A methodology for calculating the load-bearing capacity of pile foundations in offshore hydraulic structures based on principles of rational design

Abstract

The bearing capacity of piles in soil is determined by both the mechanical properties of the soil and the method of pile installation. The widespread implementation of pile foundations in offshore oil and gas field development has highlighted significant deficiencies in the current domestic scientific, methodological, and regulatory approaches for evaluating pile–soil interaction. This study addresses the key issues and limitations in calculating bearing capacity for commonly used drilled-in and precast piles. For combined drilled-in piles, the existing methodology inaccurately assumes that the hydrostatic pressure exerted by the cement slurry on the borehole walls remains unchanged after hardening, leading to erroneous estimations. In the case of precast metal piles, the use of standardized regulatory tables results in substantial discrepancies compared to actual performance, particularly at depths exceeding 35 m, where these methods become completely inapplicable. Furthermore, the dynamic method outlined in building regulations-used to predict the bearing capacity of short precast piles driven using mechanical or hydraulic hammers in offshore environments-produces results with unacceptable margins of error. This method is also unsuitable for longer piles due to its inherent limitations. The root causes of the limitations in existing methods for evaluating the load-bearing capacity of pile foundations have been systematically investigated. Based on this analysis, the theoretical framework for a new calculation methodology has been developed. By integrating comprehensive laboratory data, a revised approach is proposed that significantly enhances the reliability and accuracy of the estimated bearing capacity, ensuring closer alignment with actual field performance. The bearing capacity and settlement of pile foundations for offshore hydraulic structures were computed and analyzed with consideration of the soil’s plastic deformation behavior.

Keywords

Drilled-in piles / Load-bearing capacity / Offshore engineering / Pile foundations / Soil–structure interaction

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