Structural and geotechnical review of piers on foundations with pile integrity uncertainties

Abstract

Currently, an Inter Urban Train project is under construction in Mexico. Given the magnitude and importance of this work, quality control is an indispensable requirement; therefore, it is necessary to meticulously review conditions that could put at risk its structural and operational safety, as well as the entire infrastructure of the project. In this sense, a campaign of Pile Integrity Tests (PIT), was carried out to verify the condition of foundation piles. According to the results of PIT tests, provided to the authors by the company in charge of these tasks, 40 foundation piles with classification D or "doubtful" were detected, corresponding to 39 supports. Due to the possible "anomalies" of the foundation piles, detected by PIT tests, the structural and geotechnical behaviour of these supports had to be assessed by monitoring its behaviour from the structural and geotechnical points of view. To carry out the above, we performed pseudo-static and dynamic numerical analysis with elastic and inelastic mathematical models. Also, ambient field vibration studies in the supports were carried out with the aim of determining their dynamic characteristics and calibrate the mathematical models.