Lateral capacity of a two-pile group foundation model located near slope in sand

Abstract

The lateral response for a two-pile group foundation under the lateral load in sloping ground is studied by the experiment tests and lateral load-transfer approach. A simplified physical model is presented to evaluate the lateral response of a two-pile group foundation under lateral load in sloping ground by dint of three-dimensional failure wedge and hyperbolic p-y criterion, which considers the soil-pile and pile-pile interaction. Initially, the results of model tests of pile groups subjected to lateral load located near slope in homogeneous sand are analyzed, which considers the slope angle and pile spacing in homogeneous sand. The pile spacing and the slope angle have significant weakening effect on the lateral pile group's capacity, especially the slope angle. Furthermore, to validate the presented method, the finite difference program is adopted to assess the response of a two-pile group in sloping ground under lateral load and the load-displacement curves, the p-y curves and the change of bending moment with pile are discussed. The results indicates that the present method can be used to predict the lateral response of a two-pile group foundation in sloping ground.