Identifier

etd-01092011-141358

Degree

Master of Science in Civil Engineering (MSCE)

Department

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Document Type

Thesis

Abstract

In offshore structures, battered piles have been used as an alternative to vertical piles because of their capability in resisting higher lateral loads. The foundations of the newly built I-10 Twin Span Bridge over Lake Pontchartrain, LA, mostly consist of battered piles group. Understanding the behavior of these batter pile group foundations under lateral loading is very important to the design of highway bridge foundations. This study focuses on the evaluation of the lateral responses of battered pile group subjected to lateral loading and assessment of the current design methodology used for the design of I-10 Twin Span Bridge over Lake Ponchartrain. A full-scale lateral load test was conducted at the M19 eastbound pier of the bridge, which consist of 24 prestressed concrete battered ( slope = 1:6) piles with spacing of 4.33B, where B is the pile width. The lateral responses of piles measured by Micro Electro Mechanical Sensor (MEMS) In-place inclinometers (IPI), were interpreted using a high order polynomial method in deduce the profile of lateral deformation, moments, soil resistance. The p-y curves for the given soil condition were then back-calcutaed. The M19 pier was also analyzed using the finite element program, FB-MultiPier program. The FB-MultiPier analysis, in general, over-predicted the lateral deformation behavior of the M19 eastbound pier as compared to IPI derived values. However, it verified the axial force calculated form strain gauges, which showed that the piles near the loading zone developed tensile forces whereas the piles located farther developed compressive forces. In addition, a statnamic lateral load testing that conducted on a separately located single vertical pile was analysed. The static load-deflection response was developed by deriving the static load from the statnamic loading and compared with the results of FB-MultiPier program as well as the LPILE program. The non-linear analyses using these programs over-predicted the measured lateral measured response; whereas the results of linear analysis results were very close to the measured values.

Date

2011

Document Availability at the Time of Submission

Release the entire work immediately for access worldwide.

Committee Chair

Abu-Farsakh, Murad

DOI

10.31390/gradschool_theses.2535

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