Volume 22 (2014): Issue 4 (December 2014)

The article deals with numerical analyses of a Continuous Flight Auger (CFA) pile. The analyses include a comparison of calculated and measured load-settlement curves as well as a comparison of the load distribution over a pile's length. The numerical analyses were executed using two types of software, i.e., Ansys and Plaxis, which are based on FEM calculations. Both types of software are different from each other in the way they create numerical models, model the interface between the pile and soil, and use constitutive material models. The analyses have been prepared in the form of a parametric study, where the method of modelling the interface and the material models of the soil are compared and analysed.

Our analyses show that both types of software permit the modelling of pile foundations. The Plaxis software uses advanced material models as well as the modelling of the impact of groundwater or overconsolidation. The load-settlement curve calculated using Plaxis is equal to the results of a static load test with a more than 95 % degree of accuracy. In comparison, the load-settlement curve calculated using Ansys allows for the obtaining of only an approximate estimate, but the software allows for the common modelling of large structure systems together with a foundation system.

Large-span constructions are used more and more today in practice. While concrete and steel previously played a leading role, now constructions which use wood as a building material occur more often. This article deals with problems related to composite structure made from steel and wood by focusing on the connections of these structures in more detail. The main part of this work concentrates on the experimental verification of the resistance of four types of joints. It compares the results with Eurocode 5: design of timber structures.

The paper deals with rheological models and creep and relaxation tests on matters which are represented by models. Three models based on two fundamental components (Hooke’s elastic and Newton’s viscous compounds) are performed. The models originated from several fundamental matters by their parallel or serial connections. The corresponding constitutive equations are derived. The behavior of the models under the creep and relaxation tests is observed and is expressed by corresponding stress - strain formulas and illustrated in the figures.

In the last decade piled raft foundations have been widely used around the world as intermediate foundation systems between piles and rafts to control the settlement of foundations. However, when those piles are structurally connected to rafts, relatively high axial stresses develop in relatively small numbers of piles, which are often designed to fully mobilize their geotechnical capacities. To avoid a concentration of stress at the head of piles in a traditional piled raft foundation, the raft is disconnected from the piles, and a cushion is introduced between them. Also, to tackle an unfavourable soil profile for a piled raft foundation, the conventional piled raft has been modified into a cushioned composite piled raft foundation, where piles of different materials are used. In the current study the behavior of cushioned foundation components, which transfer the load from the structure to the subsoil, are analyzed in detail, i.e., the thickness of the raft, the length of a long pile and the modulus of a flexible pile.

Engineering properties such as compaction, unconfined compressive strength, consistency limits, percentage swell, free swell index, the California bearing ratio and the consolidation of bentonite stabilized with lime and phosphogypsum are presented in this paper. The content of the lime and phosphogypsum varied from 0 to 10 %. The results reveal that the dry unit weight and optimum moisture content of bentonite + 8 % lime increased with the addition of 8 % phosphogypsum. The percentage of swell increased and the free swell index decreased with the addition of 8 % phosphogypsum to the bentonite + 8 % lime mix. The unconfined compressive strength of the bentonite + 8 % lime increased with the addition of 8 % phosphogypsum as well as an increase in the curing period up to 14 days. The liquid limit and plastic limit of the bentonite + 8 % lime increased, whereas the plasticity index remained constant with the addition of 8 % phosphogypsum. The California bearing ratio, modulus of subgrade reaction, and secant modulus increased for the bentonite stabilized with lime and phosphogypsum. The coefficient of the consolidation of the bentonite increased with the addition of 8 % lime and no change with the addition of 8 % phosphogypsum.