. Timber will last for a long time below the groundwater
level. For timber to rot, two elements are needed: water and oxygen. Below the groundwater
level, oxygen is lacking even though there is ample water. Hence, timber tends to last for a
long time below groundwater level. It has been reported that some timber piles used during
16th century in Venice still survive since they were below groundwater level. Timber that is to
be used above the water table can be protected from decay and insects by numerous forms
of wood preservation using pressure treatment (ACQ, CCA, creosote, etc.).

Splicing timber piles is still quite common and is the easiest of all the piling materials to splice.
The normal method for splicing is by driving the leader pile first, driving a steel tube (normally
60100 cm long, with an internal diameter no smaller than the minimum toe diameter) half its
length onto the end of the leader pile. The follower pile is then simply slotted into the other end
of the tube and driving continues. The steel tube is simply there to ensure that the two pieces
follow each other during driving. If uplift capacity is required, the splice can incorporate bolts,
coach screws, spikes or the like to give it the necessary capacity.

STEEL
Pipe piles are a type of steel driven pile foundation and are a good candidate for
battered piles.
Pipe piles can be driven either open end or closed end. When driven open end, soil is
allowed to enter the bottom of the pipe or tube. If an empty pipe is required, a jet of
water or an auger can be used to remove the soil inside following driving. Closed end
pipe piles are constructed by covering the bottom of the pile with a steel plate or cast
steel shoe.
In some cases, pipe piles are filled with concrete to provide additional moment capacity
or corrosion resistance. In the United Kingdom, this is generally not done in order to
reduce the cost. In these cases corrosion protection is provided by allowing for a
sacrificial thickness of steel or by adopting a higher grade of steel. If a concrete filled

pipe pile is corroded, most of the load carrying capacity of the pile will remain intact due
to the concrete, while it will be lost in an empty pipe pile.
The structural capacity of pipe piles is primarily calculated based on steel strength and
concrete strength (if filled). An allowance is made for corrosion depending on the site
conditions and local building codes.
Steel pipe piles can either be new steel manufactured specifically for the piling industry
or reclaimed steel tubular casing previously used for other purposes such as oil and gas
exploration.
H-Piles are structural beams that are driven in the ground for deep foundation
application. They can be easily cut off or joined by welding or mechanical drive-fit
splicers. If the pile is driven into a soil with low pH value, then there is a risk of
corrosion, coal-tar epoxy or cathodic protection can be applied to slow or eliminate the
corrosion process. It is common to allow for an amount of corrosion in design by simply
over dimensioning the cross-sectional area of the steel pile. In this way the corrosion
process can be prolonged up to 50 years.

PRESTRESSED CONCRETE PILES

Concrete piles are typically made with steel reinforcing and prestressing tendons to
obtain the tensile strength required, to survive handling and driving, and to provide
sufficient bending resistance.

Long piles can be difficult to handle and transport. Pile joints can be used to join two or
more short piles to form one long pile. Pile joints can be used with both precast and
prestressed concrete piles

COMPOSITE PILE
Composite pile is a pile made of steel and concrete members that are fastened together,
end to end, to form a single pile. It is a combination of different materials or different
shaped materials such as pipe and H-beams or steel and concrete.

FACTORS INFLUENCING CHOICE OF PILE:

Location and type of structure

Ground conditions

Durability

Cost
There are many factors that can affect the choice of a piled foundation. All factors
need to be considered and their relative importance taken into account before reaching a
a final decision.

LOCATION AND TYPE OF STRUCTURE

For structures over water, such as wharves and jetties, driven piles or driven cast-inplace piles (in which the shell remains in place) are the most suitable. On land the choice

is not so straight forward. Driven cast-in-place types are usually the cheapest for
moderate loadings. However, it is often necessary for piles to be installed without
causing any significant ground heave or vibrations because of their proximity to existing
structures. In such cases, the bored cast-in-place pile is the most suitable. For heavy
structures exerting large foundation loads, large-diameter bored piles are usually the
most economical. Jacked piles are suitable for underpinning existing structures.

GROUND CONDITIONS
Driven piles cannot be used economically in ground containing boulders, or in clay when
ground heave would be detrimental. Similarly, bored piles would not be suitable in loose
water-bearing sand, and under-reamed bases cannot be used in cohesionless soils since
they are susceptible to collapse before the concrete can be placed.

DURABILITY
This tends to affect the choice of material. For example, concrete piles are usually used
in marine conditions since steel piles are susceptible to corrosion in such conditions and
timber piles can be attacked by boring molluscs. However, on land, concrete piles are not
always the best choice, especially where the soil contains sulphates or other harmful
substances.

