Field investigation to evaluate the uplift capacity and installation performance of screw piles in sand

This paper presents results from an ongoing investigation examining the installation requirements (thrust and torque) for screw piles in sand as well as the static uplift capacity of these piles. The tests described in this paper here were conducted on field scale piles in medium dense aeolian siliceous sand at the University of Western Australia’s Shenton Park Field Station. The thrust and torque were measured during installation to investigate the interaction between thrust, torque, and the advancement ratio of the pile. Static tension tests were undertaken to examine the relationship between the uplift capacity and installation torque and to assess the suitability of existing prediction methods. The test results and observations contribute to the assessment of the practical applicability of screw pile technology at the scale required for offshore wind applications, where limitations on the available installation thrust and torque exist.