Analysis of behaviours of single pile and pile groups subjected to lateral loading by 3D finite element

Abstract

Pile is one of the key elements of a building, which is responsible for supporting the weight of the structure and transferring it into the ground. Usually, the pile not only transfers the weight, which is the vertical force but also the lateral force. Therefore, the behaviour of single pile and pile groups subjected to lateral loading should be investigated. In this study, the behaviour of one-directional lateral loading of a single pile and pile groups was analysed by a 3D finite element method (FEM), and their results were compared with the experimental ones of physical model tests of the previous studies. In addition, the effects of influence zone on the behaviour of pile group were also investigated. The followings are found. Firstly, the relationship between the lateral pile load and pile deflection analysed by the 3D FEM are close to the ones observed from the physical model test. Secondly, the pile arrangements in the box pattern are more susceptible to the shadow and edge effects than the ones in the side-by-side pattern. With increasing the pile spacing in a pile group, the effect of influence zone decreases and thus the pile group efficiency increases. The pile group efficiency can be explained by the influence zone, which can be visualized and illustrated by 3D FEM performed in this study.