ISSN: 1945-7553
CODEN: JTEVAB
Published Online: 2 May 2011
Page Count: 6

Optical Measurement of Sand Deformation around a Laterally Loaded Pile

Liu, Jinyuan
Assistant Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, Ryerson University, Toronto, ON

Yuan, Bingxiang
Ph.D. Candidate, School of Civil Engineering and Mechanics, Lanzhou University,

Mai, Van Thien
Research Assistant, Department of Civil Engineering, Ryerson University, Toronto, ON

Dimaano, Ralph
Research Assistant, Department of Civil Engineering, Ryerson University, Toronto, ON

(Received 12 August 2010; accepted 18 March 2011)

Abstract

A sand displacement field around a laterally loaded pile is measured using an image processing technique called digital image correlation. An optical system consisting of a camera, a loading frame, and a computer is developed to capture soil movement during laterally loading the pile. Two images, before and after a deformation, are used to calculate the soil displacement field. Two kinds of piles are used in the tests: one squared-section pile and the other a circular one. Dry loose sand samples are used to simplify the problem. The displacement and strain fields obtained in this study are similar to the ones reported from the field. A trapezoidal strain wedge is measured in sand in front of the laterally loaded pile. The strain wedge develops from the pile edges. The failure planes form an angle with the horizontal, which varies between approximately two-thirds of the frictional angle of soil for the square pile and three-fourths for the circular pile.

Keywords:
Laterally loaded pile, scaled model, digital image correlation, particle image velocimetry, soil deformation, soil-structural interaction

Paper ID: JTE103313
DOI: 10.1520/JTE103313
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