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By Rich A. Lamb, Paul J. Axtell, Michael K. Muchard

"Since 2010, the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) has performed eight full-scale compressive load tests on large-diameter pipe piles at four different project locations across the state. All of the piles were 42-in diameter, open-ended pipes driven to practical refusal on sedimentary bedrock with D125-32 diesel hammers from three separate manufacturers. The rapid load test method in general accordance with ASTM D7383-10 (Statnamic method) was used along with high-strain dynamic testing and subsequent signal matching. Results of these tests indicate that the axial nominal resistance of these piles in compression is not controlled by geotechnical considerations when driven with an appropriately sized hammer and installation criterion. Rather, the predominantly elastic load-deflection behavior of the piles under compressive load suggests the axial nominal compressive resistance is controlled by the structural capacity of the pile. In all instances, the rapid load tests indicated a nominal resistance exceeding that produced by high-strain dynamic tests due to insufficient hammer energy to fully mobilize resistance. In all cases, the hammers used were able to easily install the piles through the soil overburden. Mobilizing a larger hammer simply to demonstrate high-strain dynamic resistance is not economical or practical. This paper presents the subsurface conditions at each location, the ensuing test results, and the ramifications for future projects in Minnesota utilizing large-diameter open-ended pipe piles.INTRODUCTIONThe Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) has recently performed eight full-scale compressive load tests on large-diameter pipe piles at four different project locations across the state. The four project locations described in this paper where pile load testing was performed are shown in Figure 1 and exist in the southeastern portion of Minnesota. The projects are all major bridges crossing the Mississippi River in three instances and the St. Croix River just above the Mississippi River in the other instance. The first project is the TH 61 Mississippi River crossing in Hasting, MN where two load tests were conducted. The second is the TH 36 St. Croix River crossing in Stillwater, MN where two load tests were performed. The third project is the I-90 Mississippi River crossing in Dresbach, MN where three load tests were conducted. The final project is the TH 43 Mississippi River crossing in Winona, MN where one load test was performed."

Jan 1, 2017

By Ihab Allam PE, Meeok Kim. PE. Ph. D

The wet weather equalization basin (EB) planned for Pacifica, CA is a 45 feet deep rectangular shaped underground water tank containing over 2.1 million gallons of water, and located only 500 feet away from the Pacific Ocean. The location and size of the water tank, and the geotechnical characteristics of the selected site presented many engineering and construction challenges. The engineering had to consider a structural system which can fit into the limited area of the site and yet need to meet the storage volume requirement. In addition, the system construction should meet the city’s tight budget and schedule.

By Grischa Dette, Thomas Schröder, Holger Merski

For the construction of the tunnel for the new Berlin S21 light rail line, a construction pit had to be built below the crossing B 96 federal road. For this purpose, the construction pit M’ has been built beforehand as a preliminary structure for the later S21 Berlin. A crucial element of this structure is a 2.50 m deep reinforced concrete deck slab which carries the B 96. During the later construction of the S21, it became clear that the existing preliminary structure could not be used without major modifications. Consequently, the construction pit design was gradually upgraded – still with the aim of retaining the basic concept of a trough structure with a jet-grouting cut-off. As construction progressed, for reasons of stability it became necessary to develop a fundamentally new concept with an underwater concrete base replacing the jet-grouting cutoff. This paper describes the planning and construction of a cut-and-cover structure with an underwater concrete base – a layout that brings with it the difficult task of underwater excavation and concrete placing without direct accessibility from above. Special emphasis is placed on describing the innovative approaches in connection with a remotely controlled underwater dredger from the Norwegian offshore industry for excavation works. Furthermore, the sophisticated underwater technologies for concrete placing in the confined surroundings are described.

