Acoustic emission characteristics of subsoil subjected to vertical pile loading in sand

Abstract The response of the subsoil subjected to pile loading is crucial to clarify the bearing mechanism of pile foundations. This study presents a novel acoustic emission (AE) method to monitor the subsoil behavior in a model pile testing system. The AE testing aims to capture the “micro-noises” released from sand grain dislocation and crushing around the pile shaft during penetration. The correlations between the pile settlement and the AE characteristics including count, amplitude and energy are revealed and discussed, highlighting that the ground density and the shear zone formed during pile penetration mainly affect the AE behavior. The results also suggest that the yielding of ground can be determined based on the development of the AE activity. The technique shows promise as an in-situ methodology for monitoring of subsoil behavior during the process of pile loading.