Geotechnics for Sustainable Infrastructure Development - Geotec Hanoi 2016, Phung (edit).

ISBN 978-604-82-1821-8

Prediction of deformation for monopile foundation under

horizontal cyclic multi directional loading

Le Viet Hung
Technische Universität Berlin, Germany. E-mail: hung.le@grundbau.tu-berlin.de
Frank Rackwitz
Technische Universität Berlin, Germany. E-mail: rackwitz@tu-berlin.de

Keywords: FEM, ANSYS, HCA-model, cyclic loading, monopile, lateral loading, multidirectional
loading, simple shear test

ABSTRACT: This paper considers the effects of multi directional loading on non-cohesive soils using an
explicit accumulation model (HCA-Model). This is a model to describe the soil behaviour under cyclic
loading. It utilises the FE method which allows the simulation of complicated boundary value problems.
The specially developed accumulation model is able to consider high-cyclic loadings with changes in the
load direction. Results of some simulations for monopile foundations under horizontal cyclic loading with
rotation in the load direction are presented in this paper. In addition, the calibration procedure for the used
material models based on element tests are described.

presented. Especially the effects of the multi

1. INTRODUCTION
The behaviour of soil under cyclic loading is very
complex. The accumulated strain is depending
upon the strain amplitude, average cyclic stress and
void ratio. Further to this, the direction of cyclic
loading has a significant effect on the deformation
behaviour of the soil. Although this is a three
dimensional problem in laboratory testing as well
as in design and simulation approaches this has
often been simplified to be a two dimensional
problem. In order to highlight this simplification
some basic analytical models for the prediction of
the deformation behaviour of monopile
foundations under the cyclic loading conditions are
presented. In addition to the analytical method, the
finite element method is an important tool used to
solve the complex boundary value problems. For
this numerical calculation a high-quality material
model is utilised to describe the soil behaviour. In
the following sections, the method of computation
using the High Cyclic Accumulation model for
cohesionless soil (HCA-Model after Niemunis et
al. (2005), Wichtmann (2005), Le (2015)) are
directional loading will be explained.
2. HCA-MODEL
2.1 Calculation procedure for the HCA-Model
For the FE calculations of the boundary value
problems with cyclic loading, there are two
fundamentally different ways of calculation: the
implicit and explicit method (implicit and explicit
are here not to be confused with the integration
algorithm). In an implicit procedure the cyclic
loading at each cycle is calculated based upon the
relationship of the stress-strain rate at many
increments. The accumulated strain results from
the not completely closed stress-strain hysteresis
due to the plastic strain at the re- and unloading
cycle. Because of this systematic error of the
material model and the numerical error of the
integration routine this method is confined to a
very limited number of loading cycles (N<50,
Niemunis (2002)). In order to investigate high
cyclic problems the explicit calculation method
delivers a more accurate result. The plastic strain in

