Mechanisms of Shaft Friction in Sand from Instrumented Pile Tests

Abstract

Comprehensive measurements of the effective stresses developed during the installation, equalization, and load testing of displacement piles in a loose to medium dense quartz sand are presented. The results shed new light on the mechanisms that control shaft friction in sand. First, it is demonstrated directly that the stresses developed at any given soil horizon depend strongly on both the distance of that horizon from the pile tip and the soil's initial state. Second, pile loading is shown to induce radial effective stress changes associated with the soil fabric set up by installation and dilation phenomena at pile‐soil interface. Thirdly, the operational angles of interface friction are found to be constant volume values that correlate well with the results from laboratory interface shear tests.