Dynamic Pile-soil-pile Interaction. Part I: Analysis of Axial Vibration

Simple methods of analysis are developed for computing the dynamic steady-state axial response of floating pile groups embedded in homogeneous and non-homogeneous soil deposits. Physically-motivated approximations are introduced to account for the interaction between two individual piles. It is found that such an interaction arises chiefly from the ‘interference’ of wave fields originating along each pile shaft and spreading outward. For homogeneous deposits the wave fronts originating at an individual pile are cylindrical and the interaction is essentially independent of pile flexibility and slenderness. For non-homogeneous deposits the wave fronts are non-cylindrical and ray-theory approximations are invoked to derive pile flexibility-dependent interaction functions. Results are presented for the dynamic stiffness and damping of several pile groups, as well as for distribution of the applied load among individual piles. For deposits with modulus proportional to depth, the agreement with the few rigorous solutions available is encouraging. A comprehensive parameter study focuses on the effects of soil inhomogeneity and pile-group configuration. It is demonstrated that the ‘dynamic group efficiency’ may far exceed unity at certain frequencies. Increasing soil inhomogeneity tends to reduce the respective resonant peaks and lead to smoother interaction functions, in qualitative agreement with field evidence.