May 1, 2022

By John P. Briand III, Douglas J. Aghjayan, Robert E. Fosse

This paper highlights the successful pile load testing program for the redevelopment of Pier One in East Boston, Massachusetts. Pier One is a 5.4-acre parcel on a dormant waterfront site used in the 1950s as a warehouse and distribution facility. The developer plans to re-use the existing 14-inch-diameter concrete-filled steel pipe piles to support four 5- to 7-story apartment buildings above a 2-story parking garage. A pile load testing program was developed to establish if the existing piles could support design loads of 240 kips for project financial feasibility and up to 300 kips for a significant reduction in future foundation costs. The Phase 1 program consisted of statnamic and dynamic load testing on two piles with two loading intervals (200 and 240 kips). Based upon the favorable results of the Phase 1 program, the Phase 2 program involved statnamic load testing on two piles and dynamic load testing on ten piles with three loading intervals (200, 240, and 300 kips). The Phase 2 program confirmed the favorable results which were applied across varying strata thicknesses and pile embedment depths. The average allowable capacity for the piles tested was greater than 300 kips with pile movement up to 0.3 inches.

By Bernard H. Hertlein

The introduction of LRFD methods for structural design has been a gradual process by AASHTO, ACI, AISC, ASCE, and the FHWA, which has largely been ignored by the deep foundations industry. In 2007, however, the industry has been obliged to embrace LRFD for any deep foundations on projects involving federal funds. The authors are concerned that the risks caused by the need for, and the difficulty of providing, reliable quality assurance, will result in unnecessarily high safety factors that will defeat part of the purpose of LRFD. A primary attraction of LRFD for owners and engineers alike is that it promises more efficient design, and therefore cost reductions. Unfortunately, a key element of LRFD philosophy is often overlooked - that the applied safety factors can be rationally reduced, often allowing less material to be used, thus saving costs, but only if all the risk factors involved are identified and closely controlled. This means that both the quality of the materials and the quality of the construction work must be adequately monitored, and held to an acceptable standard. In the case of deep foundations, the soil in which the foundation is constructed is also a critical component that must be taken into account in the assessment of risk factors.

Jan 1, 2007

By Terzis D. PhD, Katterbach M.

While awareness around the environmental impact of existing grout materials and chemical binders is increasing rapidly, biotechnologies are growing traction as sustainable alternatives in groundwork operations. Herein we present the principles and application methods of bio-grouting. The term is used to describe a system which is based on soil, groundwater or marine enzymes which are able to catalyze the production of calcite replicating a natural phenomenon. The system’s end result are mineral crystalline bridges which act as binders to improve the geotechnical properties of soils. This paper presents a comprehensive description of bio-grouts, their underlaying mechanisms contributing to mineralization as well as environmental considerations. With their water-like rheology, bio-grouts have a wide application range and are minimally invasive, requiring only very limited injection pressures. The equipment is the same as that used in conventional cement grouting, and the reactant components are worldwide available or easily suppliable, which explains why bio-grouting has nowadays become a valuable and sustainable alternative towards efficient soil treatment. Recent developments in the last years have allowed to further increase the applicability and efficiency of bio-grouts to ultimately bridge the gap between research and practice. A case study is illustrated in this paper showing the successful implementation of bio-grout for the stabilization of weakly cemented sandstone to safeguard an adjacent road segment in Switzerland

May 1, 2022

By Daniel Ruffing, Jeffrey Evans

Vertical cutoff, or barrier, walls are an integral part of environmental site remediation efforts. Vertical barriers are commonly deployed to limit the influx of clean ground water and/or to control the off-site migration of contaminated groundwater. The level of detailed design consideration devoted to the vertical cutoff wall component varies widely from project to project and generally decreases with decreasing size and complexity. For those projects receiving minimal design effort, conservative design decisions can lead to unnecessary costs or unanticipated conflicts between the various design considerations. In this paper, the authors discuss several important design and construction aspects of vertical cutoff walls requiring particularly careful consideration during the design phase of the project. These design and construction considerations include the need for and extent of excavation for a key, project target hydraulic conductivity, the use of statistical allowances in the specifications, filter press testing, sand content of in-trench slurry, cleaning of the backfill slope, measurement of stress and strain, the additional of slag in cement-bentonite cutoff walls, and longevity of cutoff walls.

