FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 0

FB-MULTIPIER EXAMPLE PROBLEMS

The following examples were developed to acquaint the user with both the input and

output of FB-MultiPier. Due to the large number of options which are available for input and

output, the examples will concentrate on typical input (pile cross-sections, soil, loading, etc.) and

general output. The examples are arranged in no order of difficulty, but in type of problem being

solved. It's recommended that the user work all the problems, since different features are used.

1. LATERALLY LOADED SINGLE PILE

Consider the laterally loaded single pile shown in Figure 1.1. The pile is Florida

Department of Transportation's standard 0.76 m (30") prestressed concrete pile which is

embedded in a soft clay overlying a medium dense sand.

150 kN

Soft Clay, ε50 =3%

Cu = 25 kPa γ t =16 kN/m3
3m

Medium Dense γ t = 19 kN/m3

Sand, φ = 35o k = 27,155 kN/m3

16 m

Figure 1.1 Single Pile Example

When FB-MultiPier is first opened, the user will see a blank screen with the BSI logo in the

center as shown in Figure 1.2. To create a new model, select New as shown in Figure 1.3.

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 Figure 1.2 Initial Screen for FB-MultiPier

Figure 1.3 Select New from the File Menu

Although Pile is one of the problem types, this example will start with a Pile and Cap

problem to model the single pile in order to demonstrate more of the program features. Choose

Pile and Cap, SI units and enter the general information shown in Figure 1.4.

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 Figure 1.4 Select Pile and Cap, SI Units and Enter Project Description

It should be noted that on this screen (Figure 1.4) the user selects the type of problem

that they are going to solve (i.e. pier, pile and cap, sign, etc.) and the units that they are going to

be working in.

After clicking OK at bottom of the dialog, the default data set is loaded, as shown in Figure

1.5. Figure 1.5 is the general-purpose input, which is split into 4 separate screens. The Model Data

window (top left) is referred to as the page dialogs. These dialogs control all soil, geometry, loads,

analysis and problem types input. Note that the font in the page dialogs depends on the screen

resolution. To change the font go to the Control menu and choose Set Dialog Font and select a

suitable viewing font for the page dialogs. The Pile Edit window (top right) is the plan view of the

piles, cap and coordinate system. By right clicking the mouse in this window, the user can delete,

batter, and change the spacing of the piles. The bottom left window is the Soil Edit window. This

window shows the elevation of all soil layers, water table, pile top and tip elevations, and general

soil information. Right clicking the mouse in this window will also allow the users to insert, delete,

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and split layers. The bottom right window is the 3D View of the piles, cap and structure, if there

is one. Right clicking the mouse in this window allows the user to view the structure in thin

element mode, and rotate the structure with the mouse (3D rotate). The latter is useful for placing

loads, springs, etc. on different nodes of the structure.

To model the example problem, the number of piles has to be reduced from 4 to 1 and

the pile cap has to be removed. This is accomplished by clicking the Pile Cap page dialog in the

Model Data window (Figure 1.6a). Next, under Properties, change the cap Thickness to 0 as shown

in Figure 1.6b. At this point the Pile Cap page in the Model Data window should look like Figure

1.7.

Figure 1.5 Default Data Set (2x2 Pile Group)

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 Figure 1.6a Pile Cap Tab Initial Appearance

Figure 1.6b Change Cap Thickness to Zero

Figure 1.7 Pile Cap Tab with Pile Cap Removed

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 To remove three piles (to create a single pile model), change the number of X and Y grid

points to 1. Each change will prompt a warning that the Pile Geometry has changed and may

affect some Soil properties. Click OK each time and the new pile configuration will be shown as in

Figure 1.8. Note the number of piles in the Pile Edit (top right) and 3D View (bottom right)

windows is now one.

Figure 1.8 Change Grid Points to 1 by 1

It should be noted at this point that the pile data can be obtained by clicking the Pile page

in the model data window. Doing so now shows the dialog box with numerous sections that allow

for editing of the Section Description, Pile To Cap Connection, Pile Length Data, and Pile Type and

Batter Data Figure 1.9. This pile information can be viewed at any time during the pile modeling

by specifying the pile of interest in the Pile Edit window.

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 Figure 1.9 Pile Data Dialog Box

The pile type and pile length should now be changed while the Pile page dialog in the

Model Data window is still visible. In the Pile page dialog, click the Edit button in the Section

Description section, navigate to the Database Section Selection section (that currently has

Customize Current Section checked), check the Use Database Section option and click the Retrieve

Section button. A drop down list with H-pile/Pipe Pile, Rectangular, Circular, etc. will appear.

Hovering over any of these shows a sub list of piles or shafts which are presently in the database

that the user may select from. The user may add to this database when they edit their pile/shaft.

From the Rectangular menu, select the 0.76 M Square FDOT Standard prestressed. This pile with

dimensions, steel, properties, etc. replaces the default custom standard. Then change the length

of the pile by inputting a value in the Length option that is in the Section Dimensions section of

the Full Cross-Section Pile Properties dialog. Any of the pile or shaft dimensions, properties or

material properties can be changed from this dialog. Change the Length property to 19m as

shown in Figure 1.10a. The final Pile tab dialog should appear as in Figure 1.10b.

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 Figure 1.10a Change Pile Length

Figure 1.10b 0.76 M Pile with Tip Elevation of -19 m

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 The soil stratigraphy and properties will now be changed along with the water table. This

is accomplished by selecting the Soil page from the Model Data window. Generally, this screen is

referred to as the Soil page dialog. It allows the user to input soil layers, their properties, as well

as view soil resistance (i.e. P-Y, T-Z, etc. plots). All information in the page dialog refers to the soil

layer selected in the Soil Layer Data section. In the Soil Edit window, a black box is drawn around

the layer that is being edited.

Since Example 1 has two soil layers (similar to the default set), only layer elevations, and

soil types and properties need to be changed for the default data. The Soil Type combo box (under

Soil Layer Data) is presently displaying Cohesionless. Click the drop down button and select the

Cohesive soil type. Note that Soil Layer information regarding the Tip property is greyed out as

shown in Figure 1.11. The user needs to select a model for each (drop down arrow alongside)

first. The necessary soil properties can then be entered using the Edit button after specifying all

four soil models.

Figure 1.11 Select Cohesive Soil Type for Soil Layer 1

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 Click the mouse on the drop down button under Soil Layer Models "Lateral" as shown in

Figure 1.12 and select Clay (Soft < Water) for Layer 1.

Figure 1.12 Select Soft Clay Below Water Table

These five different options represent the same p-y models in FHWA's COM624 with the

addition of O'Neill's model used by API, as well as a user defined (Custom) p-y data set for clay.

Before the user may edit the data for lateral model, a selection must be input for the other

soil- pile interaction models. Under axial (Figure 1.13), the user has the option of selecting Driven

Pile, Drilled Shaft Clay, Driven Pile Clay (API), and Custom T-Z. Note it's assumed that the axial

behavior of driven piles and drilled shafts are different from one another vs. the lateral model,

which assumes that they are interchangeable. Also, all model selection is based on soil layer

number and soil type, which must be selected first. For this model, select Driven Pile.

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 Figure 1.13 Axial Soil Model

In the case of the Torsional model, there are only two to choose from (Hyperbolic or

Custom T-0). Select the Hyperbolic, which requires the initial slope and ultimate skin friction (see

Chapter 4). In the case of the pile/shaft tip model in Figure 1.14, the user may select from driven

pile, and multiple drilled shaft options. Note that the tip model selection is greyed out because

the pile tip is in Layer 2.

Figure 1.14 Select Torsional Soil Model

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 Once all the soil-pile models have been selected, look at the Soil Edit window (bottom left)

and observe that soil layer 1 has changed colors to brown (red: cohesive; yellow: cohesionless;

gray: rock) as shown in Figure 1.15.

Figure 1.15 Soil Layer 1 Changed to Cohesive with Undrained

Strength

Next, the elevations of the first soil layer and the water table need to be changed. For soil

layer 1, enter 0 m for the top elevation, -3 m for the bottom and 0 m for the water table as shown

in Figure 1.16.

Figure 1.16 Change Elevations of Layer 1

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 At this point, the user can edit the soil parameters for each of the Soil Layer Models for

Layer 1. Click the Edit button next to the Lateral drop down menu, enter the values shown in

Figure 1.17 and click OK.

The user has the option of viewing the p-y, t-z, etc. for the top, bottom, or intermediate

nodes of each layer. For instance, the soft clay's p-y curve for the top of the layer 1 is shown in

Figure 1.18. The latter was obtained by clicking on the word Lateral so that it is the current layer

model (it should appear in blue text after it has been clicked), then clicking the Plot button beside

the Axial drop down button, checking the Top of Layer 1 box in the Elevations selection section,

and clicking Update Plot. Click Close when done. This concludes the data entry for the top soil

layer for this example.

Figure 1.17 Additional Soil Properties Dialog Box (Layer 1)

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 Figure 1.18 P-y Plot for Soil Layer 1

Next select Layer 2 from the Soil Layer drop down so that the soil properties can be

specified for the second soil layer. Select the Soil Type as Cohesionless. Confirm that the Lateral

soil model is Sand (Reese), the Axial model is Driven Pile, the Torsional model is Hyperbolic, and

the Tip model is Driven pile. Click on the Lateral model drop down list to activate the lateral

properties. Click the Edit button and enter the values shown in Figure 1.19. When done change

the elevations of top of layer to -3 m, and the bottom of the layer at -25 m (below the pile tip)

and water table elevation for the layer at 0 m. The Soil Edit window should appear as shown in

Figure 1.20.

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 Figure 1.19 Additional Soil Properties Dialog Box (Layer 2)

Figure 1.20 Layer 2 Soil Layers and Elevations

To change any information within a given soil layer, the user may click on Soil layer in the

Soil page dialog, or left click the layer of interest in the Soil Edit window. Try left clicking with the

mouse on the Layer 1 (cohesive) in the soil edit window (bottom left). Notice that the black border

now encompasses layer 1.

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 The only other information required to analyze Example 1 is the pile loads, which are

accessible from the Load page dialog in the Model Data window.

The node in the 3D View that presently has a load on it is Node 1, which is leftover from

the original pile and cap only problem. Click on Node 1 in the list and delete this load by clicking

the Del button to the right. To add a load to Node 1, left click the mouse on the top node in the

3D View window. Click Add and then enter 150 kN for the lateral load (X) in the page dialog and

press the tab or enter key to update the load. The Load page dialog should now look like Figure

1.21.

The “Self Weight” list item is used to enter load factors for self weight and buoyancy.

Although self weight will not be included in this problem, for simplicity, in a general problem the

user would click on Self Weight and enter the appropriate load factors for each load case. Leave

the factors as zero.

Figure 1.21 Lateral Load for Load Case 1

For Example 1, all of the data has been input (Soil, pile, and loading). The screen should

now look like Figure 1.22.

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 Figure 1.22 Model Screen Before Analysis

Now the single pile problem can be analyzed. Shown in Figure 1.23 are the toolbar

buttons which are available to perform separate tasks (i.e. input, analysis, pile results, structural

results, etc.). For instance, the general four split screen input that has been used to this point is

available by pushing the Edit Model button.

Run Pile Interaction 3D Results

Analysis

Edit
Model Pile Results

Figure 1.23 Input, Analysis, and Result Viewing Toolbar Buttons

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 Clicking the mouse on the Run Analysis button will generate the popup window shown in

Figure 1.24 after being prompted to save work and overwrite the results. The window identifies what

is occurring in the analysis, i.e. current load step, out of balance forces, moments, etc. The analysis

can be stopped at any point using the Stop Analysis button in the top right corner. After a successful

run, the window will identify that the forces in the system were recovered and then the status window

will display Done. The window will close automatically if the analysis converged to a solution.

Figure 1.24 FB-MultiPier Performing Analysis of Example 1

At this point, there are a number of different viewing options available (pile resultant

forces, displacements etc.) with the viewing icons given in Figure 1.23. For viewing pile

displacements, click on the “3D Results” button and Figure 1.25 is generated. The user may find

the displacements of any point on the pile by clicking the mouse on the node of interest on the

undeformed pile. The node should turn orange, and the displacements and rotations will be

displayed in the 3D Display Control window to the left.

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 Figure 1.25 3D View of Pile Displacements

For viewing the pile resultant forces, moments, and pile-soil reaction along the pile click

the Pile Results button in the toolbar. In this view, the resultant forces are plotted along the pile

length. The user controls what graphs to plot in the bottom window by clicking the

forces/displacements of interest on or off in the Plot Display Control window. Since, this is a single

pile analysis only one pile is visible in the Pile Selection window; however, if this was a group with

a number of piles, the user could click on piles of interest. Their results would be displayed

together in the lower result windows. Click on the pile in the Pile Selection window to activate the

pile. Check Shear 2, Moment 3, D/C Ratio, Soil Reaction Zp, and Soil Reaction Xp in the Plot Display

Control window. Next, choose the appropriate Plot Type. Plot Types available for static analyses

such as this one are as follows: Current Load Case, Max or Min selected Force with Corresponding

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 Forces, and Max and Min For All Forces Across All Load Cases. Since this is a static analysis,

choosing any of the Plot Types will result in the same plots. The resulting view is shown in Figure

1.26.

