Analytical Model for Laterally Loaded Soil-Extended Pile Shaft Applied to Verifying the Applicability of Lateral PS Method

Abstract

This paper investigates the dynamic response of soil around a laterally vibrating extended pile shaft and its application to the lateral parallel seismic (PS) integrity testing method. Considering the high pile to soil relative stiffness ratio, a new analytical model is proposed incorporating an extended half-space soil model excited by the laterally vibrating pile. The developed equations of the analytical model are solved by employing the Fourier-Hankel integral transform. This scheme avoids the complicated pile–soil coupling analysis while maintaining high accuracy. The developed model and its analytical solution are then utilized to verify the applicability of the lateral PS method to predict the unknown pile length. The effects of pile and soil properties on the soil dynamic response and technical aspects of the PS test are investigated through a comprehensive parametric study. The obtained results demonstrate that the lateral PS test could be successfully used in practice to overcome the limitations of the low-strain pile integrity test (PIT).