Pile lateral subgrade reaction modulus for Jakarta

Abstract

The behavior of laterally loaded piles could be simulated by the subgrade reaction model. The primary soil parameter for this model is the subgrade reaction modulus, and in this paper, the correlation between the subgrade reaction modulus and the soil N-SPT value is examined by conducting numerical analyses of 34 pile cyclic lateral load tests in Jakarta. In each analysis, the pile is modeled as a series of beam elements, while the surrounding soil is modeled as a series of linear elastic springs. The moduli are varied according to the N-SPT values recorded in the associated deep boring data. In each load cycle, a trial and error process is conducted to match the resulting pile head lateral deflection to the measured value. The resulting correlation between the subgrade reaction modulus and the pile lateral deflection is presented for the 34 case studies and compared to a correlation in the literature. Furthermore, the analyses reveal that subgrade reaction modulus is affected by the magnitude of measured deflection, by the applied lateral loads, as well as by the construction methods.