Figure 1.26 Pile Resultant Forces, Moments, etc. Along Pile Length

The last window displayed in Figure 1.26 is the Demand/Capacity Ratio along the pile. It

identifies the ratio of the resultant moments from equilibrium divided by the biaxial moment

capacity for the section at that depth. For this problem, the value is 0.283, indicating that the

section under the given loading is at about 30% of its ultimate load capacity.

To see the resultant moments in both directions vs. the actual moment capacities for a pile

click the Pile Interaction button in the toolbar and select Biaxial Moment Interaction. Figure 1.27

shows the typical biaxial interaction diagram. The user can click on different pile elements along

the pile to view the interaction. The symbols I and J refer to the bottom and top of the element,

respectively. For the top element that is currently selected, the combination of bending moments

is clearly inside the failure surface. Uniaxial Moment Interaction diagrams can also be viewed for

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 bending about the local 2 and 3 axis. For the uniaxial moment interaction diagrams, the axial load

is plotted against the bending moment.

Figure 1.27 Resultant Moments and Segment Capacities

The user may print any active window by clicking on the printer icon (see Figure 1.23). The

full output is saved to a file "<filename>.out", where the <filename> is the name of input file that

you saved. To view this output file from the graphical interface, click on the Control menu and

select View Analysis Data.

This concludes Example 1.

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 2. BRIDGE GENERAL PIER

Shown in Figure 2.1 is the bridge pier with geometry and soil conditions, which will be

modeled in Example 2. The problem represents a navigable waterway crossing, which involves

both lateral and axial loads. The foundation consists of 6-54 inch drilled shafts (80 ft long), and

two pier columns which are 30 ft tall, 5 ft square and spaced 16 ft apart. The pier cap is 4 ft thick

and the drilled shaft cap is 10 ft thick. Due to scour, the sand surface is located 15 ft below mean

sea level, and the soft rock is characterized as FHWA's intermediate geomaterial. The properties

of the sand and rock are given in Figure 2.1.

150 kips 250 kips 150 kips

14’
10’ 16' 30'

1000 kips

15' Water

Sand 80' N = 35
γt = 120 pcf 35' k = 150 pci

Cu=2.8ksi
Soft Rock,
qt=0.28ksi
γt = 140 pcf
ε50 = 1%

Figure 2.1 Example 2, Pier Structure

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 From the File option, the user needs to select new (Figure 2.2):

Figure 2.2 Select New from the File Menu

Choose Pier and enter the general information in Figure 2.3. Be sure to choose the

English systems of units to load the correct default data set.

Figure 2.3 Select Pier, English Units and Enter Project Description

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 After clicking OK at the bottom of the dialog, the default data set is loaded. Figure 2.4

shows the general-purpose input, which is split into 4 separate screens. The top left is referred to

as the Model Data window. The Model Data window contains page dialogs that control all soil,

geometry, loads, analysis and problem types input. The top right is the plan view of the piles, cap

and coordinate system. By right clicking the mouse in this window, the user can delete, batter, and

change the spacing of the piles. The bottom left window is the Soil Edit window. This window

shows the elevation of all soil layers, water table, pile top and tip elevations, and general soil

information. Right clicking the mouse in this window will also allow the users to insert, delete, and

split layers. The bottom right window is the 3D View of the piles, cap and structure, if there is one.

Right clicking the mouse in this window allows the user to view the structure in line mode, and

rotate the structure with the mouse (3D rotate). The latter is useful for placing loads, springs, etc.

on different nodes in the structure.

Figure 2.4 Default Data Set (3x3 Pile Group)

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 To model the example problem, click the Pile page in the Model Data window. To begin,

click on the Edit button in the Section Description section, then click the Retrieve Section button

in the Database Section Selection section to access the Pile/Shaft Database and select 54” drilled

shaft from the Circular/Pipe Pile (Concrete Filled) drop down menu and click Okay. Now we are

going to achieve a pile spacing of 3d. To do this click on the Pile Cap page and in the Mesh

Generation section change the number of grid points in the X-direction to 9 and in the Y-direction

to 6. Right click in the Pile Edit menu and check the Add/Remove Pile option. Remove the current

piles by clicking on them. Return to the model data window and click the Grid Spacing table button.

In the Grid Spacing Table dialog, check the Constant option for both the Xp Spacings and Yp

Spacings and enter the value of the pile’s diameter (54 in.) for both Xp and Yp Constant Spacing.

Click OK to close the dialog. Finally, return to the Pile Edit menu and add piles to the appropriate

coordinates. Your pile numbering should match that of the piles in the Pile Edit window of Figure

2.6. The Model Data window should now look like Figure 2.5a.

Figure 2.5a Pile Cap Tab Dialog Adjusted Mesh Generation

The next step is to edit the pile cap properties. To do this, look for the Properties
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section in the Pile Cap page which should appear as shown in Figure 2.5b. Enter the values

shown below and then press enter to update the values.

Figure 2.5b Pile Cap Properties

Opening the Pile page, the four split screen inputs should look like Figure 2.6. Note the

Pile Edit window (top right) shows six shafts (i.e. 3x2).

Figure 2.6 General Input Screen for Shafts

After completing the shaft and cap configuration, the user is ready to specify the soil

stratigraphy, properties, and the water table. To begin, click on the Soil page within the Model

Data window (Figure 2.7). This problem consists of two soil layers below a water table. Confirm

that a Cohesionless soil is selected for Layer 1 to model the top sand layer. Change the Unit Weight

to 120 pcf. Change the Axial soil model to Drilled Shaft Sand. The other soil properties can remain
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 as their default values. Next, change the Elevation of the Water Table to 0 ft, the Top of Layer 1 to

-15 ft, and the Bottom of Layer 1 to -50 ft. Make sure to include the negative signs on the

elevations to indicate a downward direction. Notice that while editing the soil properties, a black

box appears around the current soil layer.

Figure 2.7 Select Cohesionless Soil Type for Soil Layer 1

The second soil layer properties can now be entered after completing the soil properties

for the first soil layer. For this problem, the second layer consists of soft rock with the properties

given in Figure 1.1. To begin editing the second layer, select Add Layer from the Soil Layer drop

down list (Figure 2.8).

Click OK in the dialog to confirm the layer addition. Notice that a black box is drawn

around the second soil layer, indicating that soil layer 2 is the current soil layer.

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 Figure 2.8 Select Add Layer to Create Soil Layer 2

To create the soft rock layer for layer 2, select Rock from the Soil Type list as shown in

Figure 2.9a. After selecting the rock Soil Type, proceed to the Soil Layer Models. For the Lateral

model, select Clay (Soft < Water) from the drop down list. For the Axial model choose Drilled Shaft

IGM and for the Torsional model choose Hyperbolic. Finally, for the Tip model, choose Drilled

Shaft IGM. After selecting the Soil Layer Models, change the Unit Weight of the rock to 140 pcf.

Also change the Water Table Elevation to 0 ft, the Top of Layer 2 to -50 ft, and the Bottom of Layer

2 to -100 ft. Again remember to include the negative signs in the layer elevations. All of the rock

layer parameters are shown in Figure 2.9a.

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 Figure 2.9a Select Soil Layer Models for Layer 2

Before completing the rock layer, the soil properties must be specified for the Clay (Soft <

Water) Lateral Model. To do this, first click on the Lateral model label to activate the layer model.

At this point the word “Lateral” should be blue. Now, click the Edit button next to the Soil Layer

Models. Enter the properties shown in Figure 2.9b and click Ok when done.

Figure 2.9b Soft Clay Properties for Layer 2

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 Now the soil properties must be specified for the Axial Soil Model. To do this, first click on

the Axial Model to activate the layer model. At this point the word “Axial” should be blue. Now,

click the Edit button next to the Lateral drop down. Enter the properties shown in Figure 2.9c. For

this problem change the the Mass Modulus to 20 ksi and the Modulus Ratio to 0.5, the (socket)

Surface to ‘1’ for Rough, Split Tensile Strength to 40,320 psf, the Unit Weight Pile Concrete to 150

pcf, and the Slump to 6 inches. All other properties in this dialog can remain as their default

values. Click OK when done.

Figure 2.9c Axial Soil Model for Layer 2

The final plot of the soil strata should look like Figure 2.10. Note that you can zoom in or

out of this soil layer view by clicking the center mouse button (if available) to toggle to 3D control

mode. After doing so, hold the Control key down while left clicking the mouse and dragging the

mouse upward or downward.

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 Figure 2.10 Final Soil Layers

The pile system is now complete and is embedded into the given soil layers. The next step

is to change the pier structure to model the current pier. To begin, click on the Pier page in the

Model Data window. Enter the values that appear in Figure 2.11 to modify the pier structure,

afterwards click the Column Spacing button and enter 16ft for spacing 1. These are the same

dimensions given in Figure 2.1 in the introduction to Example 2. Also, be sure to click the Full

Cross Section button so that a complete cross section can be specified for the pier. The pier should

appear centered on the pile cap in the 3D in the bottom right window. Remember that at any time

you can click the right mouse button in the 3D window to change the viewing properties of the

pier system.

Figure 2.11 Selecting the Pier Page for Pier Properties

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 The Full Cross Section button was clicked to enable the section properties for the pier. Click

the Edit button in the Edit Cross Section section to view the dialog shown in Figure 2.12. This dialog

allows the user to specify the dimensions of the pier component, the stress/strain curves, and the

placement of the reinforcing steel. The list under Pier Component shows the sections that are

currently defined. By default, there are two sections, representing the pier column and the pier cap

beam. To modify the column section, click the first item on the list to activate the column section.

Click the Customize Current Section option to change the section properties. Now change the

Width and Depth of the column to 60 inches. Note that the name of the cross-section is called

“Custom” until the section is saved to the database. This can be done after entering all of the

properties for the section. Now click on the Edit Properties button to specify the material properties

for the column. At this time, only the concrete properties will be entered. The steel properties will

be entered after specifying the layout of the reinforcing bars. Enter the concrete properties shown

in Figure 2.13 and click OK when done.

Figure 2.12 Pier Cross-Sectional Properties

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 Figure 2.13 Default Stress/Strain Curves

The next step is to customize the shape of the cross-section. Return to the Pier Component

Properties dialog if not already there. Start with the Pier Column first by clicking on the Column

component in the list. Again, the name of the section name “Custom” will be changed after

entering all of the section properties and saving the section to the database. Make sure that the

Rectangular Section shape button is activated. Then click on the Edit Section Contents button to

specify the reinforcement. The Rectangular Section Properties dialog should appear as shown in

Figure 2.14.

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 Figure 2.14 Rectangular Section Properties

First, delete the existing bar groups by pressing the Del button until they are cleared out

and create a new bar group by clicking the Add button under Edit Bar Groups. The list now shows

“Group1” as the only group. To place the reinforcement, the user must select the number of bars

in each row, the bar area, the starting coordinates of the row, and the orientation of the row (either

horizontal or vertical). For this problem, use 12 #11 bars with a bar area of 1.56 in2. The origin of

the bar placement is in the center of the square shown in Figure 2.14. To maintain a 4” concrete

cover with the 60” x 60” column, the bar placement should start at the point (-26, -26) to place a

vertical row (Parallel to 3 Axis) of bars on the right face of the column. Enter these values as shown

in Figure 2.14a and click Generate Layout to update the bar group. The first row of bars now

appears.

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 Figure 2.14a First Row of Reinforcing Steel

Now a horizontal row of reinforcing steel can be added. Click Add to create “Group2”. Enter 10

#11 bars with a bar area of 1.56in2. Change the starting bar coordinates to (-21.27, 26) in the 2

and 3 directions, respectively. This starting coordinate will ensure that the bar spacing is

consistent both vertically and horizontally. Make sure to click “Parallel to 2 Axis” for a row of steel.

Enter the values shown in Figure 2.14b and click the Generate Layout button when done to

update the bar placement. Enter the 3rd and 4th bar groups in a similar manner. Make sure to

change the starting coordinates to (26, 26) for group 3 and (21.27, -26) for group 4. When

finished, click Apply and the bar placement should look like Figure 2.14c. Click OK when done

to return to the Element Properties dialog.

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 Figure 2.14b Second Row of Reinforcing Steel

Figure 2.14c Final Placement of Reinforcing Steel

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 Before saving the section, the material properties for the reinforcing steel should be

entered. To do this, make sure that the column section is selected from the list material property.

Click Edit Properties in the Full Cross-Section Pier Component Properties dialog to enter the steel

properties. In the Default Stress/Strain Curves dialog, click Mild Steel to activate the steel

properties and enter the values given in Figure 2.15. Click OK when done to return to the Full

Cross-Section Pier Component Properties dialog.

