Foundation Engineering Deep Foundations

5. DEEP FOUNDATIONS

5.1. Introduction

There are times when, because of economic or physical restrictions, or perhaps unusually
heavy loads, site with poor bearing capacity cannot be improved by procedures such as
compaction, chemicals, or preloading etc.. In such cases the building loads are transmitted to
a deeper, more suitable soil or rock formation via piles, drilled piers, or caissons. Foundations
that encompass piles, drilled piers, or caissons are generally classified deep foundations.

The functional features common to deep foundations include their subject to an axial
compressive load, although some lateral forces are usually inevitable; also, sometimes piles
and caissons serve as anchors for special installations (e.g. guy lines, certain underpinning
designs). The difference between drilled piers and caissons lies primarily in their physical
size and method of installation.

In general, a deep foundation is more expensive than an ordinary spread footing design. On
the other hand, it is frequently more economical and, generally, much more reliable than
procedures associated with soil stabilization. Indeed a subsurface evaluation should always be
viewed as a most important prerequisite in the context of foundation selection.

5.2. Piles

Piles are structural members of timber, concrete, and/or steel, relatively slender columns that
are used to transmit surface loads to lower levels in the soil mass. This transfer may be by
vertical distribution of the load along the pile shaft or a direct application of load to a lower
stratum through the pile point. A vertical distribution of the load is made using a friction (or
floating) pile a direct load application is made by a point, or end-bearing, pile. This
distinction is purely one convenience since all piles carry load as a combination of side
resistance and point bearing except when the pile penetrates an extremely soft soil to a solid
base.

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Piles are commonly used for the following purposes:

(i) To carry the superstructure loads into or through a soil stratum. Both vertical and
lateral loads may be involved.
(ii) To resist uplift, or overturning, faces, such as for basement mats below the water table
or to support tower legs subjected to overturning from lateral load such as wind.
(iii) To compact loose, cohesionless deposits through a combination of pile volume
displacement and driving vibrations. These piles may be later pulled.
(iv) To control settlements when spread footings or a mat is on a marginal soil or is
underlain by a highly compressible stratum.
(v) To stiffen the soil beneath machine foundations to control both amplitudes of
vibration and the natural frequency of the system.
(vi) As an additional safety factor beneath bridge abutments and/or piers, particularly if
scour is a potential problem.
(vii) In offshore construction to transmit loads above the water surface through the water
and into the underlying soil. This case is one in which partially embedded piling is
subjected to vertical (and buckling) as well as lateral loads.

Figure 5.2.1 Typical pile configurations. Note that, whereas analysis is often for a single pile, there are usually three
or more in a group. Typical assumptions for analysis are shown. Lateral load H may not be present in (a) or (b).

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Piles diameter (or equivalent dimension) is generally 750mm or less; this is a commonly used
dimension to delineate piles from driller piers or caissons.

Some of the considerations related to the selection of the type of piles are (i) corrosive
properties of the stratum, (ii) fluctuations in the water table (and possibly related dry-rotting
effects associated with such fluctuations), (iii) ease of installation, (iv) length requirement,
(v) availability of material, (vi) installation equipment, (vii) restrictions on driving noise and
vibrations, and (viii) cost.

When a pile foundation is decided upon, it is necessary to compute the required pile cross
section and length based on the load from the superstructure, allowable stress from the pile
material (usually a code value), and in-situ soil properties. Dynamic formulas, pile-load test,
or a combination are used on site to determine if the piles are adequately designed and
placed. It is generally accepted that a load test is the most reliable means of determining the
actual pile capacity.

It is common practice to design and test single piles, even when they are part of a pile group
or cluster. It is important to note that, depending on the number of piles, pile spacing, method
of installation, soil characteristics, and load distribution, the behavior of a group or composite
of piles may not be totally reflective of that of the individual piles. For example, it is likely
that the load capacity of the composite is less than that of the sum of individual piles. For
example, it is likely that the load capacity of the composite is less than that of the sum of the
individual piles. The efficiency of a pile group is less than that of an individual pile in soil
formations, but may approach 100% efficiency for piles bearing directly on rock. Also the
settlement of the pile group is likely to be greater that of an individual pile, or corresponding
load per pile, in soil formations.

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Ultimate capacity of a Single Pile

The pile support is realized from two sources: (i) end bearing and (ii) side friction.
From static equilibrium:
Qu = Qp + Qs ……………………………………….. (5.2.1)
Where: Qu = total pile load.
Qp = point resistance (end-bearing).
Qs = side-friction resistance.
In general Qp may be estimated as,
………………….. (5.2.2)
The total supports provided by friction Qs is estimated as follows:

Where: p – perimeter of the pile.

