Comparative Study of the Field Performances of Pressure-Grouted Micropiles Using Gravity and Packers

Abstract

When underground space requires excavation in areas below the water table, the foundation system suffers from buoyancy, which leads to the uplifting of the superstructure. A deep foundation system can be used; however, in cases where a hard layer is encountered, high driving forces and corresponding noises cause civil complaints in urban areas. Micropiles can be an effective alternative option, due to their high performance despite a short installation depth. Pressurized grouting is used with a packer to induce higher interfacial properties between micropile and soil. In this study, the field performance of micropiles installed using gravitational grouting or pressure-grouted using either a geotextile packer or rubber packer was comparatively evaluated by tension and creep tests. Micropiles were installed using pressure grouting in weak and fractured zones. As results, the pressure-grouted micropiles showed more stable and stronger behaviors than ones installed using the gravitational grouting. Moreover, the pressure-grouted micropile installed using the rubber packer showed better performance than the one using the geotextile packer.