PERFORMANCE OF BITUMINOUS COATS IN REDUCING NEGATIVE SKIN

FRICTION

Makarand G. Khare, PhD Research Scholar, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai, India
Shailesh R. Gandhi, Professor, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai, India



Though the phenomenon of dragload is known for many decades, there is a
lack of clear guidelines to evaluate the amount of dragload. The
development of dragload depends on relative movement between pile and
surrounding soil which is a complex phenomenon and requires a detailed
numerical analysis. Bitumen layer has been used in the past with varying
degree of success in reducing the dragload but the reduction appears to
depend on number of parameters. No procedure is available in literature to
estimate the dragload when a slip layer is applied on pile surface. This paper
investigates performance of two commercially available bituminous coats to
reduce the negative skin friction on pile. Direct shear test apparatus was
used to model the interface friction between soil and coated pile surface.
The lower half of direct shear box was replaced with either a concrete block
or a mild steel block representing pile surface. Two types of bituminous
coats namely Shalikote and bitumen having penetration value of 30-40 were
evaluated in this study. Shearing resistance of pile material-coat-soil is found
to be influenced by normal stress, coat thickness, and rate of shear.
Laboratory results are compared with published field data where coated and
uncoated piles have been load tested.


Introduction
The dragload is the load transferred to the pile
due to negative skin friction developed on the
pile shaft where surrounding soil settles more
compared to the pile. Several field
measurements have recorded enormous
magnitude of dragload experienced by piles
ranging from 300 kN (Fellenius, 1972) to as
high as 7600 kN (Bozozuk and Labreque,
1969). Dragload on piles can exceed the
superstructure loads and may lead to structural
failure of piles and/or result in excessive
settlement. Dragload could have adverse
effect on the economy of the project and
reduction of dragload may become necessary.
The pile design must ensure that the dragload
is accommodated without causing any
structural distress and excessive settlement of
pile.
In the past, various methods have been
adopted to reduce the dragload depending
upon the field situation. The methods used to
reduce dragload include preloading, electro-
osmosis (Bjerrum et al., 1969), protection piles
around pile group (Okabe, 1977), and slip
layer technique using bentonite slurry or
bitumen coat (Bjerrum et al., 1969). Coating
the pile with bitumen is the most economical
among above methods for reducing negative
skin friction (Baligh et al., 1978).
The effectiveness of coating in reducing
dragload depends on characteristics of the
pile, the soil and the coating material itself. In
case of fine grained soils, the shearing
behavior of the coating depends on the
average rate of settlement of soil. In case of
coarse grained soils, soil particles slowly
penetrate into the coat causing significant
increase in the negative skin friction. Test
results have shown that the negative skin
friction for bitumen coated piles in coarse
grained soils reaches a maximum value in less
than a month and that bitumen at this stage
behaves as visco-frictional material with
complex properties (Baligh et al., 1978).
Coating material should have low viscosity to
permit the slippage of soil surrounding pile
shaft and at the same time it should adhere to
pile shaft during storage and pile driving. A
soft and thicker coating results in lesser
dragload. The cost of coated pile can be much
higher than that of uncoated pile (Briaud and
Tucker, 1997). Therefore the selection of type
of coat and thickness is important for dragload
mitigation and overall economy of the project.
This laboratory investigation evaluates the
performance of two types of bituminous coats
in reducing the skin friction at soil-pile
interface. Conventional direct shear apparatus
was modified to study the soil-pile interface.
Tests were carried out to study the effect of
type and thickness of coat, normal stress, and
rate of shear on interface friction.
Laboratory Study
Two types of coating materials were used in
this study, namely; Shalikote and bitumen.
Shalikote is dispersion of selected grades of
bitumen in water. It is used as a protective
coating over steel to prevent rusting. It has
semi solid consistency. Shalikote is applied
cold on a surface. It can withstand
temperature variations and vibrations. The
bitumen coat used in present study had a
penetration value between 30 and 40 and
softening point between 55C and 60C.
a) Interface Friction Tests with Sand
Granular soil layer, either natural or in the form
of surface fill apply considerable dragload on
pile due to the settlement of the clay layer
below. The particle penetration of granular soil
into coat during pile driving may result in
scrapping off the coat and higher skin friction.
Therefore it is important to study the efficiency
of coating material in reducing the interface
friction between pile material and granular soil.
The conventional direct shear apparatus was
modified to conduct interface friction tests as
shown in Fig. 1. Pile shaft was represented by
a solid mild steel block or concrete block of
8.5 by 8.5 by 2.8 cm. The properties of
granular soil used in study are listed in Table
1.
The granular soil used is classified as poorly
graded sand (SP) and hereafter referred as
sand.

