The Spirit of Engineering

LOW STRAIN IMPACT INTEGRITY TESTING OF DEEP

FOUNDATIONS (ASTM D 5882-07)

Bridging Depth to Sky Needs

WHAT IS INTEGRITY TEST

The sonic integrity test is a non

destructive type of testing in order to
check the integrity of the pile shaft.
The technique can be used both on
cast-in-situ
place
piles
and
prefabricated piles
Integrity testing is relatively simple
and quick and enables number of piles
to be examined in a single working
day.

NEED FOR INTEGRITY TEST

For a successful pile foundation it is

imperative that the piles constructed are
of sound quality and of design shape and
dimensions that is structural integrity

The routine vertical load tests carried out

on working piles do not provide direct
information on structural integrity of piles.
Also, in view of the very limited number of
tests ( 0.5 to 2 percent ) carried out at a
particular project site, it is not possible to
reliably testify structural quality of piles

However, it is also true that all the piles

cannot be tested in this way because of
both economic and time constraints

NEED FOR INTEGRITY TEST

Ex. S1 = 4.0 mm
Qsafe= 100 Ton

GOOD SOUNDING PILES

S1= 10 mm
Qsafe= 100 Ton

GOOD PILES

Necking effects

Bulging effects

Improper Toe formation

1.Choose the rig machine 2.Bentonite 3.Experience

NEED FOR INTEGRITY TEST

POSSIBLE PILE DEFFECT

Discontinuity of Concrete :

The Toe reflection is observed at 2.40m

below the testing level due to discontinuity
of the pile

POSSIBLE PILE DEFFECT

The sonic integrity test is a non destructive
type of testing in order to check the integrity
of the pile shaft. The technique can be used
both on cast-in-situ place piles and
prefabricated piles
It is a firm belief that cast-in-situ piles in
majority of cases fail because of defective like:

Pile shaft necking,

Discontinuity of concrete,
Intrusion of foreign matter,
Improper
toe
formation
due
to
contamination of concrete at base with soil
particles,
Washing of concrete due to high water
current, adoption of improper construction
method,
Poor quality control on concreting or any
other reason,

PREPARATION OF
THE PILE
Preparing the pile for testing is fairly
straightforward. For acquiring good quality
signals, prepare the pile as described below.
Pile heads must be clean and free from
debris (e.g. from cracked or loose
concrete, dirt, grit or embedded foreign
materials),
Free from standing water, accessible,
though not necessarily flat and smooth.
Remove soft concrete from the pile head
of cast-in-situ piles.
The concrete of cast-in-situ piles should
preferably be cured to at least 80% of its
ultimate strength.
In general this stage is reached 7 days
after installation of the pile.
All piles should be on Cut off level.

FINDING PILE DEFFECT

USING PIT
The method does not identify all imperfections
in a pile, but provides information about
continuity and defects is described below.
Cracks,
Necking,
Bulging,
Soil incursions,
Changes in cross section
Approximate pile lengths (unless the pile is
very long or skin friction is too high).
Improper
toe
formation
due
to
contamination of concrete at base with soil
particles.

LIMITATIONS

A Pile Integrity Test cant provide the load

carrying capacity of the pile.
Minor deficiencies like local loss of cover,
small intrusions or type of conditions of
materials at the base of piles are
undetectable.
Waves cant usually cross gaps. Hence
portion beyond mechanical joints or full
section cracks cant be tested.
Limitations relating to the depths up to
which the integrity tests can be carried on
piles depend on the surrounding strata,
change in pile shape and damping within
the concrete.
Highly non uniform piles produce
complex records which are difficult to
analyse.

RELATION BETWEEN WAVE

VELOCITY AND PILE LENGTH
Based on the time interval on and the wave velocity through concrete c, simple
mathematics will reveal the length:

Prior to taking measurements, the user

should specify the approximate pile length
and the estimated propagation velocity. The
propagation velocity is directly dependent of
the concrete quality.
Analysing formula [2] with which the
propagation speed can be calculated, shows
this
After hitting the pile head with a hammer, a
shock wave will propagate through the
concrete pile with a propagation speed of
approximately 4000 m/s.
At the toe of the pile, the shock wave will
reflect (partially) and will propagate back to
the pile head at which it is detected by the
sensor. The detection of this reflected
hammer blow is called the toe-reflex.

WAVE SPEED CALCULATION

Examples of relation Pile Length, Propagation Speed and Concrete Quality

DIFFERENT BETWEEN SPEED

AND VELOCITY

DIFFERENT BETWEEN SPEED

AND VELOCITY

DIFFERENT BETWEEN SPEED

AND VELOCITY

The reflected stress wave can be

monitored using either processing
technique, the observed signals are
amplified and converted into digital
display as velocity versus length or
frequency versus mobility records,
providing information on structural
integrity of pile.
The stress wave velocity and
approximate pile lengths are
provided as input for the integrity
testing.
The stress wave velocity is dependent
on the Youngs modulus and mass
density of pile concrete.

FUNCTION OF VELOCITY AND

LENGTH
Executed Length and Velocity in Field :

Expected Length and Velocity of the pile :

HOW TO OBTAIN INFORMATION

ABOUT THE SOIL INFLUENCE
To obtain a good understanding of the influence of soil changes, one can
compare the measurement signals of piles with the same dimension on the same
site (characteristic signal/ Group Pile Average). In general, SIT measurement
signals "respond" to soil changes, according to the following guidelines.

The cross section appears to decrease, if the soil changes from stiff to soft
(a decrease in shaft friction).

The cross section appears to increase, if the soil changes from soft to stiff
(an increase in shaft friction).

Some cast-in-place piles tend to show a slow increase in diameter with

depth, particularly in soft upper ground.

When the soil changes from soft to stiff, a sudden change from "inverted
taper" to a cylindrical shape of nominal diameter often occurs and is usually
seen as a relatively large reflection similar to that obtained from a decrease
in cross section. Soil stiffness can also influence the shape of cast-in-place
piles.

HOW TO OBTAIN INFORMATION

ABOUT THE SOIL INFLUENCE

The cross section appears to increase, if the

soil changes from soft to stiff.

The cross section appears to decrease, if

the soil changes from stiff to soft.

HOW TO OBTAIN INFORMATION

ABOUT THE SOIL INFLUENCE

Passive Earth
Pressure

The cross section appears to increase, if the

soil changes from soft to stiff.

The cross section appears to decrease, if

the soil changes from stiff to soft.

PILE DEFECTS

THANK YOU