Figure 2.15 Entering Steel Material Properties

In order to change the name of the column section click ‘Add To Database’ to add the

section to the existing database. Change the name of the section to “CustomSection_Linear 60” x

60” concrete”. When finished the dialog should look like Figure 2.16. Click OK. The Material

Property list will update after clicking Retrieve Section in the Pier Component Properties dialog.

After selecting the section just created, the Pier Component Properties dialog will look like Figure

2.17.

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 Figure 2.16 Saving Column Section

Figure 2.17 Renamed Column Section

The pier cap section can then be specified now that the column section is complete. For

this example, the pier cap will be reinforced in a similar way to the pier columns. Assume that the

pier cap is 4ft (48 inches) deep and 5 ft (60 inches) wide. Also assume that the cantilever portions
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 of the pier cap are not tapered. To start with the Pier Cap properties, click Pier Cap – Custom in

the Pier Component section of the dialog and then navigate to the Section Dimensions section

and change the Width to 60 inches and the Depth to 48 inches. Next, under Section Constitutive

Properties click Edit Properties and change the f’c Compressive to 5 ksi and the Concrete Modulus

to 4200 ksi and click OK. Now click Edit Section Contents to enter the data for the reinforcement.

The placement of the reinforcing bars is based on a system of local axes that is different

than the column. This is because the orientation of the pier cap section is different than the pier

column section. The difference in the local coordinate systems is shown in Figure 2.18.

3
WIDTH

2 3

WIDTH DEPTH

DEPTH 2

Pier Column Pier Cap

Figure 2.18 Local Coordinate System for Pier Column and Pier Cap

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 39

 The bar layout in the Section Properties dialog is based on the appropriate 2-3 coordinate

system. For both the pier column and pier cap, strong axis bending is assumed about the 3-axis.

For the pier cap, the 2-3 axes are oriented differently than the column 2-3 axes. Therefore, the

reinforcement will be placed differently in the Section Properties dialog. The following steel

placement will illustrate the proper use of the 2-3 local coordinate system.

Delete the existing bar groups by clicking Del until cleared and create a new bar group by

clicking Add. Then create a vertical row of 6 #9 bars with a bar area of 1 in2. Start a row parallel

to 2 Axis at (-16, -26) for the 2 and 3 directions, respectively. After entering the values and clicking

Generate Layout, the dialog should look like Figure 2.19a. Create a second bar group for the row

of vertical bars at the right. Click the Add button and use the same bar properties, but start the

row at (-16, 26) for the 2 and 3 directions, respectively.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 40

 Figure 2.19a First Row of Steel Bars for Pier Cap Beam

The horizontal layers of steel (for flexure) can be created in a similar manner. Use 12 #11

bars with a bar area of 1.56 in2 on both the top and bottom. Add two rows parallel to 3 axis as

Group 3 starting at the point (-21, 26) and Group 4 starting at the point (21, 26). The final bar

placement should appear as in Figure 2.19b. When finished click OK to return to the Pier

Component Properties dialog.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 41

 Figure 2.19b Final Placement of Steel Bars for Pier Cap Beam

Before leaving the Pier Component Properties dialog, click the Edit Properties button to

specify the stress-strain values for the mild steel in the pier cap section. Click Mild Steel and enter

60 ksi for the Yield Stress and 29,000 for the Modulus. Click OK when done to update the cross-

section.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 42

 Figure 2.20 Final Section Properties for Pier

Click OK to return to the main program. Now that the pier configuration is complete, the 3D

View looks like Figure 2.21a.

Figure 2.21a 3D View of Pier

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 43

 To change the view, click the right mouse button in the 3-D view window. The menu that

appears (Figure 2.21b) allows you to change the various plotting characteristics of the pier. To

rotate the pier to a new orientation, select 3D Mouse Control. Hold the left mouse button down

and move the mouse in the direction that you wish to rotate the pier.

Figure 2.21b 3-D View Menu

Click on the Load page in the Model Data window to apply the loads to the pier. First,

delete Load Case 2 using the “Del” button to the left of the Load Case list. Next, delete the nodal

loads in Load Case 1 one at a time using the right “Del” button (the Self Weight item cannot be

deleted). The lateral load will be included first by clicking on Node 113 in the 3D View window

and then clicking the Add button (to the right of the node list). Node 113 is a node on the center

right side of the pile cap where the lateral load will be applied. Enter 1000 kips for the X Load.

The dialog should look like Figure 2.22.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 44

 Figure 2.22 Applying Lateral Load

The node can also be activated by clicking on the appropriate node in the 3D view of the

pier. To demonstrate this, click on the leftmost node of the pier cap. The node turns orange and

the Load dialog shows that the node is Node 213. Click Add to add the node to the load case and

enter 150 kips for the Z Load. Notice that an orange load arrow appeared to indicate the current

load. Next, add 250 kips to Nodes 209 and 194 (Z Load at the top of the two pier columns). Finally

add 150 kips to Node 195 at the right end of the pier cap. When all of the loads are entered, the

load dialog should look like Figure 2.23.

For this example, leave the Self Weight and Buoyancy Factors as zero to ignore self

weight.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 45

 Figure 2.23 Final Load Application

For the last part, a spring will be added to simulate the lateral stiffness of the bridge. To

accomplish this, click on the Springs tab in the Model Data window. Now in the 3D View of the

pier click on the far-left node in the pier cap to place the spring there. Click on Add to create a

new spring. Enter 5000 kips/in for the Stiffness in the X Direction for Node 213. The dialog should

now look like Figure 2.24. The spring should visible in the 3D View at this point.

Figure 2.24 Lateral Spring Application

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 46

 The analysis options should now be set before analyzing the pier. Click on the Analysis tab

in the Model Data window. Since this is a preliminary analysis, select Linear for both the Pile

Behavior and the Pier Behavior. Later, these can be switched to nonlinear for a complete analysis

including nonlinear material behavior and p- effects. The dialog should look like Figure 2.25,

other boxes checked from the Print Control menu include Coordinates and XML Data Printing.

The data entry phase is now complete. Save the file if you haven’t already done so by

clicking on the disk icon at the top of the screen. Type “Example2.in” for the name of the file. The

pier is now ready for the analysis phase.

Figure 2.25 Analysis Options

To analyze the pier, click on the button at the top of the screen. A dialog

appears showing the status of the analysis after prompting the user to overwrite the file. The time

needed for the analysis will depend on the speed of the computer. When the analysis is done the

window will close automatically.

To view the drilled shaft (or pile) results, click on the button in the top toolbar.

Click Max and Min For All Forces Across All Load Cases, right-click in the Pile Selection window and

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 47

check Select/Unselect Piles (Drag Box), and unselect all piles except for pile 1 through use of this

tool. The screen should now look like Figure 2.26, which shows different plots for drilled shaft #1.

As an example, look at the plot of moment about the 3 axis along the pile. Click on the

Moment 3 window to signal the Plot Display Control Window to update the maximum and

minimum moment values.

The plots for other shafts can be generated at the same time by clicking on the shaft

number and then Redraw Curves. To remove a shaft from the plots, click on the shaft in the Pile

Edit window to return the shaft to its original color and click Redraw Curves. Use the check boxes

to control the number of plots shown. Remember to click Redraw Curves to redraw the plots. The

maximum force values can also be plotted for all load cases.

Figure 2.26 Drilled Shaft Results

To view the pier structure results, click on the button in the top toolbar. Click on the

pier cap in the Structure window and then click Apply in the Plot Display Control window. The

screen should now look like Figure 2.27, which shows different plots for pier cap. The plots for

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 48

 the pier columns can be generated at the same time by clicking on the pier component and then

Apply. Use the check boxes to control the number of plots shown. Remember to click Redraw

Curves to redraw the plots. The maximum force values can also be plotted for all load cases.

Figure 2.27 Pier Structure Results

To view the interaction diagrams for the drilled shafts (or piles), click on the button

in the top toolbar. Select Biaxial Moment Interaction and then click on the shaft #1 in the Pile

Selection window. The interaction diagram is shown for the top segment shaft #1. This interaction

diagram (Figure 2.28) shows the failure contour at the given axial load. The plot represents all

possible cases of biaxial failure for the given section. For this example, there is only uniaxial

bending from the applied loads. Points “I” and “J” on the diagram show the force combination for

the current segment (element). Point “J” represents the top of the element and point “I” represents

the bottom of the element. The remaining contour plots for the drilled shaft can be generated by

clicking on any one of the 20 shaft segments in the Segment Selection window.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 49

 Figure 2.28 Drilled Shaft Interaction Diagram

To view the interaction diagrams for the pier structure, click on the button in

the top toolbar. Select Biaxial Moment Interaction and then click on the right column in the

Structure window. The interaction diagram is shown for the bottom segment of the right column.

This interaction diagram (Figure 2.29) shows the failure contour at the given axial load. The plot

represents all possible cases of biaxial failure for the given column section. For this example, there

is only uniaxial bending from the applied loads. Again, points “I” and “J” on the diagram show the

force combination for the current segment (element). The remaining contour plots for the drilled

shaft can be generated by clicking on any one of the 6 column segments in the Segment Edit

window. You can also click on the other column or the pier cap to see additional interaction

diagrams.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 50

 Figure 2.29 Pier Structure Interaction Diagram

The 3D Results can also be viewed as a final step in the analysis. To view the displaced

shape of the pier system, click on the button in the top toolbar. The resulting screen should

look like Figure 2.30. The displacement values can be obtained for each node. Click on the node

in the 3D plot or select the node under Node Information to view the values. In addition to the

displaced shape, you can also view the displacement contours and stresses in the pile cap by

clicking the appropriate button in the 3D Display Control window.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 51

 Figure 2.30 3D Pier Results

This completes Example 2.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 52

 3. RETAINING WALL

Shown in Figure 3.1 is the retaining wall with geometry and soil conditions, which will be

modeled in Example 3. The 12 ft high by 20 ft long cantilevered retaining wall has backfilled soil

behind the wall and an existing soil base beneath the wall. The wall is supported by 2 rows of 12”

H-piles. There is a surcharge strip load of 500 psf located 5 ft behind the wall. The soil properties

and wall configuration are given in Figure 3.1.

5 ft 1 ft
500 psf
1.5 ft
α = 10 deg.

γ = 110 lb/ft3
Backfill
12 ft γsat = 120 lb/ft3
φ = 34o
6 ft 6 ft

3 ft

γ = 98 lb/ft3 Soft
Clay
γsat = 107 lb/ft 3
60 ft
c = 900 lb/ft2
φ = 18o

Figure 3.1 Example 3, Retaining Wall

To begin modeling the retaining wall select New from the File menu after starting FB-

MultiPier. Select Retaining Wall for the Structure Type and enter the information about the

problem shown in Figure 3.2. Click OK when finished.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 53

 Figure 3.2 Select Retaining Wall, English Units and Enter Project Description.

FB-MultiPier now loads a default data set for the retaining wall problem. The screen is

divided into four different windows as shown in Figure 3.3. The top left window is used to enter

the retaining wall configuration, soil properties, and any other parameters for the problem. The

bottom left window shows the wall and soil layers in an elevation view. The top right window

shows the layout of the piles in a plan view and the bottom right window shows the entire

foundation and wall structure in a 3D view.

The default problem will be modified to model the retaining wall presented in Figure

3.1 at the beginning of Example 3.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 54

 Figure 3.3 Default Data Set for Retaining Wall

This example will begin by modifying the structure properties by clicking on the Wall

Structure page in the Model Data window. For the retaining wall problem, the wall is modeled as

a column with a wall width parameter equal to the 20 ft length of the wall. The program will apply

the soil pressure using the wall width parameter in order to correctly apply the loading along the

entire wall. The soil properties are assumed to be uniform along the length of the wall.

For the example problem enter 13.5 ft for the Wall Height (measured from the center of

the pile cap), and a 3 ft Wall Offset. Select Gross Properties for this example. The Wall Structure

page dialog should now look like Figure 3.4.

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 Figure 3.4 Changing the Structure Properties

For this example, the wall is modeled with Gross Properties. To specify the section

properties for the wall, click on the Edit button in the Edit Cross Section section. Enter the section

properties for the 240” x 18” wall shown in Figure 3.5 and click OK when done.

Figure 3.5 Specifying Wall Section Properties

Note that since this example uses gross cross-sectional properties, the program will not

be able to model the true length of the wall in the 3D View window. The wall will be modeled with

a square cross- section. If full cross-section properties were specified, the section width and depth

of the wall would be entered and the 3D View window would show the true size of the wall.

The remaining retaining wall properties can now be entered by clicking on the Retained

Soil page in the Model Data window. The dialog has a number of parameters for input. Currently,

Soil Layer 1 is active. To model the example problem, enter 10 degrees for the Ground Slope

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 Incline, 3 ft for the Ground Water Height, 12 ft for the Thickness of the layer. Enter 5 for the

Number of Sub Layers to divide the wall into 5 segments from the base to the top. Finally, confirm

that the Active Case soil pressure model is selected for this problem. The dialog should now look

like Figure 3.6.