Table1. Properties of granular soil
D
50

(mm)
D
10

(mm)
C
u
C
c
G
s
max

(kN/m
3
)

min

(kN/m
3
)
0.58 0.28 2.5 1.18 2.63 18.2 15.5


Fig.1. Interface friction test between coated
pile material and soil.
The first set of tests was conducted to
measure the peak shear stress at the interface
of pile material (i.e. mild steel block and
concrete block) and sand. The top half of
direct shear apparatus was placed on solid
mild steel block and secured in position with
locking pins. Sand was placed in top half of
direct shear apparatus at 70 percent relative
density by pluvial deposition technique.
Normal stress was then applied on the sand
surface and sample was sheared. All tests
were conducted at 0.25 mm/min rate of shear.
The interface friction between sand and
concrete block was measured using the
identical procedure.
The second set of tests was conducted to
study the reduction in interface friction by
coating the blocks of pile material with bitumen
and Shalikote. Bitumen was heated to 150C
and poured in 6 cm by 6 cm mould placed on
the top of mild steel block. The coat was
allowed to remain in the mould for 24 hours.
After a period of 24 hours the mould was
removed and the top half of direct shear
apparatus was carefully placed on mild steel
block without disturbing the coat.
In case of Shalikote, the semi solid coat was
thoroughly mixed and applied cold at uniform
thickness inside the 6 cm by 6 cm mould
placed on top of mild steel block. The
Shalikote took more than 24 hours to cure.
The end of curing was indicated by the change
in color of coat from brown to black.
Sand was then directly deposited at 70 percent
relative density on top of bitumen or Shalikote
coated mild steel block. Pluvial deposition
technique was used to place the sand on top
of coat. Manual compaction was avoided to
Top half of shear
Apparatus
Normal Load
Grid
Plate
Soil
Coat
(2 -5 mm)
85 mm
28 mm
Solid Mild
Steel Box/
Concrete
Block
prevent uncontrolled penetration of sand
particles into coat. The pluvial deposition
technique ensured uniform coat properties
before shearing. After placing sand on top of
coat the desired normal stress was applied
through sand on the interface. The top half of
direct shear apparatus was then lifted with the
help of three lifting screws so that it remains
just above the top of coat as shown in Fig. 1.
The soil was then sheared against the coated
mild steel block at 0.25 mm/min rate of shear.
All tests were conducted at an ambient
temperature of 31C. Tests on concrete
blocks were conducted with procedure
identical to that used for mild steel block. The
reduction in interface friction was considered
as a measure of effectiveness of coat.
The typical shear behavior of uncoated,
shalikote coated and bitumen coated mild steel
block with sand is shown in Fig. 6. Tests with
Shalikote showed initial increase in interface
friction followed by substantial reduction as
sample was sheared. In case of bitumen,
interface friction increased as sand particles
penetrate into coat and then remained
constant as shown in Fig. 6. Tests showed
that full interface friction is mobilized at a
relative movement of few millimeters. Soil
undergoes large settlements compared to pile
where dragload mitigation is required. In the
present study shear stresses at 6 mm relative
deformation are compared for evaluating the
reduction in interface friction with Shalikote
and bitumen.
Results of interface friction tests on Shalikote
coated mild steel block are presented in Fig. 2.
Results of interface friction tests on bitumen
coated mild steel block are presented in Fig. 3.
Analysis of test results suggests that bitumen
coat achieved maximum reduction in interface
friction for all normal stresses and all
thicknesses. At normal stress of 25 kPa,
residual shear stresses for specimens coated
with 1 mm and 1.36 mm thick Shalikote were
marginally higher than those obtained for sand
and uncoated mild steel block as shown in
Fig.2. This behavior may be attributed to
component of adhesion of Shalikote to the mild
steel block.
Specimens coated with Shalikote showed 50%
and 60% reduction in shear stresses to that of
uncoated specimens at normal stresses of
50 kPa and 75 kPa respectively as shown in
Fig. 2. Shalikote coating showed substantial
reduction in coat thickness due to shrinkage.
Initial coating thickness of 2 mm, 3 mm and 5
mm reduced to 1 mm, 1.36 mm and 2.16 mm
after curing. Shrinkage of coat may pose
problem of cracks when applied to surface of
prototype piles in field. For Shalikote reduction
in shear stress ranged from 20% to 60%.
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
0 25 50 75 100
Normal Stress (kPa)
S
h
e
a
r

