A feasibility study on construction methods of high voltage transmission towers' foundations

Civil engineering projects deal with different risks over their life-cycle. Generally, risk sources are categorized into three types of cost, time, and project quality. The Modified Advanced Programmatic Risk Analysis Model (MAPRAM) is one of the leading approaches in this field that can assess the risks of the project on its whole life cycle. Electricity transmission lines have always been one of the most costly and time-consuming infrastructure projects. The costs of these projects play a significant role in a country's development budget. Given the considerable time and cost of constructing the foundations for power transmission towers, providing an economical design will significantly help in reducing duration and budget of these projects. In this study, using MAPRAM, first, different types of foundations of power transmission lines were studied; then the optimal foundations were introduced for a specific place as a case study, shaping a general framework to appoint the optimal foundation for power transmission lines in different areas. The foundations studied in this study included: pad & chimney foundation, auger foundation, steel grillage foundation, concrete piles, and helical piles. Initially, different types of foundations were designed, and then, the costs of each foundation in a whole life-cycle were estimated. Next, the risks and probability of their occurrence were identified for each type of foundation. Finally, the appropriate foundation was determined for the studied soil samples by performing an optimization process.