Figure 3.6 Changing the Retaining Wall Properties

Now select Layer 2 from the Soil Layer drop-down list. Click Delete to delete Soil Layer 2

since this example only has one layer of granular backfill soil. Click OK to confirm the deleting of

the soil layer.

Now edit the soil layer data by clicking Layer Data in the Soil Layer Data section. Enter the

values that are shown in the dialog in Figure 3.7a. Click OK when done to return to the Retained

Soil page.

Figure 3.7a Changing Backfill Soil Properties

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 To specify a surcharge load on the soil behind the wall as shown in Figure 3.1, click the

Surcharge button in the Wall Load Data section of the Retained Soil Tab. Click on Strip Load and

then enter 5 ft for the Load Offset, 1 ft for the Load Width, and 500 psf for the Load Intensity to

describe the loading. Make sure the box for Load Case 1 is checked in this dialog. These values

are shown in Figure 3.7b.

Figure 3.7b Applying a Surcharge Load

This completes the data entry for the retaining wall. Now the underlying soil and pile

properties for this example need to be specified before proceeding with the analysis.

To edit the soil properties at the base of the wall, click on the Soil page in the Model Data

window. First make sure that Layer 1 is selected as the Soil Layer. Select a Cohesive soil from the

Soil Type drop down list. Now enter the Unit Weight as 107 pcf and the Undrained Shear Strength

as 900 psf. Select the Soil Layer models shown in Figure 3.8. Finally, enter the Water Table

elevation as 0 ft, the Top of Layer elevation as 0 ft, and the Bottom of Layer elevation as -80 ft.

Make sure to include the negative sign in the bottom elevation to indication a downward direction.

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 Figure 3.8 Specifying Soil Properties

The next step is to specify the parameters for the soil layer models. Click on the dropdown

list or label for the Lateral models to activate the Lateral soil Model (the word “Lateral” should turn

blue). Now click Edit to edit the lateral properties for the layer. Enter the values into the dialog

shown in Figure 3.9a. Click OK when done to return to the Soil page.

Figure 3.9a Lateral Model Properties

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 59

 Figure 3.9b Axial Model Properties

Now specify the Axial soil properties. Click on the Axial dropdown label to active the Axial

model, and then click Edit to edit the driven pile properties. The model is activated when the word

“Axial” turns blue. Make sure that the values match the dialog shown in Figure 3.9b above. Most

of the values should not need to be changed, but double check just to be sure. Click OK when

done.

The Torsional model is based on previously defined values. To verify that the values are

correct for this example problem, activate the Torsional model and click Edit. The values should

appear as shown in the dialog in Figure 3.9c. If any values are different, change them now and

click OK when done.

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 Figure 3.9c Torsional Model Properties

The Tip model is also based on previously defined values and values from the default

parameter set. There is no need to change the values for this example. To view the values anyway,

activate the Tip model and click Edit. The values should appear as shown in the dialog in Figure

3.9d. If any values are different, change them now and click OK when done.

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 Figure 3.9d Tip Model Properties

This completes the soil data entry. The Soil page dialog should now look like Figure 3.10.

If any parameters are different change them now. At this point, only the pile configuration needs

to be specified before proceeding to the analysis.

Figure 3.10 Final Soil Properties

To specify the pile configuration, click on the Pile page in the Model Data window. This

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 example calls for two rows of 12 inch H-piles. First, click the Edit button in the Section Description

section, then click Retrieve Section, hover over the H-Pile\Pipe Pile option and select 12x84 H-Pile

from the Database list. To support the 20 ft width of retaining wall, go to the Pile Cap tab and

enter 11 Grid Points in the Y-direction, click Yes to add a pile at all of the new grid points. A dialog

now appears to remind you of the change in pile geometry and possible changes in the p-

multipliers. Click OK in the dialog to change the spacing. This reminder is important because if

new pile rows are added, p-multipliers must be assigned to these rows. Do this now in the Soil

page with the Group button. Default p-multipliers can be assigned with the Use 3D P-Multipliers,

Use 5D P-Multipliers, or Use P-Multipliers all equal to 1 buttons, or the user can specify their own

at this point. Choose to Use 3D P-Multipliers for this example. Return to the Pile page and click

the Grid Spacing button and input a constant Y Spacing of 3d (36 inches), enter 4 for the Grid

Points in the X-direction and change the spacing to 4d. Again click OK to add piles to the new

grid points and confirm the change in spacing. Enter the Pile Edit window and delete piles placed

along the outer border of your coordinate system and place piles on any inner coordinate that is

missing one; make sure your piles are numbered and oriented in the same manner as those in

Figure 3.12. Now change the tip elevation of the piles by clicking the “Edit Cross Section” button.

Change the length data to 60 ft and click OK. The Pile page dialog should now appear as shown

in Figure 3.11.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 63

 Figure 3.11 Modifying the Pile Configuration

The pile layout should now appear as shown in Figure 3.12.

Figure 3.12 H-Pile Configuration

Leave the Pile page and enter the Pile Cap page, in the dialog that appears, enter 3 ft for

the cap thickness as shown in Figure 3.13. Click OK when done. This completes the data entry

phase of the problem. Save the file if you haven’t already done so by clicking on the disk icon at

the top of the screen. Type “Example3.in” for the name of the file. We can now proceed with the

analysis.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 64

 Figure 3.13 Changing Pile Cap Thickness

To analyze the pier, click on the button at the top of the screen. A dialog appears

showing the status of the analysis. The time needed for the analysis will depend on the speed of

the computer. When the analysis is done close the window to continue.

To view the pile results, click on the button in the top toolbar. To demonstrate the

plotting capabilities click on the pile labeled ‘1’ in the Pile Edit window. The screen should now look

like Figure 3.14, which shows different plots for pile #1.

As an example, look at the plot of the axial soil force along the pile. Click on the Soil Axial

window to signal the Plot Display Control Window to update the maximum and minimum force

values.

The plots for other piles can be generated at the same time by clicking on the pile number

and then Redraw Curves. To remove a pile from the plots, click on the pile in the Pile Edit window

to return the pile to its original color and click Redraw Curves. Use the check boxes to control the

number of plots shown. Remember to click Redraw Curves to redraw the plots. The maximum

force values can also be plotted for all load cases.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 65

 Figure 3.14 Pile Results

To view the retaining wall results, click on the button in the top toolbar. Click on

the wall in the Structure window. The screen should now look like Figure 3.15, which shows

different plots for the retaining wall. Use the check boxes to control the number of plots shown.

Remember to click Apply to redraw the plots. The maximum force values can also be plotted for

all load cases.

For this problem, notice that the maximum bending moment occurs at the base of the

wall. The Moment 3 value at the base is 219.48 kip-ft. Also note that the shape of the moment

diagram is cubic due to the distributed soil load behind the wall.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 66

 Figure 3.15 Retaining Wall Results

To view the interaction diagrams for the piles, click on the button in the top

toolbar and select Biaxial Moment Interaction. Click on pile #1 in the Pile Edit. The interaction

diagram is shown for the top segment of shaft #1. This interaction diagram (Figure 3.16) shows

the failure contour at the given axial load. The plot represents all possible cases of biaxial failure

for the given section. For this example, there is only uniaxial bending from the applied loads.

Points ‘I’ and ‘J’ on the diagram show the force combination for the current segment (element).

Point “J” represents the top of the element and point “I” represents the bottom of the element.

The remaining contour plots for the pile can be generated by clicking on any one of the 16 shaft

segments in the Segment Edit window.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 67

 Figure 3.16 Pile Interaction Diagram

For this example it is not possible to plot the interaction diagram for the retaining wall

since only the minimum linear properties were specified. Later, the user can return to the wall

properties and specify all of the section properties to generate an interaction diagram.

The 3D results can also be viewed as a final step in the analysis. To view the displaced shape

of the wall system, click on the button in the top toolbar. The resulting screen should

look like Figure 3.17. The displacement values can be obtained for each node. Click on the node

in the 3-D plot or select the node under Node Information to view the values. In addition to the

displaced shape, you can also view the displacement contours and stresses in the pile cap by

clicking the appropriate button in the 3D Display Control window.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 68

 Figure 3.17 3D Results

This concludes Example 3.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 69

 4. HIGH MAST LIGHT/SIGN

The high mast light/sign problem is relatively straightforward to model and analyze using

FB-MultiPier. This example assumes that the user has already been exposed to many of FB-

MultiPier’s features by working through the first three examples. The overall modeling will be

touched on briefly using the default problem that is provided with FB-MultiPier, but the emphasis

will be on modeling the mast arm.

The default high mast sign that FB-MultiPier provides is similar to the one shown in Figure

4.1. The problem consists of a cantilever mast arm on a column supported by a single drilled shaft.

A line load is applied to the mast. Certain aspects of the mast structure will be changed to

demonstrate some of the modeling features that FB-MultiPier offers. This will entail changing the

mast arm length and loading.

10 ft

2 kip/ft
8.3 ft

Reese Sand
γ = 120 lb/ft3
φ = 35o 25 ft

Figure 4.1 Mast Arm Example

To begin, select New from the File menu. Select High Mast Light/Sign from the New

Problem Type dialog and enter the information shown in Figure 4.2.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 70

 Figure 4.2 Select High Mast Light/Sign

After clicking OK, the default data set is loaded. Figure 4.3 shows the general purpose

input, which is split into 4 separate screens. The top left is referred to as the page dialogs. These

dialogs control all soil, geometry, loads, analysis and problem types input. Note that the font in

the page dialogs depends on the screen resolution. To change the font go to the Control menu

and choose Set Dialog Font and select a suitable viewing font for the tabbed dialog. The top right

is the plan view of the piles, cap and coordinate system. By right clicking the mouse in this window,

the user can delete, batter, and change the spacing of the piles. The bottom left window is the

soil edit window. This window shows the elevation of all soil layers, water table, pile top and tip

elevations, and general soil information. Right clicking the mouse in this window will also allow

the users to insert, delete, and split layers. The bottom right window is the 3D view of the piles,

cap and structure, if there is one. Right clicking the mouse in this window allows the user to view

the structure in line mode, and rotate the structure with the mouse (3D rotate). The latter is useful

for placing loads, springs, etc. on different nodes of the structure.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 71

 Figure 4.3 Default High Mast Lighting Data Set

To modify the properties of the mast arm, click on the Pier page in the Model Data window.

Change the Cantilever length to 10 ft and change the Number of Cantilever Nodes to 10. The Pier

page dialog is now shown in Figure 4.4.

Figure 4.4 Changing Mast Arm Properties

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 For this example, there is no need to change the pile or soil properties, as both were

covered in the previous examples. The next step is to apply the loads to the mast arm. To do so,

click on the Load page. Delete the existing nodal loads using the “Del” button to the right of the

nodal loads list. The mast arm line load is applied using the local coordinate axis. The local 3-

direction corresponds to a negative y-direction. To model the load in this example, a negative

sign must be placed in front of the load to apply the load in the positive y-direction. To change

the line load for the mast arm, enter -0.167 kips/in (2 kips/ft) in the Mast Line Load box and change

the Col. Line Load to 0. The Load tab dialog should now match Figure 4.5.

At this point, the analysis can be run to observe the behavior of the mast arm under the

given loading. Click on the Analysis button in the toolbar to proceed.

To view the forces in the column, click on the Pier Results button in the toolbar. Click on

the column to view the column results and verify by a quick calculation that the mast arm load

was applied correctly. The force results are shown in Figure 4.6. Notice that the shear is 20 kips

and the maximum moment is 165 kip-ft, which are correct for the given loading.

Figure 4.5 Applying the Line Load to the Mast Arm

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 Figure 4.6 Force Results for the Column

To view the deformed shape of the mast arm under the applied loading, clicking on

the 3D Results button in the toolbar. Figure 4.7 shows the 3D deformation of the mast arm.

Figure 4.7 3D Results for the Mast Arm

This completes Example 4.

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 5. SOUND WALL

This example, like the high mast lighting example, assumes that the user has already been

exposed to many of FB-MultiPier’s features by working through the first three examples. The

overall modeling will be touched on briefly using the default problem that is provided with FB-

MultiPier, but the emphasis will be on modeling the sound wall.

The default sound wall that FB-MultiPier provides is similar to the one shown in Figure

5.1. The problem consists of a sound wall that is supported on a 2x2 pile group. The wall is

supported by 1ft x 1ft columns spaced at 4 feet. A 50 psf wind pressure is applied to the wall.

Certain aspects of the wall structure will be changed to demonstrate some of the modeling

features that FB-MultiPier offers. This will entail changing the wall height, width, and loading.

