• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.167-178
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• 2024

The natural frequency shift under cyclic environmental loads is a key issue in the design of monopile-based offshore wind power turbines because of their dynamic sensitivity. Existing evidence reveals that the natural frequency shift of the turbine system in sand is related to the varying foundation stiffness, which is caused by soil deformation around the monopile under cyclic loads. Therefore, it is an urgent need to investigate the effect of soil deformation on the system frequency. In the present paper, three generalized geometric models that can describe soil deformation under two-way cyclic loads are proposed. On this basis, the cycling-induced changes in soil parameters around the monopile are quantified. A theoretical approach considering three-spring foundation stiffness is employed to calculate the natural frequency during cycling. Further, a parametric study is conducted to describe and evaluate the frequency shift characteristics of the system under different conditions of sand relative density, pile slenderness ratio and pile-soil relative stiffness. The results indicate that the frequency shift trends are mainly affected by the pile-soil relative stiffness. Following the relevant conclusions, a design optimization is proposed to avoid resonance of the monopile-based wind turbines during their service life.

• Proceedings of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute Conference
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• 2000.04b
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• pp.347-354
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• 2000

The seismic behaviors of a bridge system with several simple spans are examined to see the effects of the longitudinal stiffness degradation due to abutment-soil interaction. The abutment-backfill system is modeled as one degree-of-freedom-system with nonlinear spring and linear damper. various soil-conditions surrounding the abutment such as loose sand, medium dense sand, and dense sand are considered in the bridge seismic analysis. The idealized mechanical model for the whole bridge system is modeled by adopting the multiple-degree-of-freedom system, which can consider components such as pounding phenomena, friction at the movable supports, rotational and translational motions of foundations, and the nonlinear pier motions. The stiffness of the abutment is found to be rapidly reduced at the beginning of the earthquakes, and to be converged to constant values shortly after the displacement approaches to the Predefined critical values. It is observed that the maximum relative distanced an maximum relative displacements are generally Increased as the relative density of a soil decreases As the peak ground acceleration increases, the response ratio of the case considering stiffness degradation to the case considering constant stiffness decreases.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.275-287
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• 2020

Rectangular barrettes have been increasingly used as foundations for many infrastructure projects, but the vertical vibration of a barrette has been rarely addressed theoretically. This paper presents an analysis method of dynamic response for a rectangular barrette subjected to a time-harmonic vertical force with the aid of a modified Vlasov foundation model in multilayered viscoelastic soil. The barrette-soil system is modeled as a continuum, the vertical continuous displacement model for the barrette and soil is proposed. The governing equations of the barrette-soil system and the boundary conditions are obtained and the vertical shaft resistance of barrette is established by employing Hamilton's principle for the system and thin layer element, respectively. The physical meaning of the governing equations and shaft resistance is interpreted. The iterative solution algorithm flow is proposed to obtain the dynamic response of barrette. Good agreement of the analysis and comparison confirms the correctness of the present solution. A parametric study is further used to demonstrate the effects of cross section aspect ratio of barrettes, depth of soil column, and module ratio of substratum to the upper soil layers on the complex barrette-head stiffness and the resistance stiffness.

• Proceedings of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea Conference
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• 1999.10a
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• pp.99-106
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• 1999

In this study a base-isolated liquid storage tank subjected to seismic ground motion is numerically simulated on frequency , domain considering three-dimensional liquid-structure-soil interaction. A hybrid formulation which combines the versatility of finite elements for tank structure and the efficiency of boundary elements for liquid and soil region is adopted for efficient modeling. The base-isolation system using the effective stiffness and damping ratio is also included in this formulation. in order to demonstrate the accuracy and validity of the developed solution the numerical results were compared with the reference solutions in each interaction problem. The effects of the liquid filling ratio and the stiffness of base-isolation system on the behavior of the liquid storage tanks are analyzed.

• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.13-24
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• 2023

Tunnels may undergo a larger or a smaller response compared with the free-field soil. In the pseudo-static procedure, the response of the tunnel is most often characterized by a curve that relates the racking ratio (R) with the flexibility ratio (F), where R represents the ratio of the tunnel response with respect to the free-field vibration and F is the relative stiffness of the tunnel and the surrounding soil. A set of analytical and empirical curves that do not account for the depth and the aspect ratio of the tunnel are typically used in practice. In this study, a series of dynamic analyses are conducted to develop a set of F-R_m relations for use in a frame analysis method. R_m is defined as an adjusted R where the rocking mode of deformation is removed and only the racking deformation is extracted. The numerical model is validated against centrifuge test recordings. The influence of aspect ratio, buried depth of tunnel on results is investigated. The results show that R_m increases with the increase of the buried depth and the aspect ratio. The widely used F-R relations are highlighted to be different compared with the obtained results in this study. Therefore, the updated F-R_m relations with proposed equations are recommended to be used in practice design. The rocking response decreases with either the decrease of the difference of stiffness between surrounding soil and tunnel or the larger aspect ratio of the tunnel section.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.87-96
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• 2021