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this approach is explicitly calculated with an
empirical approximation. The accumulation under
cyclic loading is analogue to the creep of a viscous
material. Instead of using the time t as the
reference the number of cycles N is being referred
to. This explicit method greatly reduces the
calculation effort (calculation time) and the
systematic error.
Figure 1.Calculation procedure with the HCA-Model
For the FE calculation with the HCA model a
conventional constitutive law is necessary in
addition to the explicit accumulation model. With
this constitutive law the monotonous loading up to
the average stress and the first two cycles are
implicitly calculated. In the second cycle the strain
paths at each integration point will be recorded.
These results in turn are required to determine the
strain amplitude . The algorithm for the
calculation of is described by Niemunis et
al. (2005) in detail. The strain amplitude is
an important input parameter for further calculation
steps. The calculation of subsequent cycles is done
explicitly with the accumulation model. Here the
plastic strain of each integration point is calculated
depending upon the increment of the cycle number.
The increment ∆ can be small at the beginning of
the calculation and larger with an increasing
number of cycles (at the beginning ∆ 0.1 and
th
at the 100,000 cycle ∆ 1,000). During the
explicit calculation the strain amplitude is
assumed to be constant. However, due to the
compression or loosening of the soil the amplitude
can change. This adaptation of the new
strain amplitude is carried out through the
implicitly calculated update cycles between the
explicit calculation steps.
For the implicit calculations the hypoplatic model
with intergranular stain (HYPiD) after Niemunis
and Herle (1997) and the iso-elasticity
(Triantafyllidis et al. (2011), Zachert (2015)) are
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used. With the HYPiD, the initial loading up to the
average stress and the first cycle can be calculated.
The second as well as the update cycles run with
iso-elasticity. Because of the "ratcheting" problem
(Wichtmann (2005), Prada (2011)) the calculation
with hypoplasticity on the second cycle and the
update cycle can lead to unrealistic deformation.
2.2 Formulation of the HCA-Model
For the numerical investigation in this study the
explicit accumulation model, based on the first
formulation after Niemunis et al. (2005),
Wichtmann (2005), was used. The accumulation of
stress can be described by the HCA-model with the
following stress-strain relationship:
(1)
Therein is the Jaumann stress rate. is a
stress-dependent elastic stiffness. is the strain
rate, the accumulation strain rate and the
rate of plastic strain. The accumulation is a
product of six partial functions and the direction
of accumulation :
(2)
The function , which is summarized in
Table 1, considers the influences of the strain
amplitude, number of cycles, void ratio, mean
pressure, stress ratio and the polarization change.
The approaches for these functions have been
studied by Wichtmann (2005) based on the results
of cyclic triaxial tests. The approach on the partial
function for the change in polarization was
investigated and optimized in the study from Le
(2015). Here, the results of the cyclic simple shear
tests were used.
2.3 Calibration of the constants for the HCAModel
For the determination of the parameters for the
HCA model three different methods are proposed
with different efforts and accuracies (Wichtmann
& Triantafyllidis (2011)):
• Estimating the parameters based on the
correlation between the particle size distribution
, and . This method is only
recommended for very rough estimates because
the grain texture (grain shape, roughness,
mineralogy) is not considered.
Table 1. Functions and constant of the HCA-Model
Influence Function Material constants for Berlin sand

Strain amplitude 2,05

10

exp 0,002
Number of cycle 0,022
8,5 · 10

1 0,325
Void ratio
1 0,688
0,55
Mean pressure exp 1
100 kPa
Stress ratio exp 1,96
1 · sin α
56
Polarization change
1,25 · 10
· ∆

• In the second method the parameters , ,
and can be estimated from the correlation
with , and . , and
aredetermined from a single cyclic triaxial
test. This method is proposed to be a minimum
standard
• Determination of the parameters with results of
eleven cyclic triaxial tests (nine drained and two
undrained tests). The drained tests are used for
the determination of , , , ,
and . Two undrained tests are required for
the determination of the stiffness parameters.
This method is highly recommended for the
determination of the parameters in a detailed
investigation.
In this study, Berlin sand was used for all of the
experimental investigation. This is a medium to
coarse sand with a degree of non-uniformity
of 3,3and an average particle diameter of
0,55. In Table 1, the set of parameters for
the HCA model are shown. These were calibrated
based on eleven cyclic triaxial tests following the
third method described above. The detailed
calibration procedure and the results of the cyclic
triaxial tests can be taken from the research work
from Le (2015). In addition, multi directional
simple shear tests were performed for the
determination of the parameters and
Figure 2 shows an example for the development of
the volume change und the strain rate in a simple
shear test which was used for calibration. The
shear direction of the cyclic loading was changed
by an angle of 90° after 5,000 cycles. It was
observed that, after the rotation of the load
direction (polarization change), the strain rate
immediately increases. This increase is only
temporarily and reduces again during the course of
the test. The strain rate then converges to the
previous value. During cyclic loading the
, orientation of the sand grains is defined by the
direction of the load cycles. After a change in the
load direction the sand grains must reoriented
themselves in the direction of the new load
direction. This causes a temporary increase in the
strain rate. This behaviour of deformation, due to a
change in the load direction under the influence of
diverse factors, was investigated. In Figure 3, the
results of four test series are presented. Those tests
were used to calibrate the parameters and
for the Berlin sand.
For calibration of the hypoplastic model with
intergranular strain the results of Oedometer tests
and monotonous triaxial tests were used. The
parameters for iso-elasticity were chosen so that
the FE calculations of a monopile under cyclic
loading without a change in the load direction
show comparable results to the calculation with
hypoplasticity. The parameters in Table 2 and 3
.
were used for the following numerical
investigation.

