Probabilistic analysis of the behaviour of laterally loaded piles in chloride environments

Abstract A model for the stiffness degradation coefficient of laterally loaded piles in chloride environments is established. The spatial variability of the modulus of elasticity of soil is obtained by the centre point method. A probabilistic analysis of the behaviour of laterally loaded piles in chloride environments is conducted based on the proposed stiffness degradation coefficient. The influences of significant factors on the failure probability under the failure criterion for the bending moment and lateral displacement are determined. The results show that the failure probability remains constant in the period of corrosion initiation under the two failure criteria. Then, the failure probability increases with the increase in the service time, and the failure criterion for the lateral displacement is more sensitive than the failure criterion for the bending moment based on the specific case study. The failure probability increases gradually with increasing bending moment, vertical load, lateral load and autocorrelation length for the same service time. The failure probability decreases with increasing modulus of elasticity of the soil and pile concrete.