An experimental study of the vertical bearing mechanism of piled raft foundations

Since the bearing mechanisms and design procedures for rafts and piles are significantly different from each other, in order to establish a reasonable design method, it is necessary to clarify the deformation behavior and bearing mechanism of piled raft foundations under different loading and bearing conditions. A series of centrifuge model tests was performed to investigate the vertical bearing capacity of raft foundations with and without pile supports. In the test, the vertical reaction of the raft and axial forces of the piles were measured respectively during loading, and the bearing capacities for both raft and piles were analyzed. This paper presents the detail test program, test procedure together with the test results. On the basis of the test results, the bearing mechanism of the piled raft foundation is discussed.