ABSTRACT
Conventional installation methods for displacement piles (i.e. impact-driving or vibratory-driving) induce vibrations and settlements in a zone close to the pile. Moreover they lead to noise pollution unfavourable especially in urban areas. A possible solution to these problems is the technology of rotary pile jacking. Thereby the pile is continuously pushed into the subsoil by a vertical force. For large pile dimensions a rotation is additionally applied to overcome high axial forces. This paper presents a new testing facility for axially loaded piles in saturated non-cohesive soils as well as the preparation procedure of the test sand. The facility is capable of installing and loading model piles by applying an axial load as well as a simultaneous rotary motion and enables model testing in different scales up to pile diameters of 101.6 mm and a maximum embedment length of 2.3 m. All test stages can be monitored and recorded with a data acquisition system, making it possible to study the influence of different installation parameters on the required installation forces and the resulting bearing behaviour. First results prove the efficiency of a rotation regarding the required axial installation force.
