Estudo numérico da avaliação de integridade de estacas de concreto com o ensaio pile integrity test (pit)

Abstract

The foundations are a fundamental part of a construction, and these are responsible for transmitting the structural load to the soil. Among the various types of foundation, concrete piles are widely used in civil construction and can be molded in situ or pre-fabricated and later driven in the ground. During the execution of the piles, damages can occur along the shaft due to failures of execution which, if not previously detected, may partially ou totally compromisse these foundations elements and consequently the whole building. Therefore, the Pile Integrity Test, or PIT, is a valuable tool to obtain a better control of the quality of the piles. Through this test it is possible to detect failures along the shaft of the pile, thus allowing identification and correction of possible damages still in the execution phase. In this way, this work aims to study and understand the theoretical basis of the PIT test, as well as its limitations and, through numerical simulation, to exemplify the application of the test in intact piles and with variations along the shaft. The results obtained were consistent when compared with the literature, presenting limitations on soil modeling.