Procedures Used for Dynamically Laterally Loaded Pile Tests in a Centrifuge

Abstract

Abstract Most of the experimental work carried on pile behavior on centrifuge has been limited to monotonic or cyclic loading, or both. As dynamic loads generated by shocks and earthquakes are difficult to model in centrifuge, not much work has been reported in the literature on the impact mechanism to produce shock in-flight, though seismic loads can be well simulated by in-flight shakers. A complete experimental procedure, i.e., hammering system, measurements, and test procedures, has been developed to test on centrifuge lateral impact on piles. In the first part of the paper following the test procedure, the experimental set-up is detailed from the soil preparation and piles equipment to the horizontal hammering or impact system. Innovative parts of the system such as the impact system and its monitoring are described. The second part describes the feasibility and the practice of the impact device and the adopted procedure to test on centrifuge different types of piles _jacked, cast-in, and 1 g driven_ in sand. The first series of tests are focused on the evaluation of possible errors and influences due to pile position, boundary effects, and repeatability of tests. Scale effects have been studied by carrying out a series of modeling of models tests at 40 and 60 g. In conclusion, all these preliminary centrifuge tests have demonstrated that the complete experimental set-up including the impact system and its use procedure is achieved and able to perform horizontal impacted piles tests on centrifuge.