L – length of pile.
ss – average shear resistance per unit area.

Figure 5.2.2 Components of forces

in determining the ultimate bearing
capacity of a single pile.

An average unit resistance ss is perhaps difficult to ascertain because of its wide variation
over the length of the pile. Hence, for a layered system and/or varied sections,
……………………… (5.2.3)
Substituting (5.2.2) and (5.2.3) into (5.2.1)
………….. ………(5.2.4)

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As a special case, for uniform soil strength (ss = constant) or constant pile section (p =
constant) and round piles of radius R, we have,

Where: Qu = ultimate bearing capacity of a single pile

Ssi = shaft resistance per unit area at any point along pile
B = general dimension for pile width
Ap = cross-sectional area of pile at point (bearing end)
R = radius of pile at a given increment of length
Pi = perimeter of pile in contact with soil at any point
L = total length of embedment of pile
 = unit weight of soil
= effective cohesion of soil
Nc, Nq, N = bearing capacity factors.

Figure 5.2.3 Piles in soil. Pile-to-soil friction tan defined for pile perimeters shown.

Friction Piles in Cohesionless Soils

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For cohesionless soils, c = 0, furthermore, the N term is relatively small. Hence, the bearing
capacity formula reduces to:

Experimental evidence and field observations indicate that the end-bearing capacity reaches
some upper limit, and doesn’t increase infinitely with depth as dictated by the equation. It
appears that crushing, compressibility, and general failure in the zone near the pile tip, as well
as other factors, impose an upper limit on the ultimate bearing capacity of a given pile. The
tip resistance could be represented by,

Where: = effective overburden pressure at the pile tip.

= limiting value of overburden pressure for end bearing.
It is suggested:

To compute the skin resistance ss could be estimated by:

Where: Ks = average coefficient of earth pressure on the pile shaft.

= average effective overburden pressure along the pile shaft.
 = angle of skin friction.
tan = coefficient of friction between soil and pile surfaces.
Ks may range from a value equal to an earth pressure coefficient at rest K0, to a value
equivalent to some passive pressure, approximately 3 to 4 times this value. The lower values
are generally associated with bored or jacketed piles into loose granular material, while the
upper range applies for driven or pressure injected piles into relatively dense material.

Finally Qu can be expressed as,

The parameters in the above equations are obtained from the following graphs and tables.

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Figure 5.2.4 Berezantsev’s bearing capacity factor, N

Foundation Engineering Deep Foundations

Figure 5.2.6 Relationship between angle of

shearing resistance and cone resistance for an
Figure 5.2.5 Relationship between STP N-values uncemented, normally consolidated quartz
and angle of shearing resistance (after Peck et al) sand (after Durgunoglu and Mitchell).

Table 5.2.1 Values of the coefficient of horizontal soil stress Ks (after Kulhawy)
Installation method Ks / K 0
Driven piles, large displacement 1-2
Driven piles, small displacement 0.75 – 1.75
Bored and cast-in-place piles 0.71 - 1
Jetted piles 0.5 – 0.7

Table 5.2.2 Values of the angle of pile to soil friction for various interface conditions

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(after Kulhawy)
Pile/soil interface condition Angle of pile/soil friction ()
Smooth (coated) steel/sand 0.5’ to 0.7’
Rough (corrugated) steel/sand 0.7’ to 0.9’
Precast concrete/sand 0.8’ to 1.0’
Cast-in-place concrete/sand 1.0’
Timber/sand 0.8’ to 0.9’

Figure 5.2.7 Limiting values of pile end-bearing resistance for solid end
Piles in cohesionless soils (after te Kamp)

Material and load safety factors based on limit states (Euro codes provisions)

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Partial factors on material properties for conventional design situations for ultimate limit
states.

Material property Partial factor, m

Tan 1.2 – 1.25
c’, cu 1.5 – 1.8

Design bearing capacity of pile foundation,

Where: Qd = design bearing capacity of the foundation

Qpk = characteristic value of the resistance of the soil or rock beneath the base.
Qsk = characteristic value of the friction mobilized on the sides of the foundation.
s and p are partial safety factors for skin friction and base resistance respectively.
Piles s p
Driven piles 1.3 1.3
Bored piles 1.3 1.6

Euro code 7 requires that the characteristic values qsk and qpk do not exceed the measured
bearing capacities used to establish the correlation divided by 1.5 on average.

