Piled raft foundations are increasingly used in construction due to their cost efficiency, requiring fewer piles than traditional pile foundations. Their ability to withstand cyclic lateral loads, such as those from earthquakes and wind forces, is crucial for structural stability. Understanding their response under cyclic loading conditions is essential, and finite element modeling (FEM) is a valuable tool for analyzing these behaviors. A recent 3D FEM study examined the performance of piled raft foundations in clay soils, focusing on loading pattern, frequency, and number of cycles. Results showed that lateral load capacity decreased as cycle count and frequency increased, with full cyclic loading (FCL) having a more pronounced effect than half cyclic loading (HCL). The raft shared 20.57-39.07 % (HCL) and 27.68-55.13 % (FCL) of lateral loads at frequencies of 0.1-10 Hz over 20 cycles. Additionally, locked-in moments increased by 21 %, and the degradation factor ranged from 65 to 80 % for HCL and 70-90 % for FCL. These findings provide valuable insights into pile-soil interaction and foundation stability under cyclic lateral loading, ensuring more effective design strategies for structures exposed to dynamic forces. Future research should explore long-term cyclic effects to further optimize foundation performance.

It is well known that piles embedded in sand accumulate lateral deformation (displacement and rotation) when subjected to horizontal cyclic loading. The rate of accumulation depends on various parameters, such as loading conditions and properties of the pile-soil system. For nearly rigid piles, such as monopile foundations for offshore wind turbines, an essential aspect is the type of loading, which is determined by the ratio of the cyclic minimum load to cyclic maximum load. Several studies have shown that asymmetric two-way loading generally results in larger accumulated pile deformation compared with other types of loading, especially oneway loading with complete unloading in each cycle. This article presents the planning, execution, and evaluation of physical 1g small-scale model tests on the deformation accumulation of laterally loaded rigid piles due to cyclic loading focusing on soil deformations resulting from various cyclic load ratios. To visualize soil deformation fields and rearrangement processes within the soil profiles, particle image velocimetry (PIV) was applied in the tests. The evaluation of the model test results provides insights into varying accumulation rates and highlights the capabilities as well as limitations of PIV. The observations are summarized under the of findings, which may assist in planning future PIV experiments.

Concrete-filled FRP (Fiber Reinforced Polymer) tube composite piles offer superior corrosion resistance, making them a promising alternative to traditional piles in marine environments. However, their performance under cyclic lateral loads, such as those induced by waves and currents, requires further investigation. This study conducted model tests on 11 FRP composite piles embedded in sand to evaluate their behavior under cyclic lateral loading. Key parameters, including loading frequency, cycle count, loading mode, and embedment depth, were systematically analyzed. The results revealed that cyclic loading induces cumulative plastic deformation in the surrounding soil, leading to a progressive reduction in the lateral stiffness of the pile-soil system and redistribution of lateral loads among piles. Higher loading frequencies enhanced soil densification and temporarily improved bearing capacity, while increased cycle counts caused soil degradation and reduced ultimate capacity-evidenced by an 8.4% decrease (from 1.19 kN to 1.09 kN) after 700 cycles under a 13 s period, with degradation rates spanning 8.4-11.2% across frequencies. Deeper embedment depths significantly decreased the maximum bending moment (by similar to 50%) and lateral displacement, highlighting their critical role in optimizing performance. These findings directly inform the design of marine structures by optimizing embedment depth and load frequency to mitigate cyclic degradation, ensuring the long-term serviceability of FRP composite piles in corrosive, high-cycle marine environments.

Prolonged lateral cyclic loading leads to soil stiffness degradation around offshore wind turbine (OWT) foundations, which reduces the system's natural frequency and increases the accumulation of foundation rotation angle. Proper evaluation of natural frequency and rotation angle is crucial for the design of OWT foundations. This study develops a two-stages numerical approach to calculate the fundamental frequency of OWT systems considering the foundation stiffness degradation by integrating a stiffness degradation model of soft clays with a simplified three-spring model. Subsequently, it investigates the evolution of accumulated rotation and natural frequency for three foundation types-monopile, monopod bucket, and hybrid monopile-bucket-throughout their service life. It is observed that the hybrid foundation shows the smallest rotation in the first cycle, attributable to its relatively high initial stiffness compared to the other two foundations with the same steel consumption. However, it also exhibits the highest rate of cumulative rotation growth. At the same load level, the monopod bucket foundation exhibits the largest cumulative rotation angle due to its lower bearing capacity, and the degradation of natural frequency is most pronounced for monopod bucket OWT. For all three foundation configurations, increasing either the pile diameter or the bucket diameter is the most effective approach to reduce the cumulative rotation angle and improve natural frequency degradation, while maintaining the same steel consumption. These findings should be considered in the design of OWT foundations.

