A new analytical method is presented to determine the effects of cyclic loading on laterally loaded piles. The method uses a new numerical procedure to quantify the effects of the cyclic loading at each soil depth and convert that to a set of cyclic p-y modifiers. The reduced foundation stiffness associated with the cyclic loading can be determined, including the residual static capacity and an estimate of the accumulated displacement. The new method introduces the concept of cyclic degradation damage, which is defined as sum of the cyclic degradation that is occurring at each soil depth. Cyclic degradation calculations are based on the shear stresses in the soil. Consequently, anything that causes the shear stresses to change (e.g. pile length, pile diameter, applied loading, etc.) will automatically be included in the calculation of cyclic p-y modifiers. The method has been validated by comparing the cyclic p-y curves produced using the new method with established cyclic p-y curves derived from fielding testing. The new method has also been used to investigate what happens to the cyclic p-y modifiers as one moves away from the reference conditions used to determine the established cyclic p-y curves in API RP2A (2000). The new method shows that every application (e.g. combination of cyclic loading, pile properties, and soil characteristics) has its own unique set of cyclic p-y curves, though most p-y curves fit within an upper and lower bound range. Examples are provided for large diameter monopiles.
3D FEM approach for laterally loaded monopile design