Experimental Study of Taper Piles With Different Taper Angles

Piled foundations are normally used in offshore engineering. Among various piles, tapered piles have normally greater cross sectional are around the head than the pile toe. Therefore they have greater potential for substantial cost advantages in static loading conditions. The objective of this study is to explore the characteristics of the axial response of tapered piles. Laboratory facilities for testing model piles were prepared. Four polyamide piles with different angles of taper from 0° to 1.5° were used in this study. The soil was sand. It has been found that tapered piles have more bearing capacity than cylindrical piles of the same length and volume. This is interesting and may be considered for offshore piling since in this situation a large number of piles is routinely used.