Design of pile-supported buried pipelines by a synthesis of FE ultimate load analyses and experimental investigations

The structural behavior of buried pile-supported pipelines, made of ductile cast iron, is characterized by geometric and material nonlinearity. Geometric nonlinearity is caused by the ovalization of the pipes under vertical loading. Because of significant stress concentrations in the pipes in the vicinity of the supports on the piles, nonlinear material behavior is observed even for low load levels. In order to simplify the design of such pile-supported pipelines a design table, based on ultimate load analyses by means of the finite element method, was developed. The numerical results were confirmed by measurements in the laboratory and on a construction site. © 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.