1ft x 1ft columns

50 psf 15 ft

Reese Sand
γ = 114 lb/ft3 25 ft
φ = 36o

4 ft

Figure 5.1 Sound Wall Example

To begin, select New from the File menu. Select Sound Wall from the New Problem Type

dialog and enter the information shown in Figure 5.2.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 75

 Figure 5.2 Select Sound Wall

After clicking OK, the default data set is loaded. Figure 5.3 shows the general-purpose

input, which is split into 4 separate screens. The top left is referred to as the page dialogs. These

dialogs control all soil, geometry, loads, analysis and problem types (check tabs) input. Note that

the font in the page dialog depends on the screen resolution. To change the font go to the Edit

menu and choose Set Dialog Font and select a suitable viewing font for the tabbed dialog. The

top right is the plan view of the piles, cap and coordinate system. By right clicking the mouse in

this window, the user can delete, batter, and change the spacing of the piles. The bottom left

window is the soil edit window. This window shows the elevation of all soil layers, water table, pile

top and tip elevations, and general soil information. Right clicking the mouse in this window will

also allow the users to insert, delete, and split layers. The bottom right window is the 3D view of

the piles, cap and structure, if there is one. Right clicking the mouse in this window allows the user

to view the structure in line mode, and rotate the structure with the mouse (3D rotate). The latter

is useful for placing loads, springs, etc. on different nodes of the structure.

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 76

 Figure 5.3 Default Sound Wall Data Set

To modify the properties of the sound wall, click on the Wall Structure page in the Model

Data window. Change the Wall Height to 15 feet and the Wall Width to 4 feet, the Wall Offset will

automatically center the wall on the pile cap. The Wall Width is used to designate the length of

wall between columns. The Wall Structure tab dialog is now shown in Figure 5.4.

Figure 5.4 Changing Mast Arm Properties

The dimensions of the wall will now be changed. Click on the Edit button under Edit Cross

Section in the Section Description section of the Wall Structure page. Confirm that both the Width

FB-MultiPier Examples Manual 77

 and Depth are 12 inches as shown in Figure 5.5. Next Click on the Edit Section Contents button

in the Section Type section and change the existing reinforcement from prestressing steel to mild

steel. To do this, click the Mild Steel button to signal the program to use mild steel instead. This

must be done for each of the four steel groups. The cross- section with mild steel should now look

like Figure 5.6. Click OK to dismiss the Rectangular Section Properties dialog and return to the

Wall Component Properties dialog.

While in the Wall Component Properties dialog click on the Edit Properties button under

Material Properties to specify the steel properties. Click on the Mild Steel check box and enter 60

ksi for the Yield Stress and 29000 ksi for the Modulus as shown in Figure 5.7. Click OK to dismiss

the Stress-Strain Dialog. Click OK in the Pier Component Properties dialog to apply the changes

and dismiss the dialog.

Figure 5.5 Beginning Sound Wall Properties

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 Figure 5.6 Changing Sound Wall Reinforcement

Figure 5.7 Specify Steel Properties

The final step before running the analysis is to apply a wind load to the sound wall. To

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 apply a wind pressure to the sound wall, first click on the Load page. Click on the Wind Pressure

load and change the wind pressure from 23 psf to 50 psf as shown in Figure 5.8. This pressure

will be applied to the width of the sound wall (currently 4 feet).

Figure 5.8 Changing Sound Wall Load Properties

This completes the data entry portion of the example. To analyze the sound wall click

the Analysis button in the toolbar. When the analysis is complete, click on the Pier Interaction

button and select Biaxial Moment Interaction. The interaction diagram for the wall is shown in

Figure 5.9. The element at the column base is currently selected. Notice that the top of element

#1 (marker “J”) is within the failure curve, but the bottom of element #1 (marker “I”) is not. This

indicates a failure condition at the base of the column. Click on element #2 to see that both the

top and bottom of the element are within the failure curve. This problem requires a redesign of

the cross-section in order to achieve a safe loading condition at the base of the column.

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 Figure 5.9 Biaxial Moment Interaction Diagram for Sound Wall

Figure 5.10 3D Results for Sound Wall

This completes Example 5.

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 6. STIFFNESS FORMULATION

FB-MultiPier can be used to determine an equivalent foundation stiffness that can be

exported to other analysis programs. This option creates a 6x6 foundation stiffness.

The default stiffness problem that FB-MultiPier provides is shown in Figure 6.1. The

problem consists of a pile cap supported on a 3x3 pile group. A combination of forces and

moments is applied to a node in the first pile. FB-MultiPier will apply these loads to determine the

equivalent 6x6 stiffness matrix of the foundation.

Reese Sand
γ = 119 lb/ft3
φ = 35o
80 ft

Figure 6.1 Stiffness Example

The equivalent foundation stiffness is determined by applying all of the loads in the first

load case at once. After an equilibrium solution has been obtained, unit loads are independently

applied by the program for each of the six degrees of freedom while the structure is in the

equilibrium position. The displacements obtained from each of the unit load applications are used

to fill the 6x6 equivalent foundation stiffness matrix. Because FB-MultiPier applies the unit loads

in the equilibrium position, a coupled behavior between the degrees of freedom is expected.

To begin a stiffness formulation problem, select New from the File menu. Select Stiffness

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 as shown in Figure 6.2. The program screen with the default problem is shown in Figure 6.3.

Figure 6.2 New Stiffness Formulation Problem

For this example there is no need to modify any of the problem parameters. To run the

stiffness formulation analysis, click on the Analysis button in the toolbar. The equivalent stiffness

matrix is written at the bottom of the output file for the analysis. The quickest way to view the

output file is from the Control menu. Selecting View Analysis Data from the Control menu launches

Microsoft Notepad or WordPad depending on the size of the output file.

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 Figure 6.3 Default Stiffness Formulation Problem

The results from the stiffness formulation analysis are shown in Table 3.6.1 below:

DeltaX DeltaY DeltaZ ThetaX ThetaY ThetaZ

Fx 7.9789E+01 8.3818E+00 -1.8765E+00 4.7944E+02 -6.7217E+01 2.0303E+04
Fy 8.3818E+00 5.5424E+03 8.5267E+00 1.4709E+04 2.2025E+00 -1.2650E+04
Fz -1.8765E+00 8.5267E+00 7.9641E+01 -2.0295E+04 6.3345E+01 -4.8136E+02
Mx 4.7944E+02 1.4709E+04 -2.0295E+04 2.5590E+07 -3.3163E+04 1.4895E+05
My -6.7217E+01 2.2025E+00 6.3345E+01 -3.3163E+04 2.0112E+06 -3.2977E+04
Mz 2.0303E+04 -1.2650E+04 -4.8136E+02 1.4895E+05 -3.2977E+04 2.5586E+07

Table 3.6.1 Equivalent Stiffness Matrix (Foundation Stiffness in Standard X-Y-Z)

For the stiffness matrix in Table 3.6.1, the 1, 2, and 3 headings correspond to the x, y, and

z translations and the 4, 5, and 6 headings correspond to the rx, ry, and rz rotations. As explained

earlier, the stiffness matrix is fully populated.

Before using the equivalent stiffness matrix in another analysis programs, it is important

to understand the coordinate system used by FB-MultiPier. The following explanation

shows how to

convert a 6x6 stiffness matrix from the FB-MultiPier global coordinate system to a standard
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 coordinate system defined below.

z
FB-MultiPier Coordinate System Standard Coordinate System
Figure 6.4 FB-MultiPier and Standard Coordinate Systems

A 3x3 transformation matrix (T) is first defined to show how the two coordinate systems are
related.

 x  1 0 0   X 
 y  = 0 0 1  Y  Which can be stated as [d] = [T][D].
    
 z  0 −1 0   Z 

This shows that x maps to X, y maps to Z, and z maps to –Y.

This transformation matrix is then used to transform the stiffness matrix from the FB-

MultiPier coordinate system to the standard coordinate system as follows.

[K STANDARD] = [T] T [KFB-MULTIPIER][T]

1 0 0 0 0 0  1 0 0
0 0 0
0 0 −1 0 0 0  0 0 0
1 0 0
   
0 1 0 0 0 0  0 −1 0 0 0 0 
[ K STANDARD ]6 x 6 =  [ K FB−MULTIPIER ]6 x 6  
 0 0 0 1 0 0  0 0 0 1 0 0
0 0 0 0 0 −1 0 0 0 0 0 1
   
0 0 0 0 1 0  0 0 0 0 −1 0 
This requires 2 matrix multiplications to obtain the transformed stiffness matrix. This can be

easily done using either Excel or MathCad.

As a result, to convert the FB-MultiPier stiffness to a standard coordinate system, use the

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 following.

K11 K12 K13 K14 K15 K16 K11 0 0 0 0 K15

K21 K22 K23 K24 K25 K26 0 K33 0 -K34 0 0
K31 K32 K33 K34 K35 K36 0 0 K22 0 0 0
K41 K42 K43 K44 K45 K46 0 -K43 0 K 44 0 0
K51 K52 K53 K54 K55 K56 0 0 0 0 K66 0
K61 K62 K63 K64 K65 K66 K51 0 0 0 0 K55
FB-MultiPier Stiffness Matrix Standard Coordinate Stiffness

Matrix Note: Both the locations and signs change for some of the stiffness terms.

Example
The FB-MultiPier stiffness matrix is given by
20 0 0 0 6500 0
0 20 0 -6500 0 0
0 0 26000 0 0 0
0 -6500 0 1.00E+08 0 0
6500 0 0 0 1.00E+08 0
0 0 0 0 0 1

Then the stiffness matrix in the standard coordinate system would be.
20 0 0 0 0 6500
0 26000 0 0 0 0
0 0 20 -6500 0 0
0 0 -6500 1.00E+08 0 0
0 0 0 0 1 0
6500 0 0 0 0 1.0E+08

This completes Example 6.

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 7. MULTIPLE PILE SETS

Shown in Figure 7.1 is the pile group with geometry and soil conditions which will be

modeled in Example 7. The problem represents a pile group that is expanded due to increasing

demands from the superstructure. The original foundation consisted of 9-24 inch prestressed piles

(60 ft long), embedded in a 5 ft thick pile cap. The revised foundation will add 30 inch piles around

the perimeter with a depth of 80 ft. The pile cap thickness will also be increased to 8 ft. The

properties of the sand and rock are given in Figure 7.1.

500 kip

200 kip

3'
Reese Sand
γt = 109 pcf 15'
φ = 32

Reese Sand,
γt = 119 pcf 45'
φ = 35

24” 24” 24”

20'

30” 30”

Figure 7.1 Example 7, Revised Pile Group

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 Figure 7.2 Select New from the File Menu

From the File menu in Figure 7.2, select New. Choose Pile and Cap and enter the general

information shown in Figure 7.3. Be sure to choose the English systems of units to load the correct

default data set.

Figure 7.3 Select Pile and Cap Only and Enter Project Information

After clicking OK at the bottom of the dialog, the default data set is loaded. Figure 7.4

shows the general-purpose input, which is split into 4 separate screens. The top left is referred to

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 as the Model Data window. The Model Data window contains dialogs that control all soil,

geometry, loads, analysis and problem types input. The top right is the plan view of the piles, cap

and coordinate system. By right clicking the mouse in this window, the user can delete, batter, and

change the spacing of the piles. The bottom left window is the Soil Edit window. This window

shows the elevation of all soil layers, water table, pile top and tip elevations, and general soil

information. Right clicking the mouse in this window will also allow the users to insert, delete, and

split layers. The bottom right window is the 3D View of the piles, cap and structure, if there is one.

Right clicking the mouse in this window allows the user to view the structure in thin elements

mode, and rotate the structure with the mouse (3D rotate). The latter is useful for placing loads,

springs, etc. on different nodes in the structure.

Figure 7.4 Default Data Set (2x2 Pile Group)

To model the example problem, click the Pile Cap page in the Model Data window. Change

the number of grid points in the X and Y-direction to 11, clicking OK to add piles to the new grid

points. Now add and remove piles to and from the appropriate coordinates so that there are 25

piles arranged in a 5x5 pile group with a constant spacing of 36 in in both the X and Y-direction.

Your Pile Edit window should resemble that of Figure 7.7. The default problem has 18” precast
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 piles. To change the pile type click on the Pile page, click the Edit button under Edit Cross Section,

then click the Retrieve Section button under Database Section Selection yellow Pile/Shaft Type list

and select a Rectangluar > 24” Square FDOT Standard prestressed pile. Now click OK to exit the

dialog. Navigate to the Pile Cap page and it should now look like Figure 7.5.

Figure 7.5 Pile & Cap Tab Dialog Adjusted for Number and Type of Pile

The next step is to edit the pile cap properties. Change the cap Thickness to 8 ft and then

press enter to update to confirm the change. The Cap Properties section of the Pile Cap page

should appear as shown in Figure 7.6.

Figure 7.6 Pile Cap Properties

The four split screen inputs should look like Figure 7.7. Note the Pile Edit window (top

right) shows 25 piles.

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 Figure 7.7 General Input Screen for Pile Group

The different pile types shown in Figure 7.1 can now be specified in the Pile page dialog.

