A Study on Lateral Resistance of Finned Piles in Sands

Abstract

Finned pile is the foundation system that often resists larger lateral loads effectively than regular pile. In present study, a series of model tests were conducted to study the effect of the fin shape, its position along pile length, fin number, and effect of relative density on lateral resistance of finned piles embedded in sand. Two fin shapes, i.e., rectangular and triangular were employed. Two- and four-finned piles were tested. The effect of fin position was also investigated by mounting the fins at top, middle, and bottom of piles, and an attempt is also made to recommend the optimum fin dimensions. The tests were conducted for piles of varying pile lengths embedded in sand having relative density of loose and dense states, respectively. The pile lengths were selected by using Brom’s (1964a, b) recommendations. It was observed that lateral resistance increases with increase in pile length and relative density of sand, four-finned piles carry larger load than two-finned piles. Also, the rectangular fins carry more load than triangular fins mounted close to pile head. Finally, the lateral resistance increased effectively with increase in fin length up to L_f/L_p of 0.4.