Pile Load Test by Impact Driving

G. G. GOBLE and FRANK RAUSCHE, Case Western Reserve University

The use of measurements made during impact driving to predict static pile
capacity is a widely used concept. The results are sometimes not satis-
factory because of a lack of knowledge of hammer energy, poor estimates
of losses in cushions, inaccurate set measurements, substantial strength
change after the end of driving, and other factors. A method having a dif-
ferent basis has been proposed for predicting static capacity from dynamic
measurements made by impact driving. By applying this method to mea-
surements made after a setup period, the difficulties mentioned are avoided.
This method has been applied to 25 piles that were also statically load-
tested. The average difference between the static capacity obtained from
a constant rate of penetration test and that predicted from dynamic mea-
surements was 10 percent. A wide variety of soil conditions and hammer
types is represented in the data. All piles were of hollow steel pipes. The
use of this system for routine measurements is not feasible if reliance
must be placed on the analysis of records taken on high-speed oscillographs
because a substantial time lag occurs between data acquisition and analysis.
In addition, equipment of this type is hardly satisfactory for routine field
use by personnel having modest backgrounds in electronics. To avoid these
problems, a special purpose computer was designed and constructed to
perform the necessary computations in the field and to display the results.
With this device, the necessary calculations for capacity prediction are
made in real time and the results are displayed. Thus, a number of con-
secutive blows can be recorded to improve the accuracy of the prediction.
This device should improve the reliability of pile test data because it is
realistic to obtain load test data by driving a number of "test" piles and
obtaining dynamic predictions from all of them.

•THE USE OF MEASUREMENTS made during impact driving to predict static pile
strength is a widely used concept. Many pile-driving formulas use energy consider-
ations to predict bearing capacity. The results are sometimes not satisfactory because
of a lack of knowledge of hammer energy, poor estimates of losses in cushions, inac-
curate set measurements, substantial strength change after driving, assumption of a
resistance that is constant during the blow, and other factors. A method having a dif-
ferent basis has been proposed for predicting static capacity from dynamic measure-
ments made during i mpact driving (1, 2, 3). By applying this m ethod to measure-
ments made after a setup period, the-difficulties mentioned are avoided. This proce-
dure has been applied to 25 piles that were also statically load-tested. The difference
between the static capacity obtained from a constant rate of penetration test and that
predicted from dynamic measurements is much smaller than that commonly observed
by using pile formulas. A wide variety of soil conditions and hammer types are repre-
sented.
A special purpose, electronic computer has been designed and constructed to auto-
matically perform the necessary computations in the field and display the results. With
this device, a predicted capacity is displayed within 2 milliseconds after the end of the
hammer blow. Thus, a number of consecutive blows can be recorded to improve the

Paper sponsored by Committee on Construction Practices-Structures and presented at the 49th Annual Meeting.
123
124

accuracy of the prediction. This device should increase the reliability of pile test data
because it is realistic to obtain test data by driving a number of "test" piles and obtain-
ing dynamic predictions from all of them.
Procedures are now being developed jointly with the Ohio Department of Highways
and the researchers at Case Western Reserve University to begin implementing these
methods and equipment into Ohio construction practice. It is anticipated that the re-
searchers will gradually decrease their involvement with the routine application of the
technique.

DATA ACQUISITION, EVALUATION, AND CORRELATION

A simple force-balance method has been proposed to relate dynamic measurements
to static capacity. The pile is assumed to be a rigid body struck by a time-varying
hammer force. Motion of the pile is resisted by a force, R, given by the expression
(1)

where vis the velocity of the pile, and Ro, R1, R2, ... are constants. Thus, Ro represent
the static capacity. Under the action of these forces at the instant of zero velocity and
by use of Newton's Second Law, the resistance is found to be

