CENTRIFUGE MODEL TESTS ON HORIZONTAL BEARING CAPACITY OF A LARGE DIAMETER PILE WITH WINGS

Single large diameter pile is widely used in the offshore wind turbine. The wings are added to the large diameter pile in order to fully use the resistance of shallow soil. The bearing mechanisms of the single large diameter pile with and without wings were studied through centrifuge tests. Nine centrifuge tests were conducted for the sake of studying the horizontal bearing capacity of the large diameter pile with wings. The horizontal bearing capacity of the pile with the wings of different sizes,embedded depths and different loading conditions were investigated. The tests results show that the horizontal bearing capacity of the large diameter pile with wings is much greater than that without wings. The magnitude of the enhancement of the horizontal bearing capacity relates to the size and the depth of embedment of the wings.