By Kyle R. Lackner, Jared P. Williams

"The Sutter Butte Flood Control Agency initiated the Feather River West Levee (FRWL) Program in 2010 to bring 35 miles of levee along the Feather River into compliance with applicable Federal and State standards for levees protecting urban areas. A combination of soil-bentonite cutoff walls, soil-cement-bentonite cutoff walls, and seepage berms will reduce flood risk by correcting under and through seepage deficiencies and remove more than 34,000 properties from the FEMA Special Flood Hazard Areas. The FRWL program includes a combined total of 7,744,803 square feet (SF) of cutoff wall planned to be constructed between 2013 and 2015. Cutoff wall construction methods to meet the design depths included conventional excavation to a depth of 85 feet and deep soil mixing for depths up to 120 feet. A key component of the FRWL program was the development of site specific mix designs using the design boring logs to evaluate the expected backfill gradation and permeability results. Issues that required a partnership between Contractors, Owner and Engineers included substantial Archaeological and Cultural Resource delays, significant depth changes due to a change in competent key, right of way acquisitions for abutting land, and the magnitude of the project in a resource limited industry.IntroductionThe Feather River watershed basin is located 50 miles north of Sacramento, CA and incorporates the agriculture producing communities of Yuba City, Live Oak, Gridley and Biggs. These communities are protected from flooding by levees that contain under-seepage and through-seepage deficiencies and were the cause of major failures in 1955, 1986 and 1997. The Feather River West Levee (FRWL) program was initiated by the Sutter Butte Flood Control Agency (SBFCA) in 2010. The long term objective of SBFCA is to correct the levee deficiencies and provide 200 year flood protection to more than 34,000 at risk properties located within the FEMA Special Flood Hazard Areas.Although FRWL contained a variety of construction components such as earthwork and pipe replacement, the slurry cutoff wall is the primary construction element for addressing under and through seepage deficiencies. From 2013 to 2015 approximately 6,649,210 SF of cutoff wall were installed using conventional excavation and deep soil mixing (DSM) techniques leaving 1,095,593 SF to be completed in 2016. The work was designed, solicited and constructed under two separate contracts, titled Project Area C and Project Area B&D. A summary of the contracts and cutoff wall quantities is presented in Table 1."

Jan 1, 2016

By S. Ahmed

Critical factors of selection, fabrication, installation, and splicing of prestressed concrete piles are discussed based on experiences with coastal subsurface conditions of the United States of America (USA), and the People's Republic of China (PRC). Segmented Prestressed Concrete piles are economical when compared with other pile types of comparable capacity. However, strict quality control measures are required.

Jan 1, 2010

By Michael J. Weaver

Urban redevelopment projects are occurring more frequently than ever before as urban greenfield sites become limited and city planners and devel- opers attempt to revitalize existing underdeveloped neighborhoods. How- ever, because of the past usage of many urban sites (some dating back 100 years or more), designers and construction teams have to not only engineer founda- tions to accommodate the subsurface soil and ground water conditions, but also to work around the relic founda- tions or structures that have been left behind from previous developments. In these cases, a one-size-fits-all approach to foundations may not yield the most cost- and schedule-effective approach, and hybrid foundation systems have to be evaluated.

