Smooth particle hydrodynamics for the analysis of stresses in soil around Jack-in Pile

Abstract

Jack-in pile installation generates large deformations in the surrounding soil. These deformations cause significant changes in soil stress levels. Variations in these stress levels greatly influence the pile bearing capacity. Therefore, prediction of stresses in soil during the installation phase is crucial. As such, the paper introduces smooth particle hydrodynamics (SPH) model for simulating stresses in soil around jacking pile. Pile and soil are modelled with means of proposed von Mises and Drucker–Prager plane strain constitutive models on space. SPH model is introduced with the capability to model pile as an elastic-perfectly plastic material from the soil surface to the final penetration depth. The model further provides visual representation of both horizontal and vertical soil stress fields throughout the installation. Numerical results achieved with aid of proposed model have established good correlation with formerly published experimental solutions. In addition, results published using material point method (MPM) are compared. SPH model highlights its capability through successful modelling of the complex phenomenon with reduced simplified assumptions. Thus, the proposed model is a promising numerical approach.