Sand densification around the pile has traditionally been regarded as an explanation for the grain migration and soil subsidence that often occur around cyclic laterally loaded piles embedded in sand. Supported by new empirical evidence, this paper proposes that, additionally to some soil densification around the pile, the main cause for the continuous "steady-state" grain migration is a convective cell flow of sand grains in the vicinities of the pile head. Such convective flow would be caused by a ratcheting mechanism triggered by the cyclic low-frequency lateral displacements of the pile. Furthermore, the experimental results suggest that the limit between the convective cell and the static soil is marked by a distinct direct shear surface. This might shed some light into the complex phenomena related to the pile-soil interaction in the upper layers of the bedding, which are normally the main contributor for the lateral load-bearing capacity of piles.
The saturated sand surrounding an offshore pile
foundation under quasi-static cyclic lateral load can show the
physical phenomena of macromechanical densification and
convective granular flow. Based on the results from physical
model tests at different geometrical scales, this paper
provides a certain quantification of such phenomena and discusses
their causes and consequences. The progressive sand
densification leads to subsidence of the soil surface and a significant
stiffening of the pile behaviour. Conversely, the ratcheting
convective motion of two closed cells of soil beneath
the pile-head is responsible for an endless grain migration at
the soil surface, the inverse grading of the convected material
and a direct shear of the sand at the distinct boundary of the
revolving soil domain. In this respect, and from a macromechanical
perspective considering the soil as a continuum, it
appears that the convecting material tends to follow gradient
lines of shear stress during its ratcheting motion. Concluding
the paper, the practical relevance of these phenomena and
their extrapolation to other conditions are briefly discussed.