Displacement analysis for energy pile foundations under thermomechanical loads

Abstract

Energy piles present an innovative energy-saving technology that can fulfill two critical building needs of structural support and energy supply. In practice, developing simple but efficient methods to predict the thermomechanical response of energy pile foundations is essential for geotechnical engineers. In this study, a practical method was proposed for the thermomechanical analyses of energy pile foundations. The proposed method could effectively describe the interactions between the grouped energy piles, the surrounding soil, and the stiff soil strata underlying the pile tip. Based on this method, parametric analyses were performed to evaluate the effects of several aspects, including the foundation geometries and ground properties, on the pile displacement behavior and the pile-to-pile interaction. Further, the proposed method was used for the displacement analysis for a square pile group containing sixteen energy piles under thermomechanical loads. Comparisons with results obtained through the experimental investigations and finite-element methods prove that the proposed method is capable of capturing the displacement response of energy pile foundations with reasonable accuracy. The aim of this study is to offer a practical method and a reliable reference to geotechnical engineers during the design of energy pile foundations.