Dynamic Effects of Pile Installations on Adjacent Structures

TRB's National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Synthesis 253: Dynamic Effects of Pile Installations on Adjacent Structures will be of interest to state department of transportation geotechnical, bridge, and structural engineers, engineering geologists, vibration monitoring consultants, contractors involved with pile driving, and researchers. It describes the current state of the practice for preventing and assessing damage to structures adjacent to pile driving installations. This was accomplished by conducting a literature search and review and an extensive survey of U. S. and Canadian transportation agencies and practitioners, as well as limited international information collection. This report of the Transportation Research Board presents information on the theory of ground motion and vibrations due to pile installations, vibration mitigation measures, and the consequences of groundborne vibrations. Additional detailed information on instrumentation used for vibration measurement and the management of vibrations is also included. The appendices include a bibliography, a primer on pile support mechanisms related to pile driving vibrations, several examples of existing agency vibration specifications and contract wording, and an example vibration specification from the literature.