S
t
r
e
s
s

(
k
P
a
)
Uncoated
1mm shalikote
1.36mm shalikote
2.16mm shalikote
Fig.2. Interface friction of Shalikote coated mild
steel block.
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
0 25 50 75 100
Normal Stress (kPa)
S
h
e
a
r

S
t
r
e
s
s

(
k
P
a
)
Uncoated
2mm Bitumen
3mm Bitumen
5mm Bitumen
Fig.3. Interface friction of bitumen coated mild
steel block.
Bitumen coated mild steel block specimen
showed 85% to 97% reduction in shear stress
when compared to uncoated specimen. Shear
stress decreased with increase in the coat
thickness as shown in Figs. 2 and 3.
Results of interface friction tests on Shalikote
coated concrete block are presented in Fig. 4.
Results of interface friction tests on bitumen
coated concrete block are presented in Fig. 5.

0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
0 25 50 75 100
Normal Stress (kPa)
S
h
e
a
r

S
t
r
e
s
s

(
k
P
a
)
1 mm shalikote
1.36 mm shalikote
2.16 mm shalikote
Uncoated
Fig.4. Interface friction of Shalikote coated
concrete block.

0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
0 25 50 75 100
Normal Stress (kPa)

S
h
e
a
r

S
t
r
e
s
s

(
k
P
a
)
Uncoated
2mm Bitumen
3mm Bitumen
5mm Bitumen
Fig.5. Interface friction of bitumen coated
concrete block.
Tests on concrete blocks showed identical
trends. Shalikote coated specimens showed
25% to 70% reduction in shear stresses when
compared to uncoated specimens as shown in
Fig. 4. Bitumen coated samples showed 85%
to 97% reduction in shear stresses as shown
in Fig. 5.
The available literature shows that the rate of
shear has no effect on interface friction
(Heerema, 1979). However theses studies are
limited to uncoated construction materials and
soils.
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
0 2 4 6
Horizontal Movement (mm)
S
h
e
a
r

S
t
r
e
s
s

(
k
P
a
)
8
2.16mm Shalikote
5 mm Bitumen
Uncoated

Fig.6. Typical shear behavior of uncoated and
coated specimen of mild steel block with sand.
Limited tests were carried out on coated mild
steel block to study the effect of rate of shear
on interface friction. Effect of rate of shear on
interface friction for Shalikote coated mild steel
block and sand is shown in Fig. 7. Tests show
that interface friction is directly proportional to
the rate of shear. Sand particles penetrate into
coat under normal stress and shear stress
which result in visco-frictional behavior of coat.
Therefore interface friction developed on
coated pile can be expected to vary with rate
of soil settlement. The interface friction at soil-
pile interface is expected to be high,
immediately after placement of fill because of
faster rate of settlement.

0
4
8
12
16
20
0.01 0.1 1 10
Rate of Shear (mm/min)
R
e
s
i
d
u
a
l

S
h
e
a
r

S
t
r
e
s
s

(
k
P
a
)
Fig.7. Interface friction of sand and Shalikote
coated mild steel block.

b) Interface Friction Tests with Clay
Limited number of tests were carried out to
study interface friction of clayey soil with
concrete block. Index properties of soil used
are given in Table 2. The soil is classified as
low plasticity clay (CL) and hereafter referred
as clay.

