An Efficient Hydrodynamic Force Calculation Method for Pile Caps with Arbitrary Cross-Sections Under Earthquake Based on Finite Element Method

The pile group-pile cap structure is a key foundation form for deep-water bridges. However, current effective methods for calculating the earthquake-induced hydrodynamic forces on pile caps with arbitrary cross-sections remain insufficient. In this study, the hydrodynamic force is considered as the...

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Main Authors: Wen Zhang, Shizhou Xiao, Xiaokun Geng, Wanli Yang, Yifei Xu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-07-01
Series:Eng
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2673-4117/6/7/167
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author Wen Zhang
Shizhou Xiao
Xiaokun Geng
Wanli Yang
Yifei Xu
author_facet Wen Zhang
Shizhou Xiao
Xiaokun Geng
Wanli Yang
Yifei Xu
author_sort Wen Zhang
collection DOAJ
description The pile group-pile cap structure is a key foundation form for deep-water bridges. However, current effective methods for calculating the earthquake-induced hydrodynamic forces on pile caps with arbitrary cross-sections remain insufficient. In this study, the hydrodynamic force is considered as the added mass, and the dynamic equilibrium equations of the isolated pile cap structure (IC model) and the pile group-pile cap structure (PC model) under earthquakes are established, respectively, based on the structural dynamics theory. Correspondingly, the relationships between the hydrodynamic added masses and the fundamental frequencies in the IC model and the PC model are derived, respectively. The fundamental frequencies of the IC model and the PC model are obtained by numerical models built with the ABAQUS (2019) finite element software, and then the added masses on the IC and PC models are calculated accurately. The calculation method proposed in this study avoids the complex fluid–structure interaction problem, which can be applied for the seismic design of deep-water bridge substructures in real practice.
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id doaj-art-acf532d1feaa44a7b37fa29b6f2ce861
institution DOAJ
issn 2673-4117
language English
publishDate 2025-07-01
publisher MDPI AG
record_format Article
series Eng
spelling doaj-art-acf532d1feaa44a7b37fa29b6f2ce8612025-08-20T03:08:09ZengMDPI AGEng2673-41172025-07-016716710.3390/eng6070167An Efficient Hydrodynamic Force Calculation Method for Pile Caps with Arbitrary Cross-Sections Under Earthquake Based on Finite Element MethodWen Zhang0Shizhou Xiao1Xiaokun Geng2Wanli Yang3Yifei Xu4School of Civil Engineering, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu 610031, ChinaChina Road & Bridge Corporation, Beijing 100010, ChinaSchool of Civil Engineering, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu 610031, ChinaSchool of Civil Engineering, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu 610031, ChinaSichuan Communication Surveying and Design Institute Co., Ltd., Chengdu 610017, ChinaThe pile group-pile cap structure is a key foundation form for deep-water bridges. However, current effective methods for calculating the earthquake-induced hydrodynamic forces on pile caps with arbitrary cross-sections remain insufficient. In this study, the hydrodynamic force is considered as the added mass, and the dynamic equilibrium equations of the isolated pile cap structure (IC model) and the pile group-pile cap structure (PC model) under earthquakes are established, respectively, based on the structural dynamics theory. Correspondingly, the relationships between the hydrodynamic added masses and the fundamental frequencies in the IC model and the PC model are derived, respectively. The fundamental frequencies of the IC model and the PC model are obtained by numerical models built with the ABAQUS (2019) finite element software, and then the added masses on the IC and PC models are calculated accurately. The calculation method proposed in this study avoids the complex fluid–structure interaction problem, which can be applied for the seismic design of deep-water bridge substructures in real practice.https://www.mdpi.com/2673-4117/6/7/167pile group-pile cap structureearthquakehydrodynamic forcedynamic equilibrium equationsfinite element method
spellingShingle Wen Zhang
Shizhou Xiao
Xiaokun Geng
Wanli Yang
Yifei Xu
An Efficient Hydrodynamic Force Calculation Method for Pile Caps with Arbitrary Cross-Sections Under Earthquake Based on Finite Element Method
Eng
pile group-pile cap structure
earthquake
hydrodynamic force
dynamic equilibrium equations
finite element method
title An Efficient Hydrodynamic Force Calculation Method for Pile Caps with Arbitrary Cross-Sections Under Earthquake Based on Finite Element Method
title_full An Efficient Hydrodynamic Force Calculation Method for Pile Caps with Arbitrary Cross-Sections Under Earthquake Based on Finite Element Method
title_fullStr An Efficient Hydrodynamic Force Calculation Method for Pile Caps with Arbitrary Cross-Sections Under Earthquake Based on Finite Element Method
title_full_unstemmed An Efficient Hydrodynamic Force Calculation Method for Pile Caps with Arbitrary Cross-Sections Under Earthquake Based on Finite Element Method
title_short An Efficient Hydrodynamic Force Calculation Method for Pile Caps with Arbitrary Cross-Sections Under Earthquake Based on Finite Element Method
title_sort efficient hydrodynamic force calculation method for pile caps with arbitrary cross sections under earthquake based on finite element method
topic pile group-pile cap structure
earthquake
hydrodynamic force
dynamic equilibrium equations
finite element method
url https://www.mdpi.com/2673-4117/6/7/167
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