Click the Edit Cross Section button to edit the pile types. The Full Cross Section Pile Properties

dialog appears, allowing the user to change the pile properties.

Different pile types must be used in order to assign different pile types to the pile group.

For this problem, two pile types will be used: one for the 24” piles (with a length of 60 ft) and one

for the 30” piles (with a length of 80 ft). Note that if all the piles were the same (in cross-section

and length) then only one pile type is needed. This pile type is assigned to all piles by default.

All that needs to be done to create the first pile type is to modify the length of the default

24” pile to match the length specified in Figure 7.1. Under Section Dimensions change the Length

value to 60 feet.

To create the second pile type, click the Add button below the Pile Type Info list in the

upper left portion of the dialog as shown in Figure 7.8.

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 Figure 7.8 Adding a Pile Set

The second pile type “Type 2” will be automatically selected, click the Retrieve Section

button and select Rectangular > 30” Square FDOT Standard prestressed pile and change the pile

length to 80 feet. The dialog should now look like Figure 7.9. Click OK to update the changes and

exit the dialog. FB-MultiPier will ask to update the number of soil sets because the number of pile

types have changed, approve these changes by clicking Yes.

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 Figure 7.9 Modifying Pile Set 2

The Pile Edit window is used to assign the pile types to the piles. By default, all of the piles

are assigned to pile type 1. This example problem calls for changing the perimeter piles to 30”,

which are specified in pile type 2. The pile type is specified while in the Pile Data/Batter mode.

Right click the mouse button in the Pile Edit window and check that this mode is selected. Click

on Pile 1 in the bottom right of the group. The pile data dialog is displayed with the pile

information for Pile 1. Select Pile Type 2 from the list as shown in Figure 7.10 and select Soil Set

2, now click OK. Notice that a different pattern is shown on the pile head to indicate the different

pile set. Repeat this for process for all of the perimeter piles. When done the Pile Edit window

should look like Figure 7.11.

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 Figure 7.10 Change Pile Number 1 to Pile Set 2

Figure 7.11 Pile Edit Window Showing Both Pile Types

For this problem it is not necessary to change the soil properties but the soil elevations

must be changed. In the Soil page, change the top layer elevation from –10 feet to 0 feet. Now

select Layer 2 from the Soil Layer list. Change the bottom elevation to –90 ft. This elevation is

deep enough for the new piles added with pile set 2. The Soil tab dialog should now look like

Figure 7.12.

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 Figure 7.12 Soil Tab Data

Now click the Load page to apply the prescribed loads to the pile group. First delete Load

Case 2 with the Del button. Now there should only be one load case. Now delete the existing

nodal loads with the right Del button. The loads in this example will be applied to the center of

the pile cap. Click on the center node (Node 13) in the 3D Edit window. The node should turn

orange to indicate that it has been selected. Click the right Add button and enter 200 kips for the

X Load and 500 kips for the Z Load. The Load page dialog should now look like Figure 7.13.

Figure 7.13 Load Page Data

This completes the data entry portion of the example. To analyze the new pile group click

the Analysis button in the toolbar. When the analysis is complete, click on the Pile Results button

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 in the toolbar. The forces in the different pile sections can be compared. As an example, select

Piles 2 and 7. Select the Shear, Moment, Axial, and Demand/Capacity Ratio for plotting. Click Apply

to plot the applicable values. The plots should look Figure 7.14.

The load moment interaction and 3D results can also be viewed for further investigation

of the pile group behavior.

Figure 7.14 Force Results for the Pile Group

This concludes Example 7.

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 8. PILE BENTS

Shown in Figure 8.1 is a pile bent model with geometry and soil conditions which will be

modeled in Example 8. The problem consists of a single row of battered piles connected directly

to a bent cap. The 9 square precast piles are 14 inches in width and are spaced 4 diameters apart.

The square bent cap is 36 inches in width and 36 feet long. The foundation is subjected to the 3

longitudinal 30 kip concentrated loads shown in Figure 8.1.

36'

30 30 30
kip kip kip 30'

Reese Sand
γt = 119 pcf
φ = 35deg 45'

Figure 8.1 Pile Bent Model

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 Figure 8.2 Select New from File Menu

From the File menu in Figure 8.2, select New. Choose Pile Bent and enter the general

information shown in Figure 8.3. Be sure to choose the English systems of units to load the correct

default data set.

Figure 8.3 Select Pile Bent and Enter Project Information

After clicking OK at the bottom of the dialog, the default data set is loaded. Figure 8.4

shows the general-purpose input, which is split into 4 separate screens. The top left is referred to

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 as the Model Data window. The Model Data window contains page dialogs that control all soil,

geometry, loads, analysis and problem types input. The top right is the plan view of the piles, cap

and coordinate system. By right clicking the mouse in this window, the user can delete, batter, and

change the spacing of the piles. The bottom left window is the Soil Edit window. This window

shows the elevation of all soil layers, water table, pile top and tip elevations, and general soil

information. Right clicking the mouse in this window will also allow the users to insert, delete, and

split layers. The bottom right window is the 3D View of the piles, cap and structure, if there is one.

Right clicking the mouse in this window allows the user to view the structure in thin elements

mode, and rotate the structure with the mouse (3D rotate). The latter is useful for placing loads,

springs, etc. on different nodes in the structure.

Figure 8.4 Default Data Set (Pile Bent)

To model the example problem, click the Pile Grid page in the Model Data window. Change

the number of grid points in the X-direction to 9, adding piles at the new grid locations. Notice

that the Y- direction grid points edit box is disabled since it is assumed that pile bents only

have one row of piles. Enter the Grid Spacing Table and change the X-grid spacing to “Constant”

and enter 56 inches for the constant spacing and click OK. The Model Data window should now

look like Figure 8.5.

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 Figure 8.5 Pile Grid Page Dialog Adjusted for Number of Piles

The pile batter can be specified now that the correct number of piles and pile spacing has

been select. The example problem calls for battering the first two and last two piles in the row. To

batter the first pile, click on pile 1 in the Pile Edit window. The Pile Data dialog is displayed. The

pile batter in specified in terms of the slope. For this example, enter –0.2 for the Y pile batter as

shown in Figure 8.6. Click OK when done to apply the batter changes and close the Pile Data

dialog.

Figure 8.6 Entering the Pile Batter Data

To batter the second pile, click on pile 2 in the Pile Edit window. This pile will be battered

in the positive direction. Enter +0.2 for the Y pile batter and click OK to exit the dialog. Follow the

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 same procedure for battering piles 8 and 9, assigning a –0.2 Y batter for pile 8 and a +0.2 Y pile

batter for pile 9. When done the 3D Edit window should look like Figure 8.7.

Figure 8.7 3D View of the Battered Piles

With the pile batters finished the bent cap properties can be set. Select the Bent Cap page

in the Model Data Window. Click the Edit button under Edit Cross Section which will bring up the

Gross Pier Component Properties dialog. From this dialog all the relevant properties for the Bent

Cap can be entered. First, enter 1296 for Area and 150 for Weight under the Section Data section.

Enter the following Section Properties;

Inertia 2 Axis - 139968

Inertia 3 Axis - 139968

Torsional Inertia – 279936

Young’s Modulus – 4300

Shear Modulus – 1796

The Gross Pier Component Properties dialog should now look like Figure 8.8.

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 Figure 8.8 Section Properties for Bent Cap

The final modeling step is to apply the prescribed concentrated loads to the pile bent. To

do so, first click on the Load page in the Model Data window. The concentrated loads will be

applied in the negative y direction at the pile heads for piles 3, 5, and 7. Remove the existing

loads by selecting each node listed under Node Applied and clicking the Delete button to the

right. Now add the new load to Node 3 by clicking on node 3 in the 3D View window or

selecting node 3 from the Node # Dropdown menu. Click the right Add button then enter –30

kips for the Y load. Do the same for nodes 5 and 7. For this example, leave the Self Weight

and Buoyancy Factors as zero. These values can be specified to included self weight and

buoyancy in the analysis. The Load page dialog should now look like Figure 8.9.

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 Figure 8.9 Applied Concentrated Loads

This completes the data entry portion of the example. To analyze the new pile bent

click the Analysis button in the toolbar. When the analysis is complete, click on the Pile

Results button in the toolbar. To compare the pile forces for this example, click on piles 1,

2, and 3 in the Pile Selection window. Select the Shear, Moment, Axial, and

Demand/Capacity Ratio for plotting. Click Apply to plot the applicable values. The plots

should look Figure 8.10.

Figure 8.10 Pile Load Results

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 Notice that the Demand/Capacity Ratio for pile 2 is 0.416, representing a safe loading

condition for the exterior pile. This can also be confined by examining the biaxial load interaction

diagram for the pile. The 3D results can also be examined to understand the 3D behavior of the

pile bent.

This concludes Example 8.

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 9. COLUMN ANALYSIS

Shown in Figure 9.1 is a single column model, which will be analyzed in Example 9. This

type of problem allows the user to perform a biaxial bending analysis for a single column. This is

done internally by taking a single pile and treating it as a single column. The single column has

the ability to put springs at the top and bottom of the column. It also allows loads at the top and

bottom. The column properties are input as normal pile properties.

200 kip
1200 kip-in

Column:
30” Square

Spring Stiffness:
1x1016 kip/in (kip-in/rad)
20 ft
Loads:
200 kips concentrated
1200 kip-in moment

Figure 9.1 Column Analysis Model

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 Figure 9.2 Select New from File Menu

From the File menu in Figure 9.2, select New. Choose Column and enter the general

information shown in Figure 9.3. Be sure to choose the English systems of units to load the correct

default data set.

Figure 9.3 Select Column Analysis and Enter Project Information

After clicking OK at the bottom of the dialog, the default data set is loaded. Figure 9.4

shows the general-purpose input, which is split into 4 separate screens. The top left is referred to

as the Model Data window. The Model Data window contains page dialogs that control all soil,

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 geometry, loads, analysis and problem types input. The top right is the plan view of the piles, cap

and coordinate system. By right clicking the mouse in this window, the user can delete, batter, and

change the spacing of the piles. The bottom left window is the Soil Edit window. This window

shows the elevation of all soil layers, water table, pile top and tip elevations, and general soil

information. Right clicking the mouse in this window will also allow the users to insert, delete, and

split layers. The bottom right window is the 3D View of the piles, cap and structure, if there is one.

Right clicking the mouse in this window allows the user to view the structure in thin elements

mode, and rotate the structure with the mouse (3D rotate). The latter is useful for placing loads,

springs, etc. on different nodes in the structure.

Figure 9.4 Default Data Set (Column Analysis)

To model the example problem, click the Column page in the Model Data window. Notice

that the number of X and Y grid points are set to one and disabled for this type of problem.

Change the column type to 30” Square FDOT Standard prestressed for the column cross-section

by clicking the Edit button under Edit Cross Section and retrieving the appropriate column design

from the Database Section Selection. Also, change the length to 20 ft. Click OK when done. The

Model Data window should now look like Figure 9.5.

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 Figure 9.5 Adjusted Column Page Dialog - 30” Column

The next modeling step is to apply the prescribed concentrated loads to the column

model. To do so, first click on the Load page in the Model Data window. The concentrated loads

will be applied to the top of the column. Select Load Case 2 and remove it by clicking the left

Delete button. Now, enter 200 kips Z load and 1200 kips Moment Y, as shown in Figure 9.6 for

Load Case 1, Node 1.

Figure 9.6 Applied Loads to the Top of the Column

Next, click on the Springs page in the Model Data window to inspect the spring stiffness

values at the top and bottom of the column. The values shown in Figure 9.7 do not need to be

changed since the values from the default input file are fine.

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 Figure 9.7 Spring Stiffness Values at the Ends of the Column

The 3D view of the column system now should look like Figure 9.8.

Figure 9.8 Spring Stiffness Values at the Ends of the Column

This completes the data entry portion of the example. To analyze the new column click the

Analysis button in the toolbar. When the analysis is complete, click on the Pile Results button in

the toolbar. To examine the force results for the pile (column), click on the pile in the Pile Selection

window. Select the Shear, Moment, Axial, and Demand/Capacity Ratio for plotting and uncheck

the soil forces since they are not applicable. Click Apply to plot the applicable values. The plots
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 should look Figure 9.9.

Figure 9.9 Pile (Column) Load Results

Notice that the moment at the top of the column matches the moment applied to the

column, therefore indicating force equilibrium. Also notice that the axial load is 200 kips in

compression when matches the applied concentrated load.

As a last step, click the Pile Interaction toolbar button to view the biaxial load-moment

interaction. Doing so shows the plot presented in Figure 9.10. The figure shows that the applied

loading is well outside the failure envelope. In other words, this example represents a unsafe

application of the specified loading and would need to be redesigned in order to achieve a safe

loading condition.

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 Figure 9.10 Pile (Column) Biaxial Interaction

This concludes Example 9.