Table 2. Properties of clay
Properties Value
Atterberg Limits
Liquid Limit (%) 45
Plastic Limit (%) 19
Plasticity Index 26
Grain Size
Sand (%) 47
Silt Size (%) 27
Clay Size (%) 26
Clay with a water content of about 70% was
stirred thoroughly to form slurry. The slurry
was then transferred to direct shear box and
was consolidated using small pressure
increments to the desired test pressure.
Provisions were made for top and bottom
drainage. Slurry was consolidated to a
pressure corresponding to that used in
interface friction tests in a stepped manner.
The consolidated soil sample was cut by a thin
wire, trimmed and transferred on the top of
concrete block. The desired normal stress
was then applied and interface friction was
measured. Tests were conducted at
0.125 mm/min rate of shear to ensure drained
test condition. Tests were conducted for 3mm
bitumen coated concrete blocks and clay to
find out reduction in interface friction due to
bitumen coat. Results of bitumen coated and
uncoated specimens for normal stresses of 50,
75 and 100 kPa are shown in Fig. 8.

The results of interface tests on clay and
concrete blocks are compared with interface
friction deduced from field tests reported in
literature and based on empirical procedure
suggested by American Petroleum Institute
(API, 2000) as shown in Fig. 15.

Analysis of Field Tests
Data available from pull out tests on
instrumented piles reported by Indraratna et al.
(1992) was analyzed to develop axial load
transfer and relative displacement relationship
often referred as t-z curve.

0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
0 2 4 6 8
Horizontal Movement (mm)
S
h
e
a
r

S
t
r
e
s
s

(
k
P
a
)
100 kPa Uncoated
75 kPa Uncoated
50 kPa Uncoated
100 kPa Bitumen Coated
75 kPa Bitumen Coated
50 kPa Bitumen Coated
Fig.8. Shear behavior of coated and uncoated
concrete block with clay.
Bitumen coated and uncoated cylindrical
prestressed concrete piles were subjected to
short term pull out tests. Pore pressures and
ground movements were monitored throughout
the period of investigation. Sub soil profile is
shown in Fig. 9. Subsoil profile was
characterized by top 4 m of weathered clay,
followed by 16 m of soft marine clay and layers
of medium stiff clay ranging from 6 to 8 m in
thickness. The soft clay had natural water
content up to 95%, a plastic limit of 25-40%,
and a liquid limit of 70-100%.

Piles were driven in stages. The first two pile
segments were connected on the ground to
form a unit of 8 m long and driven into soil.
The pile was left for 8 to 9 days before
subjecting to the pull out test. When the first
pullout test was completed then the next pile
segment was connected and the procedure
was repeated till pile was driven to a depth of
25 m.

The results of pile pull out tests on uncoated
and 6 mm thick bitumen coated piles are
reported in the form of pile head movement
versus tension load as shown in Figs. 10 and
11 respectively.


Fig.9. Subsoil Profile (Indraratna et al., 1992).

0
6
12
18
24
0 15 30 4
Tension Load (tonnes)
P
i
l
e

H
e
a
d

M
o
v
e
m
e
n
t

(
m
m
5
)
L=8m
L=12m
L=16m
L=20m
Fig. 10. Load-uplift curve of uncoated pile
(Indraratna et al., 1992).

0
6
12
18
24
0 6 12 18 24
Tension Load (tonnes)
P
i
l
e

H
e
a
d

M
o
v
e
m
e
n
t

(
m
m
)
L=8m
L=12m
L=16m
L=20m
Fig.11. Load-uplift curve of coated pile
(Indraratna et al., 1992).
The pull out test data was used to develop t-z
curves for coated and uncoated piles. The t-z
curve deduced from instrumented pile tests
was compared to the t-z curve as per
procedure suggested by American Petroleum
Institute (2000) and shown in Fig. 15.

