Pile Design and Construction Practice, Fifth edition

(a) (b)
Types of pile 43
Figure 2.21 Types of H-section steel piles (a) Universal bearing pile (UK, European, and USA
manufacture) (b) Peine pile (Hoesch).
be regarded as incapable of carrying load. A further complication arises when H-piles are
driven in groups to an end bearing on a dense coarse-grained soil (sand and gravel) or weak
rock. If the piles bend during driving so that they converge, there may be an excessive
concentration of load at the toe and a failure in end bearing when the group is loaded. The
authors observed a deviation of the toes of H-piles of about 500 mm after they had been
driven only 13 m through sands and gravels to an end bearing on sandstone at Nigg Bay in
Scotland.
The curvature of H-piles can be measured by welding a steel angle or channel to the web
of the pile. After driving, an inclinometer is lowered down the square-shaped duct to
measure the deviation from the axis of the pile. This method was used by Hanna (2.10) at
Lambton Power Station, Ontario, where 305 and 355 mm H-piles that were driven through
46 m of clay into shale had deviated 1.8 to 2.1 m from the vertical with a minimum radius
of curvature of 52 m. The piles failed under a test load, and the failure was attributed to
plastic deformation of the pile shaft in the region of maximum curvature.
In the UK H-piles are rolled to BS 4 Part 1: 1993 and BS EN 10056 as universal bearing
piles (Figure 2.21a). Peine piles are broad-flanged H-sections rolled by Hoesch. They are
rolled with bulbs at the tips of the flanges (Figure 2.21b). Loose clutches (‘locking bars’)
are used to interlock the piles into groups suitable for dolphins or fenders in marine structures.
They can also be interlocked with the old Larssen sections to strengthen sheet-pile
walls. The Arbed-HZ and PU (Arcelor) piles are of similar design.
The Monotube pile fabricated by the Monotube Pile Corporation of USA is a uniformly
tapering hollow steel tube. It is formed from steel which is cold-worked to a fluted section
having a tensile yield strength of 345 N/mm 2 or more. The strength of the fluted section is
adequate for the piles to be driven from the top by hammer without an internal mandrel or
concrete filling. The tubes have a standard tip diameter of 203 mm and the shaft diameter
increases to 305, 356, 406 or 457 mm at rates of taper which can be varied to suit the
required pile length. An upper section of uniform diameter can be fitted (Figure 2.22), which
is advantageous for marine work where the fluted section has satisfactory strength and
resilience for resisting wave forces and impact forces from small to medium-size ships. The
tubes are fabricated in 3, 5, 7 and 9 gauge steel and taper lengths can be up to 23 m. The
heavier gauges enable piles to be driven into soils containing obstructions without the tearing
or buckling which can occur with thin steel shell piles.