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 10. AASHTO LOAD COMBINATIONS

Shown in Figure 10.1 is the bridge pier with geometry and soil conditions, which was

modeled in Example 2. The problem represents a navigable waterway crossing, which involves

both lateral and axial loads. The foundation consists of 6-54 inch drilled shafts (80 ft long), and

two pier columns which are 30 ft tall, 5 ft square and spaced 16 ft apart. The pier cap is 4 ft thick

and the drilled shaft cap is 10 ft thick. Due to scour, the sand surface is located 15 ft below mean

sea level, and the soft rock is characterized as FHWA's intermediate geomaterial (IGM). The

properties of the sand and rock are given in Figure 10.1.

12’ 12’ 12’

10’
14'
16' 30'

15' Water

Sand 80' N = 35
γt = 120 pcf 35' k = 150 pci

Cu=2.8ksi
Soft Rock,
qt=0.28ksi
γt = 140 pcf
ε50 = 1%

Figure 10.1 Example 2, Pier Structure

This example will first consider AASHTO LRFD design load combinations to determine

the worst case loading scenario. Design loads using the AASHTO Standard Specifications (LFD)

will then be considered for comparison.

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 The following load types will be considered:

Dead Load (DC) Bearing 1 150 kips

Bearing 2 150 kips Superstructure Dead Load
Bearing 3 150 kips
Bearing 4 150 kips

Dead Load (DW) Bearing 1 10 kips

Bearing 2 10 kips
Bearing 3 10 kips Superstructure Dead Load
Bearing 4 10 kips

Live Load (LL1) Bearing 1 60 kips

Bearing 2 102 kips
Bearing 3 0 kips Vehicular Live Load
Bearing 4 0 kips

Impact Load (IM1) Bearing 1 10 kips

Bearing 2 18 kips
Bearing 3 0 kips Vehicular Dynamic Load Allowance
Bearing 4 0 kips

Braking Load (BR1) Bearing 1 48 kips

Bearing 2 48 kips
Bearing 3 48 kips y-direction (longitudinal) load
Bearing 4 48 kips

Live Load (LL2) Bearing 1 5 kips

Bearing 2 90 kips
Bearing 3 100 kips Vehicular Live Load
Bearing 4 85 kips

Impact Load (IM2) Bearing 1 0 kips

Bearing 2 15 kips
Bearing 3 17 kips Vehicular Dynamic Load Allowance
Bearing 4 14 kips

Braking Load (BR2) Bearing 1 70 kips

Bearing 2 70 kips
Bearing 3 70 kips y-direction (longitudinal) load
Bearing 4 70 kips

Wind Load on Structure (WS) To be generated using wind angles of 0, 30, and 60 degrees

Wind Load on Live Load (WL) To be generated using wind angles of 0, 30, and 60 degrees

Vessel Collision (CV) Node 38 1000 kips (Lateral - Applied to center of pile cap)

The following LRFD limit states will be checked:

STRENGTH-I, STRENGTH-III, STRENGTH-V, EXTREME-II

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 To begin, select Open from the File menu and choose the Example2.in file. Change the

Project Data and then select Save As from the File menu to save the problem under a different

name. Call this new file Example10.in. The example problem is shown below in Figure 10.2.

Figure 10.2 Example 10, Pier Structure

Most of the work in this example involves entering the AASHTO type design loads. Many

of these loads are applied at the bearing locations on the pier. The program requires that these

bearing locations be defined before applying any AASHTO type design loads. To do so, click on

the Pier page in the Model Data window. Check the “Bearings” box to include bearing locations

and then click on the “Bearing Locations” button to entering the bearing positions. Enter the

values shown in Figure 10.3. The negative value for the Offset from leftmost column positions

the first bearing location to the left of the first pier column. Click OK when done.

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 Figure 10.3 Bearing Locations

The bearing locations are now shown in the 3D View window (Figure 10.4).

Figure 10.4 Bearing Locations

The problem can then be converted to an AASHTO type problem after entering the bearing

locations. To do so, click on the Analysis page and check the “AASHTO Combinations” box under

Design Options to initiate AASHTO load combinations as shown in Figure 10.5.

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 Figure 10.5 AASHTO Combinations Option

At this point a message box (Figure 10.6) is displayed to remind the user that design load

types are assigned using the Load page.

Figure 10.6 Assigning load types

The AASHTO LRFD design loads can now be entered. To do so, click on the Load page.

When working with AASHTO loads, each load case represents a different design load type (there

are currently 25 load types in the LRFD code). Currently, there is only the preload case (from

Example2) as all load cases are removed when switching to AASHTO mode. The “Table” button

can be used to quickly apply loads using a spreadsheet style format. Click the Table button to

view the AASHTO Load Table as shown in Figure 10.8.

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 Figure 10.8 Empty AASHTO Load Table

A load case for the Dead Load Components and Attachments will be added first. To add

this case, click on “Components and Attachments” in the list of Load Types. Click the “ Add

Case” button to insert the load case. In the AASHTO Load Table, nodal loads are grouped into

design load cases. These cases are shown in the folder tree in the first column of the table. Click

on the “+” or “-“ next to the folder to expand or compact the folder for easier management. Under

the Load Case name in the first column the nodal locations are shown, notice that the nodes listed

are identified as bearing locations. Enter the specified Z load of 150 kips for each bearing location

listed, when done, the table should look like Figure 10.9.

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 Figure 10.9 AASHTO Load Table, Components and Attachments

The remaining columns in the load table describe a particular load. The second column

shows the AASHTO design load type for the load. Columns three through eight show the load

values for the six degrees of freedom.

A load case for the Dead Load of the Wearing Surface will be added next. To add this case,

click on “Dead Load Wearing” in the list of Load Types. Click the “ Add Case” button to insert

the load case. Enter the specified wearing surface loads. When done, the table should look like

Figure 10.10.

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 Figure 10.10 AASHTO Load Table, Dead Load of Wearing Surface

The two live load cases specified in this example will be added next. To add the first live

load case, click on “Live Load” in the list of Load Types and click the “ Add Case” button. Notice

that an Impact load case (IM) and a Vehicle Braking (BR) load case are automatically inserted into

the load table to accompany the live load. In the FB-MultiPier program, every live load case must

also have an impact case and a vehicle braking case. If the user does not wish to enter loads for

the impact and braking cases, they can leave all of the bearing load values as zero. Enter the

specified loads for this example problem. When done, the table should look like Figure 10.11.

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 Figure 10.11 AASHTO Load Table, Live Load 1

Now enter the loads for Live Load 2. When done, the table should look like Figure
10.12.

Figure 10.12 AASHTO Load Table, Live Load 2

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 The vessel collision case (CV) can now be specified. Add a load case for Vessel Collision.

When adding a load case that does not require bearing location, a dummy nodal load placeholder

is added to the load case. This placeholder is called ‘Node 1’ until the user changes the node

number. For this example, the vessel collision load will be applied to the center of the left edge of

the pile cap (Node 31). Double click on “Node 1” to edit the entry and change the value to “Node

113.” Now enter 1000 kips for the x-direction load. When done the table should look like Figure

10.13.

Figure 10.13 AASHTO Load Table, Vessel Collision Load

Although the Wind Load on Structure and Wind Load on Live Load cases can also be

created using the AASHTO Load Table, this example will use the Wind Load Generator to

automatically create the necessary wind load cases.

Before leaving the AASHTO Load Table it is worth mentioning some of the options

available when editing the load cases. The “Remove Case” button is used to remove a load case

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 from the table. Note that before clicking the “Remove Case” button, you must first click on the

load case in the tab that is to be removed. Also, when removing a Live Load, the corresponding

Impact and Braking cases are automatically removed. The “Add Load” button is used to add

nodal loads to a load case. A load case must be selected before clicking the button. The “Remove

Load” button is used to remove nodal loads from a load case. The nodal load must be selected

before clicking the button. Note that for adding and deleting loads, the user can also right click

the mouse button on a nodal load to insert or delete a load. Finally, bearing loads cannot be

deleted. The user should enter zero for the bearing load values if the bearing load is not applicable.

Click OK to save the changes to the AASHTO Load Table.

The next step in the example is to specify the parameters used in computing the AASHTO

load combinations. The AASHTO page (Figure 10.14) allows the user to select the LRFD or

Standard Specifications (LFD) code as well as edit any of the load factors. Additionally, the Limit

States of interest can be checked. Next, the “Automated AASHTO Loads” section allows the user

to automatically generate self weight, buoyancy, and wind load cases. Also in this section is a

display of the “Num. of Combinations” as well as a “Preview Load Combinations” button to preview

all load combination equations before running the analysis.

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 Figure 10.14 AASHTO Tab

To begin, click the “Edit Load Factors” button. Although this example does not call for

modifying any of the load factors, it is worth demonstrating the feature here. An AASHTO Load

Factor Table will be displayed (Figure 10.15) with all of the applicable load factors. These factors

pertain to a given limit state, so changing the value of the DC load factor in STRENGTH-I, for

example, will not change the DC load factor for the remaining limit states. Also, certain load factors

have a range of values depending on the type of structure and whether the load case is considered

for maximum or minimum load effects. The program assumes the first value in the range of values

specified in the AASHTO LRFD code. The user has the option of changing these values using this

table. Click Cancel to leave all load factors with their default values.

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 Figure 10.15 AASHTO Load Factor Table

In the AASHTO page, check the STRENGTH-I, STRENGTH-III, STRENGTH-V, and EXTREME II

boxes to evaluate the load combinations for each of these limit states. In order to complete this step,

Wind Loads on the Structure must be in place; follow through with wind load generation prior to

completing this step. Information on the Wind Load Generation for this model is found in the

following section. Also, check the “Include Buoyancy” box to automatically create a load case for

buoyancy to consider buoyant effects on the pile group. After checking these boxes, the AASHTO

tab should look like Figure 10.16.

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 Figure 10.16 Check Limit States and Include Buoyancy

Wind load on the structure and wind load on the live load cases can be automatically

generated using the built-in “Wind Load Generator.” The user must provide the profile areas, wind

pressures, and moment arms in order to compute the wind loads. The values are given in Figure

10.17 below.

Superstructure Area
(100 ft span x 10 ft height = 1000ft2
Longitudinal Area (Pier Cap)
(44 ft x 4 ft) = 176 ft2 c.g.

c.g. Pier Cap

Moment Arm = 7ft
Transverse Area (Pier Cap)
(5 ft x 4 ft) = 20ft2 Wind Load on Structure

Transverse Area (Columns)

(23 ft x 5 ft x 2 cols) = 230 ft2 Live Load Length =100ft

Longitudinal Area (Columns)

(23 ft x 5 ft x 2 cols) = 230 ft2

Pier Cap
Wind Pressure = 0.043 ksf (at all elevations) Moment Arm = 12ft

Wind Load on Pier Wind Load on Live Load

Figure 10.17 Pier Area Profiles, Wind Pressures, and Moment Arms
To create wind loads, click the “Wind Load Generator” button. This example will consider

three wind load cases: 1) 0 degrees, 2) 30 degrees, and 3) 60 degrees. Change the number of load

cases to 3 and enter 0, 30, and 60 degrees for the wind angles. Enter the values shown in Figure

10.18.

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 Figure 10.18 Wind Load Generation

The wind load is computed using the parameters specified. The resulting load is applied

to the bearing locations. The vertical loads on the bearing locations resulting from the lateral wind

loading are determined using the rigid beam formulation shown in Figure 10.18.

Click on the “Generate Wind Load Cases” button to create the three Wind Load on

Structure and Wind Load on Live Load Cases. Click “Yes” when prompted to confirm the wind load

generation and “OK” to acknowledge their creation. Click OK to save the changes and exit the

dialog box.

The user can examine the wind load cases that were generated by clicking on the Load

page. The new cases can either be viewed by selecting a wind load case from the Load Case list

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 or by clicking the Table button to view the AASHTO Load Table. Click the Table button. Expand

the wind load cases to view the wind loads on the bearing locations as shown in Figure 10.19.

The user can then apply additional nodal loads to the wind load cases if necessary. Click OK to

close the dialog when done.

Figure 10.19 Wind Loads in the AASHTO Load Table

At this point all of the load cases have been created for this example. Click on the AASHTO

tab to review the number of combinations. Notice that the Total Number of Load Combinations

is now 13 after adding the wind load cases. The user should preview all of the load combination

equations before running the analysis. This can be done by clicking the “Preview Load

Combinations” button. Doing so brings up the window shown in Figure 10.20. Click OK to close

the Load Combination Preview window. The user can continue to preview load combination

scenarios after turning various limit states on and off.

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 Figure 10.20 Load Combination Preview

This concludes the data entry for the example. Click on the Analysis button in the toolbar

to analyze the pier under the specified load combinations. Note only the combinations of the load

cases are considered in the analysis, not the individual load cases.

After successfully running the analysis, click on the “Pile Results” button in the toolbar. The

Pile Results can be viewed by cycling through the load combinations at the top of the screen. The

load combination equation is shown as the user cycles through the load. The maximum load

combination for each limit state can be obtained by selecting an applicable Limit State in the Plot

Display Control window.

