Wave-induced liquefaction and instability of offshore monopile in a drum centrifuge

Abstract

This paper discusses the instability of an offshore monopile in association with wave-induced liquefaction of sand beds. Centrifuge wave tests in a drum channel were performed with viscous scaling introduced such that the time-scaling laws for fluid wave propagation and consolidation of the soil were matched. The relationships between liquefaction and the start and development of monopile instability in a sand bed under wave loading were investigated. The monopile started significant structural rocking when liquefaction occurred and progressed to one-third of the monopile embedment depth. The residual displacement of the pile increased markedly with the downward progress of the liquefied zone, eventually leading to the collapse of the pile. The characteristics of the onset of liquefaction around the monopile were also investigated. It was found that liquefaction first took place at the sides of the monopile rather than at the front or rear presented to the direction of the travelling waves, which highlights the importance of the rotation of the principal stress axes induced in the sand bed under the passage of progressive waves. The experimental results further demonstrated the effect of embedment of the pile in a dense layer. It was found that embedding the pile in the dense layer with thickness equal to or more than half of the pile embedment depth was effective in preventing the significant inclination and collapse of the pile. The present study also clarified the effects of scour protection around the monopile on wave-induced liquefaction and pile instability. It was found that the scour protection increased the liquefaction resistance depending on the diameter ratios of the scour protection and the pile, however, it could not prevent the collapse of the monopile once liquefaction occurred. These results show the importance of soil stratification on the wave-seabed-structure interaction in light of wave-induced liquefaction.