Analytical Solutions for Lateral Bearing Capacity of Piles in Nonhomogeneous Soil

In routine design, the lateral bearing capacity of a single pile is commonly evaluated using analytical expressions which are derived under the hypothesis of rigid-plastic behavior of both the foundation soil and the pile cross section. Existing solutions are available for a limited number of lateral soil resistance distributions, namely constant and linearly increasing variations with depth. However, in real-world applications the profiles for the ultimate soil reaction can be significantly different from available idealized distributions. This study provides a design tool for a wide range of geotechnical scenarios encountered in engineering practice. Analytical solutions were developed for the lateral bearing capacity of piles for two types of generalized distributions of soil resistance with depth, extending those already available in literature. Furthermore, the new developments provide insight into the soil resistance mechanism occurring along the pile, and its effect on the bearing capacity considering pertinent failure modes. A rational manner to apply the solutions in routine engineering is also proposed. The predictions were validated against results obtained from available full-scale pile tests.