The geotechnical centrifuge in offshore engineering
One of the greatest needs in offshore geotechnical engineering is for large scale test measurements on which to calibrate design procedures. The geotechnical centrifuge offers at least a partial remedy. Because it allows one to properly simulate stresses, it is a legitimate, relatively inexpensive option to full scale field testing. As such it is a valuable technique and can be an excellent complement to laboratory tests, 1-g model tests and numerical analyses. However, it has not been widely used by industry even though the capability has existed for almost thirty years. This paper argues that this technology should gain acceptance beyond the research community. The paper presents an overview of centrifuge principles, philosophies of use, and limitations of the technique. For illustration, several actual applications of centrifuge testing for complex offshore problems are described. Results are shown to provide important insights into prototype behavior and to agree well with full scale measurements where these are available.
- OSTI ID:
- 413554
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-960525-; TRN: IM9702%%330
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 28. offshore technology conference, Houston, TX (United States), 6-9 May 1996; Other Information: PBD: 1996; Related Information: Is Part Of 28. annual offshore technology conference: Proceedings. Volume 1: Geology, earth sciences and environmental factors; PB: 689 p.
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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