Apr 1, 2022

By George W. Little, John Councilman

"The selection, evaluation, and modification of contractor mix designs for self-hardening seepage barriers, completed by the slurry trench excavation method, can be one of the most critical and challenging tasks to ensure the cutoff wall meets the design performance criteria. Contractor mix designs should incorporate all available geotechnical data, including subsurface soil characteristics, groundwater information, and potential site contaminates. However, the pre-construction mix design can have limitations if subsurface data is limited or shows variability from initial investigations. Placement of the seepage barrier material needs to be evaluated during construction to identify in-situ performance. In one particular case study, the self-hardening cutoff wall mix design was evaluated over a one year period followed by a year and a half installation period, in which, a number of adjustments were made to the laboratory mix design during construction due to performance in the field. Installation for the selected mix was monitored on a real-time basis, using quality control data, as well as early strength and permeability results to determine if adjustments to the self-hardening mix were necessary. Evaluation of early results and relationships between strength and permeability were used to make adjustments prior to achieving the final test results for 28-day strength and permeability. Test results of the installed mix illustrated a direct correlation between strength and permeability. Achieving a minimum unconfined compressive strength was necessary to meet the minimum permeability of the seepage barrier. Other determinations conclude that the thorough development of a pre-construction mix design can have limitations even when all geotechnical data and site conditions are taken into account. Understanding early indicators and key strength and permeability relationships are necessary to determine seepage barrier performance and limitations.IntroductionThe evaluation of contractor mix designs for self-hardening seepage barriers was reviewed for one particular case study where a mix was developed using available geotechnical background information, including considerations for impacted groundwater. Following development of the laboratory mix design, the seepage barrier wall was installed over a one and a half year period, where the contractor mix design was evaluated and modified to accommodate field conditions affecting performance. The objective of the project was to cutoff and collect impacted groundwater and prevent the migration of contaminants to the creek running adjacent to the project. The self-hardening seepage barrier wall was installed using the slurry trench excavation method along 4700 ft of alignment and extended to depths ranging from 20 to 85 ft below ground surface, where it tied in with a low permeability stratum or competent bedrock."

Jan 1, 2016

By H. Mori

This paper describes a new borehole loading test using a self-boring instrument appropriate for dense sandy soils and stiff clayey soils. The results of loading tests for the bearing strata of deep foundations according to this method are also presented. This method has been applied to the study on the settlement behavior of heavy foundations resting on dense sand, stiff clay or soft rock in Japan.

Jan 1, 2010

By Leo Panian

Over the last decade, drilled and post-grouted micropile foundations have come to be increasingly relied upon for resisting seismic loads in building foundations on the West Coast. Micropiles have been successfully deployed in a range of soil conditions, in vertical as well as battered configurations, to support a variety of structural systems difficult soils. Their high load capacity in tension as well as in compression, their ability to be installed in confined spaces with minimal overhead clearance, and their ability to be directly tested in an installation have made them indispensable for seismic strengthening of existing structures. More recently, growing industry experience along with improvements in design guidelines have led to wider acceptance of micropiles among engineers and building officials. The increasing availability of the specialized materials, coupled with growing familiarity with drilling technologies among design-build contractors has made micropiles more cost-effective and competitive. For the first time, micropiles are finding applications in the construction of new buildings, where they are combined with shallow footings in hybrid foundations to efficiently resist seismic loads. These new applications rely on more intensive engineering analyses to evaluate the performance of micropile foundation systems and develop detailed requirements for design and construction. This paper describes the design approaches and the analytical methods for the seismic design of hybrid micropile foundations, and provides examples of recent construction projects that demonstrate the application.

Jan 1, 2010

By Richard Hanke, Franz-Werner Gerressen

"The twin decked Alaskan Way Viaduct is a passage to Seattle’s downtown waterfront and of great economic importance to the city. In 2001, the Nisqually earthquake damaged the viaduct and led to the redevelopment of this corridor. The project includes two miles of 57.5 ft diameter bored tunnel beneath downtown Seattle and a stretch of new highway and overpass bridges at the southern tunnel entrance. State-of-the-Art special foundation equipment was mobilized for the project to perform a broad range of geotechnical construction. Applications included soil mixing and jet grouting for confinement cells around new bridge foundations, large diameter secant pile walls for the Tunnel Boring Machine launch portal along with an extensive jet grouting regime for ground improvements within the tunnel alignment. This paper will study the evolution and use of advanced special geotechnical construction equipment and describe its application at the Alaskan Way Viaduct Replacement Project.INTRODUCTIONThe evolution of geotechnical construction equipment continues through innovative applications and continued modification or enhancement of machinery. Similarly and in parallel, market expectations continually demand more in terms of construction speed and performance. Together, market demands and contractor innovation have led way to the development of specialty geotechnical construction equipment with capabilities previously not seen feasible or possible. Several examples of this scenario have recently developed during design and construction of the Alaskan Way Viaduct Replacement Project.The Alaskan Way Viaduct Replacement Project is a joint project between the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT), and the City of Seattle. Three build alternatives were under consideration for replacing the Alaskan Way Viaduct: the Bored Tunnel Alternative, the Cut-and-Cover Tunnel Alternative, and the Elevated Structure Alternative. Ultimately, the bored tunnel option was selected as the best value approach. The project includes two miles of 57.5 ft diameter bored tunnel beneath downtown Seattle and a stretch of new highway and overpass bridges at the southern tunnel entrance. Several other associated improvements tie into this project that will ultimately lead to the complete demolition of the viaduct and redevelopment of Seattle’s waterfront."