Large-diameter steel pipe pile foundations, typically known as monopiles, are currently the dominant foundation solution for supporting offshore wind turbines. The design of monopiles in sandy seabed is typically based on p-y curves derived for fully drained conditions. However, in reality, the drainage condition around a monopile under cyclic loading, at least during each single loading cycle, is generally undrained. To verify the applicability of the design methods based on fully drained condition, this study conducted a series of finite element analyses examining the effect of drainage condition on the monopile soil-pile interaction in sandy seabed. Based on the analyses in four sands which are of different relative densities and particle size distributions, it is found that, for medium dense to very dense sands that exhibit dilative response upon shearing, the effect of drainage conditions can be practically ignored within the range of load relevant for practical engineering. For loose sands or sands with considerable fines that exhibit contractive response upon shearing, the drainage conditions have negligible effect on the soil-pile interaction stiffness at low to modest load levels; however, the undrained conditions can lead to lower capacities. This implies that the current design approach which assumes fully drained soil response is still acceptable for the FLS design in such soil conditions. However, for the ULS design, assumption of drained soil response may lead to overestimation of the lateral bearing capacity and assessment of the actual drainage condition and its influence on soil-pile interaction on a project-specific basis is warranted for such cases.

This study employs variance-based and parametric analyses to quantify the impact of geometric and mechanical properties on the performance of pile foundations under axial tensile (Pa) and lateral (PL) loading. Utilizing 3D finite element analysis with the Drucker-Prager model, the research investigates pile-pile cap interaction across varying soil moduli (Es = 5, 20, & 50 MPa) and length-to-diameter (L/D) ratios (10, 20, & 33). The sensitivity analysis identifies the friction coefficient between sand and pile, as well as pile diameter, as the most influential factors, followed by pile length and the Young's modulus of both the pile and the sand. Parametric analysis reveals that pile deformation, contact pressure (Pc), and shear stresses (fs) are strongly affected by Es and the L/D ratio. Under Pa loading, as Es and L/D decrease, fs increases up to a certain depth before decreasing. Additionally, the normalized Pa to axial deformation ratio (Pa/delta a) decreases with increasing relative stiffness of the pile to soil (Ep/Es), with L/D becoming increasingly influential as Ep/Es decreases. Under PL loading, increased L/D and Es result in greater pile flexibility and a concentration of Pc at the top. The pile's lateral deformation behavior with depth mirrors the Pc distribution.

In general, pile foundations are utilized to support structures like tall buildings, bridges, and transmission towers, which are frequently subjected to lateral stresses initiated by wind, action of waves, earthquakes, or traffic loads. Several high-rise structures, highway and railroad overpasses, as well as transmission towers, are constructed near slopes and rely on pile foundations for support. Due to the effects of wind and waves, pile foundations are continuously subjected to cyclic loads. For piles supporting tall buildings, transmission towers, offshore structures, or infrastructure in seismic zones, 1-way or 2-way cyclic lateral loads are commonly applied. Therefore, while designing pile foundations, it is essential to understand how piles behave laterally when they are located near a sloping crest. One of the primary challenges in ensuring the efficient functioning of the superstructure is analyzing how the soil and foundations respond when exposed to long-term lateral loads, such as wind, over an extended period on the piles of offshore platforms. Because of the presence of slope, the pile's lateral load capacity decreased due to the reduced ability of the soil to provide passive resistance. This paper presents small-scale 1-g model tests conducted on the sand to assess the loss of pile's lateral capacity when subjected to 100 cycles under 1 and 2-way cyclic loading. The Relative Density (60%) and varying slopes (Horizontal ground, 1V:3H) with varying spacing (5D and 7D) and aspect ratios (L/D) of 25 and 40 were implemented in this study. Cyclic lateral load tests were performed for sloping as well as horizontal ground. A major reduction in lateral capacity, exceeding 60%, was observed due to the application of cyclic loading. Moreover, the transition from horizontal ground (HG) to sloping ground (SG) decreased the maximum bending moment by 25-40%. This study exemplifies the piles' behaviour when subjected to cyclic lateral loading while resting on a sloping crest, which represents a critical scenario in pile foundation design.

Piles supporting large structures are often subjected to cyclic lateral loads due to natural phenomena, including earthquakes, winds, and waves. Such loads are main causes of progressive deterioration in the stiffness and reduce the lateral capacity of piles. However, the effects of unsaturated soil conditions on the lateral cyclic response of piles are not yet fully understood, and the p-y curves used in engineering practice are merely based on the assumption of full saturation or complete dry conditions. This study is aimed to investigate the pile performance under unsaturated soil conditions by performing monotonic, cyclic, and post-cyclic loading tests on piles installed in sand with a varying water table. A loading system was designed and constructed to carry out different types of cyclic loadings. It was observed that the lateral capacity of the pile is influenced by the average suction stress along the pile which increases with the depth of the water table. During the cyclic loading, gap formation is noticed around the pile head for tests conducted in unsaturated conditions, which results in significant stiffness degradation compared to the saturated state. However, post-cyclic loading tests showed that the ultimate lateral capacity of the pile is not affected by the cyclic loading history. Finally, a modified p-y curve is proposed for the piles embedded in unsaturated sandy soils, and a comparison of its performance with the observed results is promising.