Effects of dynamic load application, irregular wave conditions, and base flexibility on the structural response of a vertical pile platform

Abstract

The dynamic structural response of a vertical pile port platform under the action of irregular wave loads considering soil-structure interaction is studied. Deck displacement and bending moment on the piles were evaluated for a set of structural, hydraulic, and geotechnical parameters. Static structural analyses with the maximum base shear produced by wave loads and dynamic time-history analyses are performed to study the effects of dynamic amplification on the structural response of the platform. Two types of waves are analyzed, regular and irregular, to analyze the amplification effects due to the superposition of a wave train of different periods in the case of irregular waves. Cases with fixed base support and non-linear spring-modeled soil are considered to evaluate the effect of considering a flexible base for the platform. Eight structures composed of a different number of piles and with different heights were analyzed. Six wave conditions with different characteristics are used, varying the wave period and mean water height. Two sandy and two clayey soil profiles are considered with different densities and consistency. The results show that resonance effects associated with dynamic loading and small-period wave superposition in cases of irregular waves significantly affect the response. Furthermore, considering a flexible base tends to decrease the response for short wave periods, concluding that, in most cases, for wave periods close to 5 s, considering a fixed base model overestimates the response.