Effect of Slope, Cross-Section of Pile and Eccentricity in Calculating the Modulus of Laterally Loaded Single Pile

The soil–structure interaction of laterally loaded piles majorly depends upon geometry of the ground, soil property and the loading conditions. The soil–structure interaction properties like modulus and stiffness factor are not given much importance. This paper focuses on modulus calculation from load–deformation curve for the condition of single pile positioned at the crest position for cohesive and cohesionless soil for a 1g model study conducted in the laboratory. The parameters studied are slope angle, eccentricity and length/diameter ratio. From the load–deformation curve, the initial tangential slope gives the modulus. The deformation increases as the load applied at pile head increases; for the given load the displacement increases when the cross-section of the pile and the relative density is comparatively smaller. The results are obtained from the 1g laboratory experiments for a scaled-down model of a single pile. Parameters considered are various parameters like length/diameter of the pile, slope angle and eccentricity of load application is considered in the study. With an increase in slope angle, the modulus decreases for both cohesive and cohesionless soil. With an increase in eccentricity, i.e. the free head length of a pile from where the load is applied, the passive resistance decreases with a decrease in modulus. The length of the pile is the governing factor in the calculation of modulus.