Graduation Year

2006

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree

Ph.D.

Degree Granting Department

Civil Engineering

Major Professor

Austin Gray Mullins, Ph.D.

Keywords

Statnamic, Pile load test, Drilled shaft, Strain rate, Load rate, Concrete modulus, Concrete model, Hysteretic, Structural failure, Integrity testing, Cohesionless soils, Damping, Soil-pile interactions, Unloading Point Method (UPM)

Abstract

Rate-dependent effects introduced during rapid and/or dynamic events have typically been oversimplified to compensate for deficiencies in present analyses. As load test results are generally considered as the basis of performance from which foundations can be designed, it is imperative that the analyzed load test data be as accurate as possible. In an attempt to progress the state of load test data regression, this dissertation addresses two common assumptions made during the regression process: (1) the statnamic damping coefficient is constant throughout the entire load test and (2) the concrete stress-strain relationship is linear-elastic. Also presented is a case study where the inherent features of a rapid load test proved useful in identifying the occurrence and proximity of a structural failure within a drilled shaft.

Share

COinS