Estimation of Screw Displacement Pile-Bearing Capacity Based on Drilling Resistances

This article presents an engineering, empirical method of estimating the bearing capacity and settlement characteristics Q-s of screw displacement piles and columns, based on soil resistance encountered during the drilling to form piles/columns in the ground. The method was developed on the basis of correlation analyses of the test results of 24 piles made during the “DPDT-Auger” research project (Krasiński et al., 2022a). In the proposed method, the load capacity of a screw displacement pile is estimated using two main parameters of auger screwing resistance: torque M_T and the number of auger rotations per depth unit n_R. The method applies to piles and columns made with a standard screw displacement pile (SDP) auger and with the proprietary, prototype DPDT (displacement pile drilling tool) aguer, patented in Poland (2020). Based on the estimated ultimate capacities of the pile shaft and base, an approximate method of predicting the pile settlement characteristics Q-s was also proposed, using the transfer function method. This article describes a correlation procedure of field test results together with their statistical analysis and presents a method of estimating the pile-bearing capacity based on correlation results. A calculation example is also provided. The conclusion looks at the useful practical applications that could be found for the proposed method.