Application of steel-concrete composite pile foundation system as energy storage medium

Feasibility studies of a reinforced concrete (RC) deep pile foundation system with the compressed air energy storage (CAES) technology were conducted in previous studies. However, those studies showed some technical limitations in its serviceability and durability performances. To overcome such drawbacks of the conventional RC energy pile system, various steel-concrete composite pile foundations are addressed in this study to be utilized as a dual functional system for an energy storage medium and load-resistant foundation. This study conducts finite element analyses to examine the applicability of various composite energy pile foundation systems considering the combined effects of structural loading, soil boundary forces, and internal air pressures induced by the thermos-dynamic cycle of compressed air. On this basis, it was clearly confirmed that the role of inner and outer tubes is essential in terms of reliable storage tank and better constructability of pile, respectively, and the steel tubes in the composite pile foundation can also ensure improved serviceability and durability performances compared to the conventional RC pile system.