Jan 1, 2015

By Ehab S. Shatnawi

It is common in practice to design laterally loaded rock-socketed drilled shafts using the p-y curve methods. However, the existing p-y curve criteria for rock were derived either semi-empirically or based on the assumption that the rock is an elastic isotropic continuum. The assumption of isotropy may be invalid for rocks with intrinsic anisotropy or for rocks with joints and bedding planes. Therefore, there is a need to develop a new p-y curve criterion to take into account the effects of rock anisotropy on the response of laterally loaded shafts. This paper presents a method for estimating the initial tangent Ki to the p-y curve for rock that can be characterized as transversely isotropic elastic continuum. Examples of transversely isotropic rock formation can be seen in most sedimentary rock where dominant bedding planes exist. The knowledge of the initial tangent to p-y curve is important, because it controls to a large extent the predicted deflection of laterally loaded drilled shaft in rock. The 3-D finite element parametric study results of a laterally loaded drilled shafts socketed in transversely isotropic continuum are employed to develop a series of design charts for estimating Ki as a function of transversely isotropic elastic constants.

Jan 1, 2007

By Ben C. Gerwick

Large diameter steel tubular piles installed vertically or on a slight rake, offer many advantages as the foundations of major overwater bridge in regions of high seismicity. By proper selection of diameter and wall thickness, an optimum balance between stiffness and strength can be achieved. Under strong seismic motion, the piles will deflect and bend so as to reduce the acceleration forces transmitted to the superstructure, while still limiting drift. A major advantage of this concept is that the mass of the footing block is significantly reduced from that of the conventional pier. The design of the footing block requires great care in order to transfer the high shears and moments. Where the soils consist of significant depths of sediments, the kinematic interaction of soils, piles and structures must be considered. Moments will be a maximum just under the footing block. Filling the top portion of the pile with concrete will prevent local buckling and assure ductile behavior even under overload. Typically the piles will be long, with most or all of their support furnished by friction and will require the use of very large pile hammers to achieve the required capacities. Where the piles are founded on rock or in hardpan, sockets will be drilled and filled with reinforced concrete. For these piles, high moments can occur both at the head and just below the rock surface, so the concrete infill should extend the full length. This paper describes the use of tubular piles driven through the deep silty sands of the Jamuna River, Bangladesh, and also where socketed into the near-surface rock for the mail pylon pier of the new San Francisco-Oakland East Bay Bridge in California.

Jan 1, 2013

By X. Y. Hou

The design practice of several circular underground projects with large diameter is summarized. By taking the advantages of load-bearing of circular structure, a rational annular tensile bar support system and a new design method are proposed. Calculation for a car park shows that remarkable results are brought in by this design technique.

