Response of vertically-loaded pile in spatially-variable cement-treated soil

Despite the extensive application prospects of piles in cement-treated soil, few studies have explored the ultimate bearing capacity especially in consideration of the spatial variability of cement-treated soil. This study examines the performance of driven piles which were installed inside the cement-treated ground, considering the inherent spatial variability of the cemented soil and the positioning error during piles installation through finite element analyses. The deterministic and random finite element analysis results have shown that the shaft resistance mainly provided the ultimate bearing resistance of piles in cement-treated soil. The spatial variability reduced the global performance of pile installed through a cement-treated soil. The ultimate bearing resistance of the pile inserted in cement-treated soil was controlled by drained condition. Drained ultimate bearing resistance should be used to determine the design working compression load of pile in cement-treated soil.