Ro = F(to) - ma(to) (2)

where m is the mass of the pile, a(to) is the acceleration at time, t0 , when the velocity
is zero. and F(to) is the force at the top of the pile at the same time.
Subsequent studies have shown that the reliability of the capacity predictions can be
improved by averaging the acceleration over some time increment around the zero ve-
locity time to avoid extreme acceleration values arising from elastic waves in the pile.
In the following discussion, Eq. 2 will be referred to as the Phase I method and the
same equation containing an averaged acceleration will be referred to as the Phase II
method. Theoretical studies, recently completed but not yet reported, have shown
why these simple approaches provide such good results and have given some indication
of the limitations to be expected. These simple methods will be less reliable for appli-
cation in highly cohesive soils and for very short piles. A Phase III method has been
developed that shows promise in providing good capacity predictions for all soil types.
It will not be discussed here.
The application of Eq. 2 requires the measurement of force and acceleration at the
top of the pile. Velocity can be obtained by integration of the acceleration record. De-
velopments in electronic instrumentation and transducers in the past few years make it
possible to obtain these measurements on a routine basis. Equipment for making the
measurements was assembled and extensively tested. A high reliability was attained
for obtaining successful records under the normal rather difficult field conditions.
Force measurements were made during the early project phases by using resistance
strain gages attached to the pile and later with transducers either on top of the pile or
attached to the pile. Accelerations were measured with piezoelectric accelerometers
attached to the pile a short distance below its top. Force and acceleration were re-
corded continuously on a high-speed oscillograph.
Data were obtained from full-scale piles d1·iven for s tatic load testing on highway
bridge projects. After completion of the usual Ohio Highway Department load test,
project personnel performed an additional load test by using a constant rate of penetra-
tion. In this test, the goal was to reach ultimate bearing capacity, as a basis of corre-
lation with dynamic results. The load test was then removed, and dynamic measure-
ments were made during several hammer blows sufficient to obtain a permanent set of
the pile. This procedure has become quite routine. At present, the insti·umentation
is assembled, and all readings are taken by only 2 people from the research project.
For the past 3 years, successful records have been obtained from every attempt. It
should be noted that in all cases the contractors have donated the time and services re-
quired to redrive the pile. Thus, the data have been obtained at a very low cost.
 125
The data were ~alyzed by manually
transforming them to digital form on
punched cards. The computations out- 1.2 I
lined ear lier were made by a digital com-
puter, and drawings of the results were D.8 8 2
obtained automatically from a computer-
O~ 4 I
controlled plotter. A sample result is
shown in Figure 1.
The dynamic prediction is expected to
correlate with ultimate capacity, and for -0.4 -4 - I
this reason the constant penetration load
test was performed because the standard - 0.8 -8 -2
Ohio Department of Highways load test _ _ ACCELERATION
does not go to ultimate load. -1.2 -12 -3 ---- VELOCITY
A comparison of dynamic predictions ............ OISPLAiEMENT
with static measurements is given in
400
Table 1. Additional results have been
obtained that are not reported because 300
the procedures outlined were not followed 200
exactly. These results are reported in ~

another paper (3). Some comments are : 100

=
appropriate. Piles 10 through 15 and 20 ~ 01---+-...;.+~t---1----t---t~+--+---t~
Q 2 11 16 1 . 20
through 23 were special test piles driven ~-100
lmder research project control and having TIME IN MllllSECONOS
additional special instrumentation. Stat- -200
_ _ FORCE
ic load tests were performed, and the - 300
- - - - RESISTANCE
dynamic predictions make use of only the
-400
usual measurements.
Substantial differences between static Figure 1. Dynamic results of pile 12.
measurements and the Phase II predic-
tions exist only for 2 piles, 22 and 24.
Pile 22 had a very low capacity so that
a 21-ton difference results in a large
percentage. Furthermore, studies conducted on small-scale piles and recent analytical
studies have raised questions about the Phase II method on piles in highly cohesive soils;
An application of the preliminary Phase III procedure showed better correlation for the
piles driven in fine-grained soils. Tl).e agreement on pile 24 was substantially better,
and it was almost exact on pile 22. However, it should be emphasized that this was
only a very early application of Phase m, and considerable further study is required.
Piles 4 through 9 were driven into a material having a static behavior that does not
exhibit a sharp break in the load-set curve. Considerable "strain hardening" appears
at large set values. The current analytical studies show promise in providing a solu-
tion to this difficulty.
Pile 5 was a steel pipe pile that had been filled with concrete prior to making dy-
namic measurements. Thus, it had a large mass typical of all precast concrete piles.
It is interesting to note that the agreement with static test results was good. These
were the only data obtained from "high mass" piles.
The average difference between the static ultimate strength and the dynamic pre-
diction was 29 percent for Phase I and 17 percent for Pnase II. If piles 22 and 24 are
dropped, the differences are 22 and 10 percent for Phase I and Phase II respec-
tively.

