Preparing Laboratory Model for A Pre-Fabricated Friction Pile Driven in Sand in Normal Gravity (1g).

Abstract

Understanding the mechanism of friction pile within the soil and its effects on the bearing capacity equation, in order to develop this equation, it requires implementing many field experiments with the real scale of the pile because it shows the real behavior and gives reliability to the parameters used within the equation. However, applying field experiments is costly and is not easy technique. Therefore, when researchers work with hypotheses related to pile’s parameters, they try to transfer the real scale from the field to the laboratory scale depending on physical modelling. So, this leads us to a correct extrapolation of the general behavior of the model. Then, experiments with the real scale will be done. Physical modeling is done based on the theories of geometric similarity and non-dimensional analysis, and is done in different ways, whether under natural conditions or in a centrifuge.

            This research aims to design a laboratory experiment based on the mathematical rules of the two previous theories and based on previous studies by conducting a static loading test for a square pile and investigate its behavior during the experiment.

            The equipment that is used, the mechanism for selecting its dimensions and the method of operation were clarified depending on previous researches and studies for laboratory scale. So, four static load tests were carried out for a square-section pile model, bored in uniform grade sand, and the loads and transitions with time were recorded electronically. By repeating the same steps with high accuracy, and the results of the four tests show that the behavior of the model according to the proposed experiment resemble the real one, and therefore it can be adopted to extrapolate the effect of changing different parameters on the pile and compare the results with the results of the basic model in this research.