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Multi-scale sensitivity analysis of pile installation using DEM

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Abstract

The disturbances experienced by the soil due to the pile installation and dynamic soil–structure interaction still present major challenges to foundation engineers. These phenomena exhibit complex behaviors, difficult to measure in physical tests and to reproduce in numerical models. Due to the simplified approach used by the discrete element method (DEM) to simulate large deformations and nonlinear stress–dilatancy behavior of granular soils, the DEM consists of an excellent tool to investigate these processes. This study presents a sensitivity analysis of the effects of introducing a single pile using the PFC2D software developed by Itasca Co. The different scales investigated in these simulations include point and shaft resistance, alterations in porosity and stress fields and particles displacement. Several simulations were conducted in order to investigate the effects of different numerical approaches showing indications that the method of installation and particle rotation could influence greatly in the conditions around the numerical pile. Minor effects were also noted due to change in penetration velocity and pile–soil friction. The difference in behavior of a moving and a stationary pile shows good qualitative agreement with previous experimental results indicating the necessity of realizing a force equilibrium process prior to any load-test to be simulated.

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Acknowledgements

The present work was founded by the Brazilian government organ CAPES—Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior as part of a master’s research program. The support of the Itasca Consulting Group for developing the work reported in this paper is gratefully acknowledged.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil Engineering, PUC-Rio, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Ricardo Gurevitz Esposito, Raquel Quadros Velloso & Eurípedes do Amaral Vargas Jr

  2. Department of Civil Engineering, UERJ, Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Bernadete Ragoni Danziger

Authors
  1. Ricardo Gurevitz Esposito
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  2. Raquel Quadros Velloso
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  3. Eurípedes do Amaral Vargas Jr
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  4. Bernadete Ragoni Danziger
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Correspondence to Raquel Quadros Velloso.

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Esposito, R.G., Velloso, R.Q., Jr, E.d.A.V. et al. Multi-scale sensitivity analysis of pile installation using DEM. Comp. Part. Mech. 5, 375–386 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40571-017-0175-2

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