COST
In coming to the final decision over the choice of pile, cost has considerable importance.

The overall cost of installing piles includes the actual cost of the material, the times
required for piling in the construction plan, test loading, the cost of the engineer to
oversee installation and loading and the cost of organisation and overheads incurred
between the time of initial site clearance and the time when construction of the
superstructure can proceed.

LOAD CARRYING CAPACITY OF PILE FOUNDATION:

The load carrying capacity of pile foundation can be calculated by static and dynamic
formulae as given below:

STATIC FORMULAE:Meyerhofs formula:Granular soils:

Point bearing capacity of pile increases with depth in sands and reaches its maximum at
an embedment ratio L/D = (L/D)cr.
Therefore, the point load capacity of pile is
Q pu = Ap .q. N q* < A.Q ul
Q ul = 0.5P a N tan *

P a = Atmospheric pressure

(L/D)cr value typically ranges from 15D for loose to medium sand to 20D for dense
sands.
Correlation of limiting point resistance with SPT value
Qul =0 .4(N)L/D 4Pa(N)
N value shall be taken as an average for a zone ranging from 10D above to 4D below
the pile point.

Saturated Clays:
Qpu = Nc*.Cu.Ap = 9.Cu.Ap
Vesic formula:Qpu = Ap.qup = Ap(C.Nc* + o.Nq)

DYNAMIC FORMULAE:Engineering news record formula:Qa = 2whh/S+ C

or
Qa = 2E/S + C
where , Qa = allowable pile capacity,
r = weight of ram,
H = height of fall of ram, ft.
s = amount of pile penetration per blow, in./blow
CC == 11.0 for drop hammer
C = 0.1 for steam hammer
E = driving energy
h= efficiency of hammer
The Engineering-New formula given before has a built-in factor of 6. Tests have
shown that this formula is not reliable for computing pile loads, and it should be
avoided except as a rough guide.

Danish formula:Qult = h (Ek)/S + 0.5 So

where,
Qult = ultimate capacity of the pile
h = effeciency of pile hammer
Ek = manufacturers hammer energy rating
S = average penetration of the pile from the last few driving blows
So = elastic compression of the pile
So == 2hEkL/AE
L = length of pile
A = cross-sectional area of pile
E = modulus of Elasticity of pile material
Statistical studies indicate that a factor of safety of 3 should be used as a field control
during pile driving to indicate when desired pile driving to indicate when desired pile
capacity has been obtained.

Hiley formula:Qu = (Whbh)/(S+0.5C)

where, h = efficiency of hammer
h = height of free fall
S = final penetration per blow

C = sum of temporary elastic compression of pile, dolly, packings and ground

PILE LOAD TEST

Load tests determine the allowable load, the settlement under working load, or the
soundness of a pile. Load tests may be conducted in compression or tension. Lateral
load tests are seldom justified. The following considerations must be made.

The test piles should be of the same type and driven by the same equipment as for
construction.

Test loading should not be initiated less than 24 hours after driving piles in
cohesionless soils and not less than 7 days in cohesive soils.

The load is usually applied by a hydraulic jack reacting against dead weights or
against a yoke fastened to a pair of anchor piles (as shown in figure ). Anchor piles
should beat least 5 test pile diameters from the test pile.

The test load should be twice the proposed design load as estimated from the dynamic
formula, static formula, or other means.

Readings of settlement and rebounds should be referred to a deep benchmark

and recorded to 0.001 feet.
Procedures:
The loading procedure may be carried out either by the continuous load method or the
constant rate of penetration (CRP) method.

Continuous load: The load is applied in seven increments, equal to , , 1, 1, 1 ,

1, and 2 times the allowable load assumed for design. The load is maintained constant

at each increment until there is no settlement in a 2 hour period. The total test load should
remain in place until settlement does not exceed 0.002 feet in 48 hours. The total load
should be removed in decrements not exceeding one fourth of the total test load with
intervals of not less than one hour. There bound should be recorded after each
decrement is removed. A curve may then be prepared showing the relationship between
the load and deflection (figure 5-6). This procedure is most reliable where it is necessary
to estimate the settlement of piles under the design load. The allowable load is taken as
one half that which caused a net settlement of not more than inch or gross
settlement of 1 inch, whichever is less. The continuous load method is rarely justified in
military construction because of the excessive time requirements.

