Analyzing the Driving Performance of Pile Foundations Using Data Driven Models-Paper

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The paper introduces IMPACT, a cloud-based application for analyzing pile-driving performance with a one-dimensional wave-equation model. It represents pile–soil interaction using nonlinear springs and dashpots, and can model hammer impacts either explicitly or through an analytical approximation.<br /><br />A key feature is its data-driven workflow: users import digital cone penetration test (CPT) data to calculate soil resistance to driving (SRD) across multiple embedment depths. The application supports established SRD methods and customizable equations. It also models the soil plug inside open-ended piles separately from the surrounding soil, making it particularly relevant to large offshore monopiles.<br /><br />IMPACT is demonstrated using two case histories involving open-ended piles driven in very dense sand. The analyses compare Smith and continuum soil models and examine how plug resistance affects predicted blow counts. Including plug resistance had a greater influence in the Smith model than in the continuum model. For both models, analyses that omitted plug resistance generally matched measured blow counts more closely. However, the authors caution that this agreement may reflect empirical assumptions and compensating errors in existing methods, rather than the absence of a real plug effect. The simplified plug model also warrants further development.<br /><br />The authors conclude that IMPACT’s ability to use CPT data directly and represent internal and external shaft resistance separately can support more consistent assessments of pile-driving behavior. Further evaluation against case histories is needed to improve understanding of soil resistance and reduce reliance on empirical assumptions.

Keywords

IMPACT

pile-driving performance

wave-equation model

pile-soil interaction

cone penetration test

soil resistance to driving

open-ended piles

soil plug resistance

Smith model

offshore monopiles