Pittsburgh

Source: 3D Finite Element Analysis of a Contiguous Pile Wall Source: RS3 | 3D Finite Element Software For Advanced Analysis | Rocscience 3D Finite Element Analysis of a Contiguous Pile Wall Introduction This article provides a brief summary of a 3D finite element analysis carried out using RS3 to model a contiguous pile retaining wall at the site of a proposed commercial development in the UK. The development site is located on sloping ground approximately 35 m from a motorway cutting. Due to the sloping topography of the site, cut and fill earthworks are to be undertaken to form a level development plateau upon which a large warehouse is to be built. This will require the construction of a circa 400 m long contiguous pile retaining wall to support the ground along the site’s upslope boundary where ground levels will be reduced by up to 8.4 m. Wall Design A plan showing the arrangement of the piles and the 2.0 m wide by 0.8 m deep capping beam is shown in Figure 1. The main 900 mm diameter piles are 17 m long and are staggered in a zigzag arrangement at 0.25 m offsets either side of the capping beam centerline. Interspersed mid-way between the main piles are 600 mm diameter infill piles. The infill piles are located along the capping beam centerline and are 11 m long. Figure 1: Pile and capping beam arrangement Ground Conditions The ground conditions are summarized in Figure 2 which shows a 2D section perpendicular to the wall alignment at the location where the retained height attains its maximum value of 8.4 m. The succession of strata comprises a veneer of clay-rich Glacial Till overlying Coal Measures bedrock. The Coal Measures bedrock is dominated by siltstone and mudstone and has been divided into three [...]