SPECIAL PURPOSE COMPUTER

The instrumentation system outlined earlier is satisfactory for use by experienced
personnel. However, it hardly represents an acceptable system for routine use by
engineers whose primary concerns are with other activities. Effort has been devoted,
therefore, to the design and development of a special electronic computer and the nec-
essary associated transducers.
126

TABLE 1
COMPARISON OF STATIC ULTIMATE CAPACITY WITH PHASE I
AND PHASE II DYNAMIC PREDICTIONS

Phase I Phase II
static Difference Dynamic Difference
Length Dynamic
Pile Soil Resistanc e (percent) Prediction (percent)
(ft) Prediction
(tons) (tonH)
(tons)

76.5 Gray sill and

clay 126 139 +13 131 +4
2 74.0 Medium coarse
sand 148 200 +26 174 +18
78.0 Sand silt and
clay 122 141 +14 139 +14
4 59.0 Gravelly sand 96 95 -1 94 -2
5 76.0 Gravelly sand 106 110 +4 106 0
6 71 .0 Gravelly sand 95 87 -12 91 -4
7 71.0 Gravelly sand 100 72 -28 73 -27
8 77.0 Gravelly sand 99 92 -7 92 -7
9 84.0 Gravelly sand 125 101 -20 105 -16
10 31.5 Silt and sand 52 61 +17 60 +15
11 31.5 Silt and sand 57 58 +2 63 +11
12 50 .0 Silt and sand 112 139 +24 97 +13
13 50 .0 Silt and sand 119 142 +19 113 -5
14 59.0 Silt and sand 102 144 +41 109 +7
15 59 .0 Silt and sand 121 164 +36 111 -8
16 71.0 Coarse gravel 95 126 +33 95 0
17 58.0 Gravelly sand 113 138 +22 114 +l
18 41.0 Gravel and sand 105 158 +52 101 -4
19 52 .0 Clayey silt 111 164 +48 130 +17
20 50.0 Gray silt and
clay 35 33 -6 47 +34
21 50.0 Gray silt and
clay 48 37 +23 53 +10
22 60.0 Gray silt and
cl av 22 43 +96 43 +96
23 60.0 Gray silt and
clay 43 50 +16 47 +9
24 56.0 Gray silt and
clay 47 100 +113 88 +87
25 78 .0 Gray silt and
clay 88 135 +54 78 -11

The piezoelectric accelerometers used during most of the project were quite satis-
factory except for one problem. The signal coming from the accelerometer requires
considerable amplification before it can be recorded. Therefore, there is a problem
with lead wire noise. Recently, accelerometers of this type with an amplifier built into
the transducer have become available. Their output signal is large enough so that long
lead wires can be used without difficulty. These devices have made the acceleration
measurements much easier. The accelerometers were attached directly to a small
steel block in a semi-permanent fashion. This total system was attached directly to
the pile wall by drilling and tapping a hole in the pile wall and bolting the steel base
directly to the wall. This setup is shown in Figure 2.
During most of the time that the project has been active, force measurements were
obtained by attaching resistance strain gages to the pile near the top. The Ohio Depart-
ment of Highways usually uses steel pipes for friction piles. Two strain gages were
attached to the exterior pile walls on a diameter to cancel out gross bending of the pile.
Force was then determined by using the nominal area. This system gives very reliable
force measurements but is unsatisfactory for routine application because it requires
the attachment of at least 2 resistance strain gages to the pile under field conditions.
The use of Eastman 910 contact cement results in a gage attachment that can be used
immediately. However, the process of attachment is, at best, a tedious process and
unsatisfactory in routine application.
Two transducers were developed for force measurement. One system uses a piece
of pipe of the same diameter as the pile with strain gages attached to the pipe. One of
these devices is shown in Figure 3. A plate is then welded to the top of the pile, and
the transducer is bolted to the plate. An adapter attached to the top of the transducer
accepts the driving system in the same manner as does the pile. The second transducer
 127

Figure 2. Accelerometer attachment.

