Field investigation and numerical study of ground movement due to pipe pile wall installation in reclaimed land

Pipe pile walls are commonly used as retaining structures for excavation projects, particularly in densely populated coastal cities such as Hong Kong. Pipe pile walls are preferred in reclaimed land due to their cost-effectiveness and convenience for installation. However, the pre-bored piling techniques used to install pipe piles can cause significant ground disturbance, posing risks to nearby sensitive structures. This study reports a well-documented case history in a reclamation site, and it was found that pipe piling could induce ground settlement of up to 100 mm. Statutory design submissions in Hong Kong typically specify a ground settlement alarm level of 10 mm, which is significantly lower than the actual settlement observed in this study. In addition, lateral soil movement of approximately 70 mm was detected in the marine deposit. The lateral soil displacement in the marine deposit was found to be up to 3.4 and 3.1 times that of sand fill and CDG, respectively, mainly due to the relatively low stiffness of the marine deposit. Based on the monitoring data and site-investigation data, a 3D numerical analysis was established to back-analyze soil movements due to the installation of the pipe pile wall. The comparison between measured and computed results indicates that the equivalent ground loss ratio is 20%, 40%, and 20% for the fill, marine deposit and CDG, respectively. The maximum ground settlement increases with an increase in the ground loss ratio of the marine deposit, whereas the associated influence radius remains stationary at 1.2 times the pipe pile wall depth (H). The maximum ground settlement increases rapidly when the thickness of marine deposit is less than 0.32H, particularly for the ground loss ratio of larger than 40%. This study provides new insights into the pipe piling construction in reclamation sites.