Friction piles in cohesive soils

Piles driven into soft saturated clays tend to

(i) disturb the clay around the pile,
(ii) increase the pore water pressure,
(iii) increase compressibility in the clay, and
(iv) Remold the clay to varying degrees for a distance of approximately one pile diameter.
Temporarily there is an apparent loss of pile capacity. However, the pore water pressure
dissipates rather rapidly, and after some consolidation the shear strength is regained,

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frequently exceeding the initial value. The increased densities, consolidation effects, and
increased horizontal stress after pile driving contribute to an increase in the frictional
resistance between soil and pile. This recovery normally takes place within 30 days –
ordinarily less than the time in which the total building load is applied to the pile.

The design curves in figure 5.2.8 apply essentially to piles carrying light to moderate loading
driven to a relatively shallow penetration into the bearing stratum. In this condition the
superficial soils overlying the bearing stratum have a significant influence on the skin friction
developed below. Where heavy loads are carried, as in the case of piles in offshore petroleum
production platforms, the piles may be driven very deeply into the bearing stratum. For this
condition the influence of the superficial soils is neglected, but the magnitude of the
overburden becomes important. The combination result of figure 4.2.9 applies in such cases.

Figure 5.2.8 Adhesion factors for driven piles in clay. (a) Case 1: piles driven through overlying sands or sandy
gravels. (b) Case 2: piles driven through overlying weak clay. (c) Case 3: piles without different overlying strata.

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Figure 5.2.9 Adhesion factors for heavily-loaded piles driven to deep penetration. (a) Peak adhesion factor versus c u/’vo. (b) Length factor.
Foundation Engineering Deep Foundations

Where ’vo is the existing vertical overburden pressure.

The carrying capacity of piles driven into clays and clayey silts is equal to the sum of the end
bearing resistance and the skin friction of that part of the shaft in contact with the soil which
is giving support to the pile, i.e. not including any superficial soil layers which are
undergoing consolidation and causing a drag down force on the shaft.

The end resistance is given by the equation.

Qp = qpAp = NccupAp
 The bearing capacity factor Nc can be taken as being equal to 9 provided that the pile is
driven at least five diameters into the bearing stratum.
 The undrained shear strength cup at the base of the pile is taken as the undisturbed shear
strength provided that time is given for a regain from remoulded to undisturbed shear
strength conditions.
 When applying the Euro-code 7 recommendations the selected cup value is divided by
the materials factor m of 1.5 – 1.8.

The skin friction on the pile shaft is given by the equation.

Where: qs = design ultimate unit shaft friction,

 = adhesion factor which is obtained from figure 5.2.8 or Fp from figures 5.2.9
(a) and (b),
= average undrained shear strength over the depth of the pile shaft or within an
individual soil layer,

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As = surface area of shaft over the embedded depth within clay, giving support to
the pile or within an individual soil layer.
 is divided by the material factor m of 1.5 – 1.8 (Euro-codes recommendations).

The working load for all pile types is equal to the sum of the base resistance and the shaft
friction divided by a suitable safety factor taking into account the range of adhesion factors.
A safety factor of 2.5 is reasonable on this sum, namely,

Allowable load,

Also Qa should not be more than,

For bored and cast-in-place piles in cohesive soils the bearing capacity factor Nc of 9 can be
taken for base resistance in all types of clay, provided that the base of the pile penetrates at
least five diameters into the bearing stratum. In cases where no published information or load
test results are available, the curves in figure 5.2.10 can be used for the determination of
ultimate skin friction. A safety factor of 2.5 on the ultimate load as given by the sum of the
base resistance and skin friction should ensure that the settlement at the working load will not
exceed a tolerable value for piles with diameters not exceeding about 600mm.

Figure 5.2.10 Adhesion factors for piles in boulder clay (after Weltman and Healy)

Carrying capacity of piles in soils intermediate between sand and clay and layered soils

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The end resistance can be calculated from Brinch Hansen’s general equation of bearing
capacity using the undisturbed values of c’ and ’ from tests on soil samples. There are no
available data on the skin friction or adhesion of the pile shaft in c -  soils. However, it may
be taken as the sum of the adhesion and skin friction based on experience and using as a
guide the values given in figure 5.2.8. In the case of bored piles, due allowances should be
made for likely softening or loosening effect caused by the boring operations.

Where the pile toe is terminated in a layer of stiff clay or dense sand underlain by soft clay or
loose sand there is a risk of the pile punching through to the weak layer. The base resistance
of the pile in the strong layer where the thickness H between the pile toe, and the top of the
weak layer is less than the critical thickness of about 10B (figure 5.2.11) can be calculated
from Meyerhof’s equation.

Where, q0 and q1 are the ultimate base resistance in the lower weak and upper strong layers
respectively.

Figure 5.2.11 End-bearing resistance of piles in layered soils (after Meyerhof)

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