Experiment and Numerical Study on Deformation Measurement of Cast-in-Place Concrete Large-Diameter Pipe Pile Using Optical Frequency Domain Reflectometer Technology

• Main Authors: Lei Gao, Yunhao Gong, Hanlong Liu, Baoquan Ji, Yining Xuan, Yuan Ma
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2018-08-01
• Series: Applied Sciences
• Subjects: PCC pile; strain; optical fiber; Optical Frequency Domain Reflectometer (OFDR) technology; numerical simulation; wavelet transform
• Online Access: http://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/8/9/1450

The Cast-in-place concrete large-diameter pipe (PCC) pile has been used as the foundation reinforcement and embankment in China due to its low cost and high bearing capacity. The deformation of PCC pile under different vertical loads is very important for the application of engineering. In order to study the deformation characteristics of PCC pile, a small-scale model test was carried out. The new distributed measuring technology, named Optical Frequency Domain Reflectometer (OFDR), was applied to measure the strain on the PCC pile. A single mode fiber (SMF) was used, and the methods of layout, packaging and protection of optical fiber are introduced in detail. The obtained data was dealt with by wavelet transform, and the strain curves were analyzed based on the experiments. The finite element (FE) analysis model was established by COMSOL Multiphysics, and the numerical results compared with the experiment results. It showed that the optical fiber sensor can measure the strain of PCC pile, and that the deformation of PCC pile can be successfully obtained by OFDR technology. The strain of the pile decreases with depth and increases with loading. The measured result agrees well with numerical simulation result. The potential application of OFDR technology to PCC pile in situ and PCC energy pile is discussed.