Constant rate of penetration : The pile is jacked into the ground at a constant rate,
and a continuous record of the load and deformation is taken. The test proceeds
rapidly and requires the services of several observers. Results of the test are not too
sensitive to the rate of penetration. The load is increased until the pile fails by
plunging or the capacity of the equipment is reached. Results of the test are plotted
(figure 5-7). The allowable load is considered to be 50 percent of the ultimate
bearing capacity defined by the intersection of lines drawn tangent to the

two basic portions of the load settlement curve. The constant penetration rate
method, a very rapid test, is particularly suited for military construction.

LIMITATIONS OF PILE LOAD TEST

Pile load tests do not take into account the effects of group action on bearing capacity
unless a group of piles is loaded. The settlement of a pile group is not generally
related to the settlement recorded during a load test on a single pile. Settlement must be
estimated as discussed below from consideration of soil compressibility within
the zone of the influence (figure 5-6).

Bearing stratum resistance : Where piles are driven through compressible

soil strata into a bearing stratum of sand or other firm material, the allowable pile load is
based on the carrying capacity of the bearing stratum without depending on the shortterm frictional resistance of the compressible soils . With pile load tests, it is
generally not possible to distinguish between the short term carrying capacity of the
compressible soil and the long-term carrying capacity of the bearing stratum. The capacity
of the bearing stratum can be obtained by testing the pile inside the hollow casing or by
making a load test on two piles driven about 5 feet apart. One pile is driven to refusal in
the bearing stratum while the other is driven to within 3 feet of the bearing stratum. The
difference in the ultimate loads for the two piles is equal to the carrying capacity of the
bearing stratum.

PILE GROUPS
Piles are more usually installed in groups, rather than as single piles. A pile group must
be considered as a composite block of piles and soil, and not a multiple set of single
piles. The capacity of each pile may be affected by the driving of subsequent piles in
close proximity. Compaction of the soil between adjacent piles is likely to lead to higher
contact stresses and thus higher shaft capacities for those piles. The ultimate capacity of

a pile group is not always dependent on the individual capacity of each pile. When
analysing the capacity of a pile group 3 modes of failure must be considered.

Single pile failure

Failure of rows of piles

Block failure
The methods of insertion, ground conditions, the geometry of the pile group and how the
group is capped all effect how any pile group will behave. If the group should fail as a
block, full shaft friction will only be mobilised around the perimeter of the block and so
any increase in shaft capacity of individual piles is irrelevant. The area of the whole base
of the block must be used in calculating the end bearing capacity and not just the base
areas of the individual piles in the group. Such block failure is likely to occur if piles are
closely spaced or if a ground-contacting pile cap is used. Failure of rows of piles is likely
to occur where pile spacing in one direction is much greater than in the perpendicular
direction.

UNDERREAMED PILES
Under reamed piles are bored cast-in-situ concrete piles having one or more bulbs
formed by enlarging the pile stem with a suitable cutting tool. Enlarged base in the form

of underream bulb made in the strata of good bearing provides larger bearing area and
piles of greater bearing capacity can be constructed. These piles have been extensively
used in India to support a wide variety of structures in almost all types of soil strata on
the basis of safety and economy.
Depending on these considerations these piles are being increasingly used for a wide
variety of structures, e.g., buildings both residential and industrial, transmission line, TV,
antenna and satellite tracking towers, tanks, over bridges, machine foundations and dry
docks etc.
The provision of bulbs is useful in two ways. It provides larger bearing area at greater
depths which are more firm and stable. It also serves as an anchor and keeps the
foundation stable in the event of any upward drag of the pile stem. The provision of more
than one bulb along the stem further improves the performance of the pile and the latter is
then called multi-underreamed pile.
For selecting an appropriate underreamed pile the variables are pile length, stem diameter
and number of bulbs. A general configuration of underreamed piles and typical details are
shown in fig.

The safe load on underreamed piles, like any other bored piles, can be determined from the
static formulae using soil properties. These formulae give ultimate capacity of pile and
after applying a suitable factor of safety safe loads are determined. But this approach is
reliable only if correlations are locally established for a particular area.
Qu = cNc Ab +cAs
where, Ab = area of enlarged base
Nc = 9
Adhesion factor , is 0.4.
Another direct approach is to perform field load tests on piles and determine safe load
from the load-deflection curves. This approach for safe loads is preferable but load tests
require elaborate set up and are costly. In the analysis developed herein, Finite Element
Approach has been adopted to analyze under reamed piles in various types of soils. In this
method all the complexities of the problems, like varying shape, boundary conditions and
loads are maintained as they are but the solutions obtained are approximate.