Numerical analysis of bearing capacity of drilled displacement piles with a screw-shaped shaft in sand

Abstract

ABSTRACTDrilled displacement (DD) piles with a screw-shaped shaft (referred to as DD piles) are installed using a continuous full thread hollow rod (without a displacement body) inserted and advanced in the soil by both a vertical force and a torque. As a type of newly developed pile, current understanding of the bearing mechanism of DD piles is unsatisfactory, which restricts their further applications in engineering. The primary aim of this paper is to study the bearing mechanism of this type of pile using a numerical method. First, a numerical model for calculating the bearing capacity of the DD piles was created and validated by a laboratory test. Then, the effects of the parameters of pile–soil interface, soil strength, and pile geometrical parameters on the bearing mechanism of the DD piles were investigated in parametric studies. The results of parametric studies show that the limit shear stress on the pile–soil interface, the friction angle of surrounding sand, screw pitch, and thread width significantly influence the bearing capacity of the DD piles, whereas the friction coefficient at the pile–soil interface and the thread thickness have little effect. Based on the results of the parametric studies, the failure mechanism of the DD piles under vertical load is analyzed. Finally, an equation for predicting the ultimate bearing capacities of helical piles based on cylindrical shear failure was used for estimating the bearing capacity of the DD piles, and the calculated results were verified with the numerical results.