Addressing Kinematic Pile Bending Design Requirements in the International Building Code

The passage of vertically propagating shear waves through soil during earthquakes subjects embedded piles to curvature and subsequent bending. This effect, often referred to as kinematic pile bending, has been studied in the engineering literature for over four decades but only recently has its evaluation become a design requirement in the 2006 International Building Code (IBC). In this paper, the kinematic pile bending phenomenon is explained, pile performance during earthquakes is reviewed, and the requirements in the 2006 IBC for the evaluation of kinematic pile bending effects are discussed. The analytical techniques available to engineers for evaluating kinematic pile bending are compared, with additional explanation of the pseudostatic method, which is practical and economical for most routine engineering applications. Two pile design case studies using the pseudostatic method are presented and the implications of the kinematic pile bending evaluation to the pile design are examined. This paper aims to raise awareness among practicing engineers, reviewing agencies and owners of this relatively new building code design requirement and to suggest a practical analytical procedure for addressing the requirement. ABSTRACT: The passage of vertically propagating shear waves through soil during earthquakes subjects embedded piles to curvature and subsequent bending. This effect, often referred to as kinematic pile bending, has been studied in the engineering literature for over four decades but only recently has its evaluation become a design requirement in the 2006 International Building Code (IBC). In this paper, the kinematic pile bending phenomenon is explained, pile performance during earthquakes is reviewed, and the requirements in the 2006 IBC for the evaluation of kinematic pile bending effects are discussed. The analytical techniques available to engineers for evaluating kinematic pile bending are compared, with additional explanation of the pseudostatic method, which is practical and economical for most routine engineering applications. Two pile design case studies using the pseudostatic method are presented and the implications of the kinematic pile bending evaluation to the pile design are examined. This paper aims to raise awareness among practicing engineers, reviewing agencies and owners of this relatively new building code design requirement and to suggest a practical analytical procedure for addressing the