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Figure 2. Multi directioal simple shear test. Left: volume change, right: rate of the volume change before and after
the rotation of the load direction

Figure 3. Multi directioal simple shear test with change of shear direction showing a variation of:
a) density, b) amplitude, c) rotation angle, d) number of cycles before change the direction

64
Table 2. Parameters of the hypoplastic model with distribution of stress within the pile the first 1 m of
intergranular strain (HYPiD) for Berlin sand the pile above the seabed was modelled with a
ϕc[°] hs[MPa] N ed0 ec0 ei0 larger stiffness of 10 kPa. The vertical force
0,79 applied at the pile head due to the dead weight of
31,5 2300 0,30 0,391 0,688
1 the construction and the generator was
7800 kN. The horizontal force was distributed at
four opposite nodes located at the outer perimeter
α β mR mT R χ βr
of the pile head. The bending moment was applied
0,13 1,0 4,4 2,2 10-4 6,0 0,2
as a pair of forces in the direction of the pile axis at
two opposite nodes and in conformity with the
Table 3. Parameters of the iso-elasticity horizontal loading position. The interaction
between pile shaft and soil was simulated with the
C1c C3 C4 C5
Mohr-Coulomb contact applying a friction
600 4,30 0,60 0,20
coefficient of 0,5. Both the inner and outer
wall of the pile were modelled as a contact surface.
3. NUMERICAL CALCULATION FOR
The soil was homogeneous and had a lateral earth
MONOPILES
pressure of 0,35. All the nodes at the bottom
3.1 Model and boundary edge of the model are fixed. In addition, the
displacements of the radial outer nodes in x- and in
For the numerical investigation in this study the z-direction were blocked. These nodes could only
FE-program ANSYS 14.0 was used. The HCA- move vertically.
Model and the additional material models ware
implemented in the subroutine "USERMAT" for the 3.2 Loading steps
explicit calculation of the cyclic boundary
For the study of the deformation behaviour of the
problem.
monopile due to a sudden change in direction of
The FE-discretization of the model is shown in
cyclic loading some calculations with Berlin sand
Figure 4. A monopile with an outer diameter of
were performed. The parameter sets for the
5,0 m and a wall thickness of 4,5 cm was
HYPiD, the HCA-Model and the iso-elasticity are
modelled. The model pile has an embedment depth
shown in Table 1, 2 and 3. For all calculations the
of 30 m and protrudes 1,0 m above the seabed.
cyclic load was rotated at the pile head after 15,000
The soil around the pile was modelled within a
cycles by an angle α in the horizontal direction. A
radius of 20 m and underneath the pile tip the
total of 30,000 cycles were applied. The load on
distance to the model edge was 17,5 m.
the model pile was applied in the following steps:
• To create the primary stress state of the soil the
pile elements were duplicated. The duplicates
were assigned the properties of the soil. Then,
the pile elements were deactivated. Thereafter,
the weight of the soil with the initial geostatic
stresses was generated.
• In the next step, the pile elements with soil
properties were deactivated and replaced with
the element characteristics of steel ("Wish-in-
place method"). The total weight of the pile is
then activated.
• Application of the vertical force V 7800 kN
which represents the weight of the tower
Figure 4.FE-discretization of model calculated including the generator. At the same time, the
static load (average values of the cyclic
loading), bending moment M and shear force
For the 3D simulation, the 8-Node element
Q were applied. In the simulation the lateral
SOLID185 was used with linear shape function
force was always proportional to the moment
and full integration. The modulus of elasticity of
and was calculated with a ratio of M/H 37.
steel for the pile was 2,1 · 10 . For a uniform