Ground motions recorded in near-fault sites, where the rupture propagates toward the site, are significantly different from those observed in far-fault regions. In this research, finite element modeling is used to investigate the effect of pile cap stiffness on the seismic response of soil-pile-structure systems under near-fault ground motions. The Von Wolffersdorff hypoplastic model with the intergranular strain concept is applied for modeling of granular soil (sand) and the behavior of structure is considered to be non-linear. Eight fault-normal near-field ground motion records, recorded on rock, are applied to the model. The numerical method developed is verified by comparing the results with an experimental test (shaking table test) for a soil-pile-structure system. The results, obtained from finite element modeling under near-fault ground motions, show that when the value of cap stiffness increases, the drift ratio of the structure decreases, whereas the pile relative displacement increases. Also, the residual deformations in the piles are due to the non-linear behavior of soil around the piles.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.337-348
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• 2020

Tropical organic soils having more than 65% of organic matters are named "peat". This soil type is extremely soft, unconsolidated, and possesses low shear strength and stiffness. Different conventional and industrial binders (e.g., lime or Portland cement) are used widely for stabilisation of organic soils. However, due to many factors affecting the behaviour of these soils (e.g., high moisture content, fewer mineral particles, and acidic media), the efficiency of the conventional binders is low and/or cost-intensive. This research investigates the impact of different constituents of cement-sodium silicate grout system on the compressibility behaviour of organic soil, including settlement and void ratio. A microstructure analysis is also carried out on treated organic soil using Scanning Electron Micrographs (SEM), Energy Dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDX), and X-ray Diffraction (XRD). The results indicate that the settlement and void ratio of treated organic soils decrease gradually with the increase of cement and kaolinite contents, as well as sodium silicate until an optimum value of 2.5% of the wet soil weight. The microstructure analysis also demonstrates that with the increase of cement, kaolinite and sodium silicate, the void ratio and porosity of treated soil particles decrease, leading to an increase in the soil density by the hydration, pozzolanic, and polymerisation processes. This research contributes an extra useful knowledge to the stabilisation of organic soils and upgrading such problematic soils closer to the non-problematic soils for geotechnical applications such as deep mixing.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.19 no.5
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• pp.407-420
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• 2019

This paper illustrates the results of a series of seismic geotechnical centrifuge experiments to explore dynamic structure-soil-structure interaction (SSSI) of two structures (named S1 and S2) installed on ground surface. A dense homogeneous ground is prepared in an equivalent shear beam (ESB) container. Two structural models are designed to elicit soil-foundation-structure interaction (SFSI) with different masses, heights, and dynamic characteristics. Five experimental tests are carried out for: (1) two reference responses of the two structures and (2) the response of two structures closely located at three ranges of distance. It is found that differential settlements of both structures increase and the smaller structure (S2) inversely rotates out of the other (S1) when they interact with each other. S2 structure experiences less settlement and uplift when at a close distance to the S1 structure. Furthermore, the S1 structure, which is larger one, shows a larger rocking and a smaller sliding response due to the SSSI effects, while S2 structure tends to slide more than that in the reference test, which is illustrated by an increase in sliding response and rocking stiffness as well as a decrease in moment-to-shear ratio (M/H·L) of the S2 structure.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.145-151
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• 1991

The final purpose of this study is to examine the uses of coal ash, by-product from thermal power plant as a type of filling-embankment materials and the reuses of ash ponds. In this time, to investigate the dynamic properties, we made the test piece specimen with coal ashes, and obtained the damping ratio. In place(ash pond), the damping property by underground wall was investigated before and after soil improvements. The damping ratio of coal ash test piece specimen of 12% cement is the highest and that of 9% cement or chemical grout, that of 6% cement is in order. In same coal ash test piece, the damping ratio increases with decreasing the void ratio. In conclusion, it could be said that the damping ratio increases with the stiffness of materials. In the ash pond, the damping effect is the most when trench is set through the vibration wave propagation course, and when soil is improved the higher stiffness of the improved soil is, the more damping effect appeared. It is justified to obtain not only the dropping of permeability and the strength increase, but also the damping effect fairly by soil improvements.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.29 no.11
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• pp.29-47
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• 2013

This study undertook research on the sections of 90 harbor structures which applied a pile-type soil improvement using the soil-cement pile and then, determined the minimum replacement rate for each section, showing sufficient stability in all relevant studies including numerical analysis. The reliability of the numerical analysis was verified by a centrifuge model test. As a result of the study, it was revealed that when the foundation soil is too soft ($s_u$ = under 15 kPa), it is unsuitable to apply a pile-type ground improvement to a soil improvement regardless of types of super structures. And a pile-type soil improvement was found to be suitable for a harbor structure with the relative stiffness ratio (n) of less than 50~75 at a maximum and the 2~3 MPa strength of the soil-cement pile. Furthermore the governing factor for the minimum replacement rate for the pile-type soil improvement was turned out to be the allowable horizontal displacement. Therefore, the primary review to see the applicability of the pile-type soil improvement requires the evaluation of horizontal displacements.