Pile shoe geometry influencing installation and bearing capacity of driven ductile cast iron piles – field tests and validation
Pile shoe geometry influencing installation and bearing capacity of driven ductile cast iron piles – field tests and validation
Piles are used in a variety of applications to transfer high loads, bridge insufficiently load-bearing soil strata or to reduce settlements. In addition to (large diameter) bored piles, displacement piles such as driven ductile cast iron piles, are often used, which are characterised by their installation and the possibilities of a straightforward adaptation to the subsoil. In particular, the use of different pile shoes enables an adjustment in terms of both installation and load-bearing capacity. Their shape and geometry have a significant influence, which is usually validated by pile load tests and only allows limited considerations during the design. Therefore, the influence of different pile shoe geometries was investigated in a series of field tests in which cone-penetration equipment was used to determine their resistance. The test was performed in an artificially constructed sandy layer with a depth of 1.2 m underlaying a dense gravel section. The focus was on a relative comparison between different pile shoe geometries under controlled conditions in order to derive the load-bearing capacity.
Martin Hayden; J. Matthias Rebhan; Vaclav Racansky; Juraj Chalmovsky; J. Havlicek
11th International Conference on Physical Modelling in Geotechnics (ICPMG2026)
Special Session 6: Physical modelling for life-cycle foundation management
https://doi.org/10.53243/ICPMG2026-242