65
• The calculation of the first cycle was carried out the static load ( 30.000 and
with hypoplasticity with intergranular strain. /37) and their direction remained unchanged.
The moment amplitude M and horizontal At the beginning, the soil had an initial density of
force amplitude Q were applied at the same 0.75. It can be seen that the settlement of the
time. pile increases suddenly during the change in the
• The second cycle was calculated with iso- load direction. The horizontal displacement,
elasticity. Here, the strain path of the individual however, was not affected by the change in the
integration points was recorded. load direction. Although there was no cyclic
• The explicit calculation was carried out up to component in the x-axis after the change of the
15,000 cycles. At the beginning, an increment load direction the displacement of the pile still
of ∆N 0.1 was used. This increment was accumulated in this direction.
increased to ∆N 1 between the 2nd and 100th
cycle, from 100th to 1,000th cycles is ∆N 10
and thereafter ∆N 100. The explicit
calculation in this study was performed without
update cycles.
• The change in load direction was started with an
implicit calculation with iso-elasticity.
Thereafter, the cyclic loading in the new
direction was performed in the same manner as
the first cycle package (at the beginning
∆N 0.1, then ∆N 100).

3.3 Results of the simulation

In Figure 5, the horizontal displacement of the pile
head and the settlement are displayed over the Figure 5. Monopile under cyclic loading with a change
number of applied cycles. In this calculation, the of load direction after 15,000 cycle, angle of load
pile is loaded with two cycle package. After the direction 90°
first package the direction of the cyclic component
is rotated at an angle of 90°. The magnitude of

Figure 6. Horizontal displacement of the pile head due to change of load direction, variation of the rotation angle

66
Figure 6 shows further simulations which
highlights the influence of the magnitude of the
rotation angle. For these calculations the rotation
angle α was varied between 30°, 45° and 90°.
The amplitude of the moment
15.000 and the other parameters remained
unchanged for all calculations. It can be observed
that, after the rotation of load direction, the
horizontal displacement at the pile head has a light
influence. Although the cyclic loading after 15,000
cycles was no longer in x-direction, there was still
accumulation of displacement in this direction. In
general, the influence of the rotation angle α can be
seen in the course of the pile head displacement but
it was relatively small compared to the total
amount of deformation.
4. CONCLUSIONS
The simple shear tests with variation of load
direction have shown that the direction change has
a considerable influence on the deformation
behaviour of the soil. Directly after rotation of the
load direction the strain rate showed an abrupt rise.
This change was temporarily and settled again
during the following cycle.
The HCA model with its explicit calculation
method allowed the investigation of boundary
value problems with cyclic loading. The
parameters for the material model were calibrated
with cyclic laboratory tests. In the focus of multi-
directional stress the function of HCA model
was formulated for the change in load direction
with two material constants and . The
approach for these two constants are based on the
results of the multi directional simple shear tests.
A monopile under cyclic horizontal load was
modelled with the FE program ANSYS. It was
noted that the change in the load direction has an
influences on the horizontal deformation behaviour
of the pile.
5. REFERENCES
Le, V. H. (2015): „Zum Verhalten von Sandunter
zyklischer multidirektionaler Beanspruchung im
Einfachscherversuch“. Technische Universität
Berlin, Helf 66, Berlin, Dissertation.
Niemunis, A., Herle, I. (1997): “Hypoplastic
model for cohesionless soils with elastic strain
range”. In: Mechanics of Cohesive-Frictional
Materials 2, pp 279-299.
Niemunis A. (2002): „Extended hypoplastic
models of soils”. Institut für Grundbau und
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Bodenmechanik, Ruhr-Universität Bochum,Helf
34.
Niemunis A., Wichtmann T., Triantafyllidis T.
(2005): “A high-cycle accumulation model for
sand”. In Computers and Geotechnics, Vol. 32,
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Prada, L. (2011): “Paraelastic description of small-
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Institutes für Bodenmechanik und Felsmechanik
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Wichtmann, T., Triantafyllidis, T. (2011):
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