Jan 1, 2010

By Abid Adekunte

"Whilst safety is considered to be of high priority in every aspect of engineering projects, it is equally important for designers and contractors to be continually aware of their obligations to the immediate environment and the society as a whole. These include responsibilities to minimise the amount of nonrenewable natural resources and energy used on projects, to reduce carbon foot prints on projects, to minimise the quantity of wastes produced on projects, to minimise the level of pollution on construction sites and to reuse materials and waste products whenever and wherever possible.In other words, professional engineering practice needs to be accompanied by an underlying fundamental objective to improve, restore and sustain the environment. However, achieving this objective requires continuous collaborative interaction and effective communication between the different specialists involved on every project from the early stages. In addition, developing a well-thought-out economical solution is key to achieving the sustainability aspect of the above objective.This paper focuses on the design, construction and management of a recently completed large multi-level basement scheme in Central London, with greater emphasis on collaborative approaches taken by the design engineers, commercial managers, construction managers and site operatives to deliver the most reasonably economical and sustainable solutions to the client. Solutions were based on combinations of general and specialist engineering knowledge, with due considerations for health & safety, sustainability, cost, practicality, time and community requirements.INTRODUCTIONUnderground structures have become vital components of urban life worldwide e.g. tunnels serve many water, wastewater, highway and railway schemes, basements have been incorporated into many urban commercial, institutional and residential developments, while many public underground car parks have been built to deal with the incessant problem of insufficient surface parking spaces in busy urban centres.The safe design, construction and maintenance of underground structures have been well-mastered by the deep foundation industry over the years. However, just like many other areas of engineering, aside the need to satisfy safety requirements, underground construction practice is now faced with a new set of requirements; the demand for more sustainable and cost-effective solutions, with reduced environmental and societal impacts. Designers and managers of underground construction schemes are now compelled to minimise the use of natural resources and energy, to minimise the amount of waste produced, to minimise the level of environmental pollution, noise and disruption to traffic and normal societal life at ground level around underground construction sites. In addition, the recycling of site wastes and reuse of materials have now become important aspects of underground space development. Considerable effort is being put into promoting sustainable development across the industry."

Jan 1, 2017

By Tae Hwan Lee, Jun-Shin Lee, Daejin Kwag, Sangchul Bang, Gerard T. Houlahan, Moo Sung Ryu

"Geotechnical engineers have been installing innovative, permanent underwater foundation systems utilizing suction buckets for the offshore industry since the early 1980s (Senpere and Auvergne, 1982). This foundation system has been successfully used on numerous and various types of offshore structures in a wide range of environments. Suction buckets have numerous advantages compared to conventional underwater foundation systems. The more notable advantages include easy installation, large loading capacity, low noise and retrievability. The application of reduced water pressure inside the bucket facilitates the installation of the suction buckets, where a suction pump attached at the top of the bucket can accomplish the entire driving operation. Because of this efficient operation, very large suction buckets can be driven into the seafloor, which eliminates the use of a large number of small piles.In Korea, one of the most economical and reliable renewable energy sources is wind power; however, onshore wind power generation has encountered many problems, such as the lack of favorable sites and public concerns about noise and environmental damage. Consequently, offshore wind power generation has attracted increasing attention due to its abundant potential, high efficiency of grid connection, and availability of easy expansion.In November 2011, the government of Korea announced a national offshore wind power development roadmap, which targeted its offshore wind power generation with the goal of becoming one of the top three nations in the world for offshore wind power generation. Korea Electric Power Corporation Research Institute (KEPRI) is the main research arm of the Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) and conducts research and development on electricity, power generation, renewable energy and other energy-related matters. KEPRI ultimately provides forefront knowledge and leadership to KEPCO with respect to energy and related areas for its near- and long-term needs. Financial support for the overall project, of which the suction bucket foundation system installed for the pilot phase wind turbine is described below, was provided from the New and Renewable Energy Program of the Korea Institute of Energy Technology Evaluation and Planning funded by the Korean Government Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy."

Jan 1, 2017

By Richard Guenther

As available space in urban centers becomes more scarce, builders and developers are increasingly turning to vacant, existing structures to meet cities' growing needs. The developers of City Ridge Roadside Development and North America Sekisui House (NASH) - - found a suitable site for their "urban village" at the former Fannie Mae headquarters complex on Wisconsin Ave. NW in Washington, D.C., which had been vacated in early 2018. The urban village will consist of eight new structures centered around the building that currently sits on the site. All told, the project will include 687 residential units, a 150-room hotel, over 150,000 sq ft (13,935 sq m) of retail space, and 62,000 sq ft (5,760 sq m) of office space. A below-grade parking structure will extend across most of the footprint. The Fannie Mae building, which was designed in the Colonial Revival style to mimic the Governor's Palace in Williamsburg, Virginia, was named a historical landmark following a request from the development team. The central portion of its existing masonry structure was built in 1956 on pile caps with small-diameter cast-in-place piles. Two wings, which were added in 1962, were built on belled caissons. There are three levels above grade and one below.

Feb 1, 2022