Suppose that the user is interested in obtaining the maximum results for the EXTREME-II

limit state. In this example problem, this limit state has two load combinations: one for the Live

Load case 1 and one for Live Load case 2. Selecting EXTREME-II from the Maximum Combination

combo box (Figure 10.21) will show the maximum load combination in the specified limit state

and will automatically select the pile in which this occurs. The maximum is determined based on

the largest demand/capacity ratio (if a full cross-section was specified) or the SRSS (Square Root

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 of the Sum of the Squares) value of the axial force and moment combination (if a gross cross-

section was specified). Also, click the checkboxes for the Member Forces and Soil Forces shown in

Figure 10.21. Click “Redraw Curves” when done to update the graphs. The resulting plots are

shown in Figure 10.22.

Figure 10.21 Selecting EXTREME-II Limit State

Figure 10.22 Plots for Pile 3, Maximum Combination in EXTREME-II Limit

State

When viewing the results from a load combination, the load combination equation is

shown at the top of the screen. When EXTREME-II was selected, the maximum result occurred

in Load Combination 12. The corresponding load combination equation is shown in Figure

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 10.23. Notice that the first Live Load case (LL1) produced the maximum result.

Figure 10.23 Load Combination Equation for EXTREME-II Limit State

The user can also click on the up and down buttons to select any load combination for

viewing the results. It’s important to note that these combination equations match the equations

shown when previewing the load combinations before running the analysis.

The pier results can also be viewed in a similar manner. To do so, click on the Pier Results

button in the toolbar. This time select STRENGTH-I from the list of available limit states. Click on

both pier columns in the Pier Selection window. Make sure to check the box to plot the

Demand/Capacity Ratio and then click Apply to update the plots. The resulting plots are shown in

Figure 10.24. The pier cap results and the maximum results from the remaining limit states can

be shown in a similar manner.

Figure 10.24 Plots for Pier Columns, Maximum Combination in STRENGTH-I Limit
State

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 Looking at the load combination equation at the top of the screen reveals that the

maximum result occurred in Load Combination 2. Notice that the second Live Load case (LL2)

produced the maximum result.

Interaction diagrams and the 3D displaced shape can be viewed as well.

This concludes Example 10.

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 11. MULTIPLE SOIL SETS

Shown in Figure 11.1 is the bridge pier with geometry and soil conditions, which was

modeled in Example 2. The problem represents a navigable waterway crossing, which involves

both lateral and axial loads. The foundation consists of 6-54 inch drilled shafts (80 ft long), and

two pier columns which are 30 ft tall, 5 ft square and spaced 16 ft apart. The pier cap is 4 ft thick

and the drilled shaft cap is 10 ft. Due to localized and accelerated scour, the sand surface is located

from 25 ft to 15 ft below mean sea level, and the soft rock is characterized as FHWA's intermediate

geomaterial (IGM).

12’ 12’ 12’

10’
14'
16' 30'

20' 15'
25' Water

Sand N = 35
80' 30' 90' 45'
γt = 120 pcf k = 150 pci

Soft Rock,
γt = 140 pcf Cu=2.8ksi
qt=0.28ksi 30'
ε50 = 1%

Figure 11.1 Example 2, Pier Structure

Because of fractures in the rock, two of the drilled shafts are embedded into a rock socket that

begins 10 ft below the other sockets. These two shafts are also 10 ft longer. The properties of

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 the sand and rock are given in Figure 11.1.

To begin, select Open from the File menu and choose the Example2.in file. The example

problem is shown below in Figure 11.2. Before making any changes to this file, select Save As

from the File menu to save the problem under a different name. Call this new file Example11.in.

Figure 11.2 Example 11, Pier Structure

Most of the work in this example involves creating soil sets to model the local scour

condition and an additional pile set to model the deeper rock socket. The remaining model

properties will be left as specified in Example 2 for later comparison of the results.

Each soil set can have a unique soil strata, including different soil layer elevations. Soil sets

are ideal for modeling changes in the soil layers across a pile group. In the FB-MultiPier program,

each soil set is connected to one of more piles/shafts and by default all piles/shafts belong to the

first soil set. The current program limitation on the number of soil sets is 20.

This example problem will use three soil sets to model the local scour conditions. The first

soil set will be used for the bottom of row shafts, where the free standing length is 25 ft due to

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 accelerated local scour. The second set will be used for the middle row of shafts where, the free

standing length is 20 ft. The final soil set will be used to model the top row of shafts, where is free

standing length is 15 feet and the soft rock layer begins at a deeper elevation.

Soil sets are created and edited in the Soil page. Click there now. The parameters for the

first soil set are shown by default. In this example, the only value that needs to be changed is the

Top of Layer Elevation. Change this value to -25ft to model the accelerated scour, as shown in

Figure 11.3. Soil layers could be added, removed, and modified as well although it is not required

in this example.

Figure 11.3 Changing Top Layer Elevation to -25ft

The Soil Set dropdown list currently shows “Set 1” and “Add Set.” Select “Add Set” to

create the second soil set as shown in Figure 11.4. Click “OK” in the message box to confirm

adding a new soil set. When a new soil set is added, all of the properties from the previous soil

set are copied to the new soil set. In this example, only the Top of Layer Elevations needs to be

changed for the second soil set. Enter -20ft as shown in Figure 11.5.

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 Figure 11.4 Adding a New Soil Set

Figure 11.5 Changing Top Layer Elevation to -20ft, Soil Set 2

The Soil Set dropdown list currently shows “Set 1”, “Set 2”, and “Add Set.” Select “Add Set”

again to create the third soil set. Click “OK” in the message box to confirm adding a new soil set.

Change the Top of Layer Elevation to -15ft and the Bottom of Layer Elevation to -60ft to model

the increasing depth of the sand layer. The elevation changes are shown in Figure 11.6.

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 Figure 11.6 Changing Layer Elevations, Soil Set 3

The soil rock layer elevations also need to be adjusted. Select “Layer 2” from the Soil Layer

dropdown list or click on the rock layer in the Soil Edit window. Change the Bottom of Layer

Elevation to -100ft to model the deeper rock layer as shown in Figure 11.7.

Figure 11.7 Changing Rock Layer Elevations, Soil Set 3

The soil sets can be now be assigned to the shafts. Right click the mouse in the Pile Edit

window to view the popup menu options. Select “Assign Soil Sets to Piles” from the menu. The

Pile Edit window now shows the soil boundaries for each shaft (Figure 11.8). The boundaries are

always set at half the distance between coordinates. The number in each translucent soil block

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 indicates the soil set for that pile. Although the values are not used in the analysis, missing piles

are also assigned a soil set for 3D visualization purposes.

Figure 11.8 Assigning Soil Sets

Clicking inside a soil block increments the soil set number. The number cycles back to 1

when all of the soil sets have been viewed. Notice that each soil set is shown with a unique hatch

pattern. For this example, click once on each soil block in the 3 middle row of blocks to assign soil

set 2. Click on each soil block twice in the 3 top rows of blocks to assigned soil set 3. When done,

the Pile Edit window should look as shown in Figure 11.9. Notice also, that the 3D View window

is automatically updated to show the application of the soil sets.

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 Figure 11.9 Assigning Soil Sets 2 and 3

The second pile set can now be defined after creating all of the necessary soil sets. To do

so, first click on the Pile page and then click the Edit button under “Edit Cross Section”. In the Full

Cross-Section Pile Properties dialog, click the “Add” button in the Pile Type Info section in the

upper left hand corner. Once the new pile set has been added, enter 90ft for the Section Length

as shown in Figure 11.10. The shaft in the second pile set will be used in conjunction with the

deeper rock layer defined in soil set 3. Click OK to apply the changes and close the dialog box.

The final step in the model process is to assign the new pile set to the correct shafts. In

this example, the last row of shafts will be modeled using pile set 2. Right click the mouse in the

Pile Edit window and select “Pile Data/Batter.” Click on shaft 3. In the Pile Data dialog box, select

“Type 2” from the Pile Type dropdown list as shown in Figure 11.11. Notice that the soil set can

also be assigned in this dialog box. Next, click on shaft 6 and again select “Type 2” from the Pile

Set Info dropdown list. Click “OK” when done. The Pile Edit window should now look like Figure

11.12, with a pattern to indicate the shafts that belong to the second pile set.
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 Figure 11.10 Creating Pile Type 2

Figure 11.11 Assign Pile Type 2 to Shaft 3

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 Figure 11.12 Pile Edit Window with Multiple Pile Sets

This concludes the model portion of the example. Click on the “Analyze” button in the

toolbar to run the analysis with the new scour conditions. After the analysis converges to a

solution, click on the Pile Result toolbar button. Select shaft 3 and the plot settings shown in

Figure 11.13. Click “Apply” to update the plots.

Figure 11.13 Shaft 3 Results

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 For comparison, the results from Example 2 are shown in Figure 11.14. Notice that the

demand/capacity ratio has increased from 0.803 to 0.903 due to the accelerated scour and deeper

rock socket for shaft 3. Other conclusions can also be drawn.

Figure 11.13 Shaft 3 Results (Example 2)

This concludes Example 11.

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 12. PRELOADING AND APPLIED DISPLACEMENTS

Shown in Figure 12.1 is the default pile group problem that is loaded when creating a

new Pile and Cap Only problem. The 2x2 pile group consists of 4 piles spaced at three pile

diameters (3d). The weight of the pile cap will be applied equally to the four piles using the preload

case. This load is meant to exist before any load cases are applied. The first load case is used to

model a differential pile head settlement that occurs after the construction of the pile group due

to a mischaracterization of the soil layer properties. The left row of piles settles 1.5 inches and the

right row settles 1 inch. The goal of this example is to determine the effect of the settlement on

the piles.

20 kip preload
(on each pile)

1.5 in 1 in
settlement settlement
10ft

Sand
15ft
φ = 32ο
γt = 109 pcf

Sand
φ = 35ο 42.5ft
γt = 119 pcf

Figure 12.1 2x2 Pile Group

To begin, select New from the File menu, select Pile and Cap, and click OK. The default pile

group problem is shown below in Figure 12.2. Most of the work in this example involves entering

the load cases for the pile group. The remaining problem parameters will remain the same.

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 Figure 12.2 Default Pile Group

In this example, the preload case will be used to model the weight of the pile cap. Before

applying the preload, it is important to explain the analytical technique used to model preloading.

In the preloading phase, all of the loads in the preload case are applied to the undeformed model

and the analysis proceeds until an equilibrium solution is obtained. If equilibrium is achieved, the

first load case is then applied to the model, starting from the equilibrium position, and the analysis

continues until convergence is reached. This means that the final converged result has load effects

and displacements that are additive. The procedure is repeated for each load case. If convergence

is not achieved in the preloading phase or during any load cases, the analysis ends.

Click on the Load page. The preload case is not turned on by default. Click the Preload buton

under the Load Case list and check the “Include Preload” checkbox to turn on preloading. Now

select Preload from the Load Case list and notice that the preload case will start with a nodal load

at Node 1, enter 20 kips for the Z Load. Add a Nodal loadfor Node 2. This new nodal location will

copy the load data from Node 1. Repeat to add loads for Nodes 2, 3, and 4. When done, the Load

tab should look like Figure 12.3.

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 Figure 12.3 Preload Case

The settlement load case can now be created. Click on “Load Case 1” and delete the

existing nodal loads. Click on Node 1 in the 3D View window (or select the Node# in the load tab

using the up/down arrows). Click the “Add” button to add a nodal load to Node 1. Next, click the

“Prescribed Displacement” checkbox to indicate that this load is an applied displacement rather

than a force. Enter 1.5 inches for the Z Load. Do the same for Node 3. Finally, apply 1 inch

displacements to Node 2 and 4. This will create the differential settlement imposed in the example.

When done the Load page should look like Figure 12.4.

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 Figure 12.4 Settlement Case

This completes the modeling phase of the example. Save this problem as Example12.in.

Click the Analysis toolbar button to analyze the pile group under the given loads. After

convergence is achieved, click on the Pile Results toolbar button to view the force results for the

piles. Select Piles 1 and 2 in the Pile Selection window. Select the plot options shown in Figure

12.5 and click Redraw Curves to update the plots. Notice that the Demand/Capacity Ratio for Pile

1 is 0.537, indicating that the pile is load to 54% of its capacity.

FB-MULTIPIER USERS
 Figure 12.5 Pile Results After Settlement

Click on the 3D Results toolbar button to view the deformed shape of the pile group. There

are two items to notice on this screen as shown in Figure 12.6. First, the effect of the differential

settlement is pronounced and shows a rotated pile cap. Second, notice that the displacement at

Node 1 is not exactly 2 inches. This is due to the fact that the preload displacement is added to

the applied displacement (1.5 inches) to get the final displacement.

FB-MULTIPIER USERS
 Figure 12.6 Deformed Shape of Pile Group After Settlement

This concludes Example 12.

FB-MULTIPIER USERS