could best be described as a strain transducer. A small curved strap was designed to
be quite flexible in the longitudinal direction. Strain gages were attached to the strap
in points of stress concentration to provide a large strain output from the transducer.
This bears a linear relationship to the strain in the material to which it is attached and
can be calibrated. The transducer is shown in Figure 4 attached to a 3-inch diameter
pipe. On the left is the transducer, and on the right is the transducer with the template
used for supporting it during the attachment operation. In actual use, 2 transducers
are applied, one on each side of the pile. A typical setup of the instrumentation attached
to the pile is shown in Figure 5.
Both transducers provided satisfactory records for this application. The first de-
vice has ,the advantage of providing an output that has been calibrated to force. It is,
however, heavier and bulkier than the sec-
ond device, and, because it has substan-
tial mass, the dynamic behavior is affected
to some degree. The second device is light
and easily attached, but, because it is cal-
ibrated on strain and thus dependent on a
knowledge of pile area, it will not be as
accurate as the first device.
The strain and acceleration signals,
after appropriate conditioning, were re-
corded on a high-speed oscillograph. The
resulting records were then examined and
digitized manually for subsequent automatic
analysis. A more rapid, simpler datapro-
cessing system is necessary. Therefore,
a special purpose electronic computer was
constructed to perform the computations
of Eq. 2 and provide a readout in real time.
It is shown in Figure 6. In use, the device
is calibrated to a particular pile by the
operator. (The accelerometer and force
Figure 3. Force transducer. transducer calibrations and the pile mass
128

Figure 5. Force transducer and accelerometer in

driving system.
Figure 4. Strain transducer.

must be introduced.) The computer then provides a visual output of 3 digits on a nixie
tube display. All blows or selected blows can be recorded.
The operational characteristics of this system of computer and transducer indicate
that it could be used by the construction engineer with only brief training.

Figure 6. Operator control panel of special purpose computer.

 129

PLANNED APPLICATION IN FOUNDATION CONSTRUCTION CONTROL

It is unrealistic to expect that a drastic change in pile-driving control, such as the
system outlined, can be introduced without an extended period of trial. In the first
place, only a limited amount of correlation with static load tests has been obtained.
Furthermore, all data to date have been gathered by research project personnel. The
first step toward routine use will be to make the Phase I computer available to the Ohio
Department of Highways. Department personnel plan to use it for continued correlation
with static test piles and the driving formula. If correlation is poor, project personnel
will be available to obtain dynamic records for more thorough study. In many smaller
jobs, the requirement of a load test pile is not considered economical. Thus, occasionally,
if engineers are surprised by the pile lengths obtained from a driving formula, the com-
puter would be used to provide further information on which to base a decision.
A Phase II computer will also be constructed, tested, and introduced into use as with
Phase I. Present data indicate that this device should be satisfactory for all conditions
except perhaps in uniform highly cohesive soil deposits. A totally different system may
be necessary for application of the Phase III procedure.
It is hoped that it will be possible to obtain substantial reductions in foundation costs
as a result of the use of this method. Static load tests will be less frequently necessary,
but probably more important will be the use of the additional information to reduce the
rather large margins between indicated bearing and capacity required by design. The
economic use of multiple test piles will further add to the reliability of test results.
Additional data and study are required for piles having a large mass and for piles
driven in highly cohesive soils.

ACKNOWLEOOMENTS
The work reported here was sponsored by the Ohio Department of Highways and the
U. S. Bureau of Public Roads. The authors would particularly like to express their
appreciation to C. R. Hanes, R. M. Dowalter, and R. A. Grover of the Ohio Department
of Highways for their advice and assistance. The opinions, findings, and conclusions
expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the state or the Bureau
of Public Roads.

REFERENCES
1. Goble, G. G., Scanlan, R. H., and Tomko, J. J. Dynamic Studies on the Bearing
Capacity of Piles. Highway Research Record 167, 1967, pp. 46-47.
2. Goble, G. G., Scanlan, R. H., and Tomko, J. J. Dynamic Studies on the Bearing
Capacity of Piles. Case Institute of Technology, Cleveland, Ohio, Vols. 1 and 2,
July 1967.
3. Goble, G. G., Tomko, J. J., Rausche, F., and Green, P. M. Dynamic Studies on
the Bearing Capacity of Piles-Phase II. Case Western Reserve Univ., Cleve-
land, Ohio, Vols. 1 and 2, Rept. 31, July 1968.

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J