Lightly Loaded Energy Farm Foundations in Cracked Desiccated Soil

本项目旨在了解水分季节变化对粘性土桩的影响，这些粘性土桩在一年中的干旱时段出现干裂。该项目意义重大，因为能源农场的经济性要求其生存能力需要低成本的基础，但目前的基础设计方法需要长桩，以克服在干旱时期土壤收缩和潮湿时期土壤膨胀时的容量和适用性方面的不确定性。该项目的主要成果将是对在显著收缩和膨胀的土壤中设计轻载桩基础的建议。其好处将是降低与基础设计的岩土方面相关的风险和成本。

This project aims are to understand the effects of seasonal changes in moisture on piles in clayey soils that develop desiccation cracks during dry times of the year. The project is significant because the economics of energy farms requires low cost foundations for their viability, but current methods of foundation design require long piles to overcome uncertainties in capacity and serviceability when soil shrinks in dry periods and swells in wetter periods. The main outcome of the project will be recommendations for the design of lightly loaded pile foundations in soils that shrink and swell significantly. The benefits will be the reduced risk and cost associated with the geotechnical aspects of foundation design.