The behaviour of the piles subjected to lateral load and overturning moment founded in cohesionless soils

In this study, the behaviour of short rigid piles founded in sand subjected to a lateral load applied at a certain height above sand surface has been investigated. The study comprises an extensive series of small scale laboratory model tests, three dimensional non-lineer finite element analyses and calculations made by existing design formulae. In the experimental studies; the effects of loading rate, pile geometry and soil conditions on the lateral load and moment carrying capacity have been explored. The parameters of which effects can not been investigated with the experimental studies such as dilatation angle, interface behaviour and elasticity modulus have been evaluated performing numerical analyses. The problem of laterally loaded pile has been solved with the existing analytical approaches. The lateral load capacities obtained from these calculations have been compared. The results obtained from experimental studies, numerical analyses and analytical approaches indicate that relative density, dilatation angle, elasticity modulus and interface behaviour have major importance on the lateral load capacity. However, the loading rate has a negligible effect on the lateral load and moment carrying capacity. The lateral load capacity values obtained from different analytical approaches are significantly different from each other.