Cyclic lateral loading of model pile groups in clay soil

In many regions of the world, designing deep foundations to withstand cyclic loading is a reality. Cyclic loading of structures and foundations often reaches its most critical state during seismic events. The response of soils and foundations to repetitive lateral forces is highly complex, relegating most design methods to be based upon empirical research. The primary objective of this research was to analyze the mechanics of cyclic loading of pile groups in clay soils. To achieve this, a model testing facility was constructed to house a fully instrumented 1x5 model pile group that was subjected to cyclic lateral loading. The results from this testing include: bending moment distributions per pile and cycle, load distributions, and deflection curves.