The second field study was analyzed where an
instrumented pile passing through sand, soft
clay and stiff clay was subjected to
compression load test (Raju and Gandhi,
1989). The subsoil profile included 5 m of
sand followed by 7 m of soft marine clay and
bearing layer of stiff clay as shown in Fig. 12.
The soft marine clay had natural water content
of 50-80%, liquid limit of 60-100% and plastic
limit of 35-60%. The stiff clay layer had a
natural moisture content of 30-40%, liquid limit
of 60-100%, and plastic limit of 35-60%. The
site was filled with a surcharge varying from
0.8 to 2 m. Precast concrete pile of
400 by 400 mm was driven and subjected to
compression load up to failure. The pile was
instrumented with electrical strain gauge type
load cells to estimate the sharing of load by
friction in various layers and end bearing.
Fig.13 shows the load distribution curves for
instrumented pile. The distribution of load
obtained at various elevations of pile was
reduced to skin friction developed. The
relative movement required to develop the unit
skin friction was deduced from load settlement
curve shown in Fig. 14. The t-z curve was
developed from the field data and compared to
the t-z curve obtained from procedure
suggested by American Petroleum Institute
(2000) as shown in Fig. 15.
The interface friction developed in field and
laboratory test was normalized to effective
vertical stress to get the shaft friction
parameter as defined by Burland (1973).
Fig. 16 shows relation of with relative
movement.
Fig.12. Subsoil profile (Raju and Gandhi, 1989)

Site Filling
Sand
Soft Clay
Stiff Clay
Depth
(m)
2
0
7
14
32
Medium Stiff Clay
Stiff Clay
Weathered Clay
Soft Clay
Sand
Depth (m)
0
4
20
24
27
30
-25
-20
-15
-10
-5
0
0 50 100 150 200
Load (tonnes)
P
i
l
e

E
l
e
v
a
t
i
o
n

(
m
)
Fig.13. Load distribution curves for
instrumented pile (Raju and Gandhi, 1989)
0
8
16
24
32
40
48
0 40 80 120 160 200 240
Load (tonnes)
P
i
l
e

H
e
a
d

S
e
t
t
l
e
m
e
n
t

(
m
m
)

ig.14. Load settlement curve for pile load test. F
(Raju and Gandhi, 1989)
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
0 2 4 6 8 10
Relative Movement, z (mm)
M
o
b
i
l
i
z
e
d

U
n
i
t

S
k
i
n

F
r
i
c
t
i
o
n
,

t

(
k
P
a
12
)
Uncoated Pile
(Indraratna,1992)
API Method
(Indraratna,1992)
Bitumen Coated Pile
(Indraratna,1992)
Uncoated Pile
(Raju&Gandhi, 1989)
API Method
(Raju&Gandhi)
50 kPa Uncoated
(Laboratory)
75 kPa Uncoated
(Laboratory)
100 kPa Uncoated
(Laboratory)
50 kPa Coated
(Laboratory)
75 kPa Coated
(Laboratory)
100 kPa Coated
(Laboratory)
Fig. 15. Comparison of mobilized friction for field and laboratory tests.

Laboratory and field data shows full
development of at relative movement of
about 5 mm. The value of for uncoated pile
was found to be 0.13 based on load tests. The
corresponding value of predicted by API
method was 0.25. The laboratory tests on
uncoated concrete block show of about 0.35.



The for bitumen coated piles and bitumen
oated laboratory specimens was found to be c
0.05 and 0.02 respectively.

0
0.05
0.1
0.15
0.2
0.25
0.3
0.35
0.4
0 2 4 6 8 10
Relative Movement, z(mm)

12
Uncoated Pile
(Indraratna et
al.,1992)
API Method
(Indraratna et
al.,1992)
Bitumen Coated Pile
(Indraratna et
al.,1992)
Uncoated Pile (Raju
and Gandhi,1989)
API Method (Raju and
Gandhi,1989)
50kPa Uncoated
(Laboratory)
75kPa Uncoated
(Laboratory)
100kPa Uncoated
(Laboratory)
Fig. 16. Variation of with relative movement based on field and laboratory tests.
Summary
The paper presents laboratory tests to study
the effect of pile material, normal stress, coat
type, coat thickness and rate of shear on
development of interface friction. Direct shear
test apparatus was modified by replacing
bottom half of apparatus with a solid block of
pile material to model soil-pile interface
friction. Two types of bituminous coats namely
Shalikote and 30-40 grade bitumen of initial
thickness of 2, 3 and 5 mm were used.
Bitumen coat achieved maximum reduction in
interface friction for all normal stresses and all
thicknesses. The Shalikote showed reduction
in interface friction by 20% to 60% to that of
uncoated specimens of mild steel block under
normal stresses ranging from 25 to 75 kPa.
Bitumen coated specimen of mild steel block
showed 85% to 97% reduction in shear stress
when compared to uncoated specimen under
normal stresses of 25 to 75 kPa. The
percentage reduction in interface friction is
higher at higher normal stress. Shrinkage of
Shalikote may pose problem of cracks when
applied to surface of prototype piles.

