Centrifuge testing of a silent piling concept using the push-in method

Regulations and concern regarding noise and air pollution during offshore foundation installation operations has led to increased interest in the development of alternative foundation solutions. An extensive series of centrifuge testing has been conducted at the University of Dundee, in partnership with Heerema Marine Contractors, to develop a silent piling concept using push-in-piles. This approach uses a cluster of four smaller diameter open-ended piles to replace a single larger diameter pile. Instead of using an impact hammer to install the piles, which generates high levels of noise and requires costly and potentially polluting noise mitigation measures (e.g., bubble curtains), each pile is pushed into the soil in turn using a sequence of strokes while the others provide the necessary reaction force. This paper details the development of the novel centrifuge testing equipment, including the implementation of digital sensors for continuous measurement of the internal soil plug, and results of the testing programme which demonstrate the installation requirements of the pile groups in sandy soil.