Tests on concrete blocks showed identical
trends. Shalikote coated specimens showed
25% to 70% reduction in shear stresses when
compared to uncoated specimens.
Bitumen coated samples showed 85% to 97%

reduction in shear stresses. Shear stress
decreases with increase in the coat thickness.
Tests were carried out to study the effect of
rate of shear on interface friction developed on
Shalikote coated mild steel surface. Tests
show that as interface friction is directly
proportional to the rate of shear.
Limited number of interface friction tests with
normally consolidated clay and uncoated and
bitumen coated concrete blocks were carried
out at normal stress of 50, 75 and 100 kPa.
This behavior was compared to the field data
obtained from pull out and compression load
tests on instrumented piles. Laboratory and
field data shows that the maximum value of
is reached at a relative movement of about
5 mm. The for uncoated pile was found to
be 0.13 based on field tests. The
corresponding value of predicted by API
method was 0.25. The laboratory tests on
uncoated concrete blocks showed of about
0.35.
The for bitumen coated piles and bitumen
coated laboratory specimens was found to be
0.05 and 0.02 respectively. Further study with
model and prototype bitumen coated piles is
needed to establish the design procedure
using effective stress approach.
REFERENCES
American Petroleum Institute, 2000.
Recommended practice for planning,
designing and constructing fixed offshore
platforms-working stress design. API
Recommended Practice 2A-WSD (RP 2A-
WSD) Twenty First Edition, December, 2000.
Baligh, M.M., Vivatrat V., And Figi, H., 1978.
Downdrag on bitumen-coated piles. J ournal of
Geotechnical Engineering, ASCE, vol.104,
No.11, pp. 1355-1370.
Bjerrum, L., J ohannessen, I.J ., and
Eide, O., 1969. Reduction of negative skin
friction on steel piles to rock. Proc. 7th Int.
Conference on Soil Mechanics and
Foundation Engineering. Vol.2, pp. 15-40.
Bozozuk, M. and Labrecque, A., 1969.
Downdrag measurements on 270-ft.
composite piles. Performance of Deep
Foundations, ASTM STP No. 444, pp. 15-40.
et al., 1978
Briaud, J .L. and Tucker, L.M., 1997. Design
and construction guidelines for downdrag on
uncoated and bitumen coated piles. NCH
Rep. 393, Transportation Research Board,
Washington, D.C., pp. 198.

















Burland, J .B. 1973. Shaft friction of piles in
clay- a simple fundamental approach. Ground
Engineering, vol.7, pp. 30-42.
Fellenius, B.H., 1972. Downdrag on piles in
clay due to negative skin friction. Canadian
Geotechnical J ournal, vol.9, No.4,
pp. 323-337.
Heerema, E.P., 1979. Relationship between
wall friction, displacement velocity, and
horizontal stress in clay and sand, for pile
drivability analysis. Ground Engineering,
vol.12, no.9, pp.55-60.
Indraratna, B., Balasubramaniam, A.S.,
Phamvan, P., and Wong, Y.K., 1992.
Development of negative skin friction on driven
piles in soft Bangkok clay. Canadian
Geotechnical J ournal, vol. 29, pp. 393-404.
Okabe, T., 1977. Large negative friction and
friction-free pile methods. Proc. 9th Int.
Conference on Soil Mechanics and
Foundation Engineering, Tokyo, vol.1,
pp. 679-682.
Raju, V.S. and Gandhi, S.R., 1989. Ultimate
capacity of precast driven piles in stiff clay.
Indian Geotechnical J ournal, vol. 19, no.4,
pp.273-289.