DFI Committee Project Fund
The DFI Board of Trustees established the DFI Committee Project Fund in 2011 to fund DFI Technical Committee projects that advance the state of practice and understanding of deep foundations and produce a usable deliverable. The fund has generated great interest, discussion and activity in the committees. Funding has supported projects proposed by 17 technical committees, and deliverables include laboratory/field testing, installation/demonstration programs, analytical tools, design guides, journal articles, project reports, databases and surveys. All projects involved significant in-kind contributions or joint funding with allied associations, furthering DFI’s industry-wide collaborative efforts.
Proposals are selected based on the following criteria:
- Benefits to deep foundations industry (broad impact)
- Innovation
- Timeliness/relevance/immediacy of impact from results
- Quality of proposal (clarity, focus)
- Value of deliverable
- Probability of achieving goal
- Cost/benefit and cost sharing (matching funding, in-kind contributions)
Request for Proposals for the 2022 DFI Committee Project Fund are open. The deadline for submission is December 1, 2021.
Completed Projects
DFI of India
Implementation of CFA/ACIP Pile technology in India including demonstration program.
$30,000
Anchored Earth Retention
Website to provide guidance for developing standards and specifications for tiebacks and soil nailing in Peru.
$500
Currently under construction
Analysis of anchor load test data to determine potential limitations of 80% anchor unbonded length criterion.
$26,400
Slurry Wall
Consensus guidelines for design and detailing of reinforced concrete diaphragm walls used as permanent basement walls in regions of high seismicity.
$20,000
Outlines basic design and construction for structural slurry walls, including an overview of types of slurry walls, design and construction considerations, detailing, quality assurance and control, and advantages and limitations.
Driven Pile
Update to the Concrete Reinforcing Steel Institute (CRSI) Design Guide for Pile Caps.
$15,000
Ground Improvement
Survey and synthesis of liquefaction mitigation practices including selection and implementation of ground improvement techniques.
$15,000
Marine Foundations
Study of factors that influence vibrodriveability, pile behavior and axial and lateral capacities of vibratory and impact driven piles.
$28,000
Ground Improvement and ACIP Piles
Conducting 3D finite element analyses to evaluate lateral loading of unreinforced rigid elements and basal stability of column-supported systems, calibrated to a real life MSE project.
$33,380
Micropiles
Literature review and practitioner survey on state of practice for design and construction and research needs for reticulated micropile network info.
$15,300
Augered Cast-in-Place Pile
Soil Mixing
Proposed Research on the Effect of Curing Stresses on soil cement strength.
$28,500
Laboratory study of strength and deformation properties of soil-cement mixtures and appropriate laboratory procedures.
$29,940
Landslides/ Slope Stabilization
Report on update to strain wedge model technique used for analyzing slopes stabilized with one row of piles.
$13,800
Develop a simplified approach to the analysis of lateral loads on A-Walls.
$29,910
Seismic and Lateral Loads
Develop revised procedures for design of inelastic behavior of bridge pile foundations under combined liquefaction-induced lateral spreading and superstructure inertia.
$30,000
Helical Piles and Tiebacks
Literature review and practitioner survey on design and construction practices for helical piles and tiebacks.
Development of Design Recommendations for Helical Pile Anchorages Subjected to Cyclic Load Reversals.
$27,210
International Grouting
Grouting Summary of Main Standards and Guidelines on Grouting Available in North America and Europe
Summarizes the main standards and guidelines, different approaches, methods and tools used internationally, and standard practice requirements for qualifications, materials, equipment, testing, and production procedures.
Project Information Management Systems
Based on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers PIMS specification, this version provides generic specification language and commentary for project information management systems including recent technological developments.
Sustainability
EFFC-DFI Carbon Calculator
The EFFC and DFI have created a tool that will calculate the CO2 emissions of foundation and geotechnical works. It is designed to allow contractors and commissioning organisations alike to assess the carbon footprint of their projects.
Projects in Progress
| Committee | Project | DFI Funding |
|---|---|---|
| ACIP Piles | Literature study, fabrication of small scale drilled displacement pile tool, small scale testing and evaluation of data. | $26,100 |
| ACIP Piles | Evaluation of In-Situ ACIP Pile Volume through Thermal Integrity Profiling. | $10,000 |
| Anchored Earth Retention | Creep testing of various diameter bars and comparison of results with bars that confirm to ASTM A722 to assess if creep characteristics should be considered in evaluating proof/performance test acceptance criteria. | $19,525 |
| BIM and Digitalisation | Conduct workshop and develop guidance document that provides better understanding of the application of BIM and digitalisation in geotechnical industry. | $10,200 |
| Drilled Shaft | Correlation of parameters of soil resistance functions and statistical assessment of variability of p-y formulations. | $29,000 |
| Drilled Shaft | Shear Magnification in Rock-Socketed Piles – Part 2: Numerical and Parametric | $30,000 |
| Drilled Shaft Seismic and Lateral Loads | Combined Effects of Lateral Spreading and Superstructure Inertia | $29,999 |
| Ground Improvement, Seismic and Lateral Loads, and ACIP Piles and DD Piles | Seismic Performance of Rigid Inclusions | $30,000 |
| Helical Piles and Tiebacks, Driven Pile, and Seismic and Lateral Loads | Small scale shake table testing and analyses to validate large scale shake table tests conducted through Helical Seismic Research Project. | $20,000 |
| International Grouting | DIGGS Scheme for Rock Grouting Data Transfer | $27,500 |
| Landslides/ Slope Stabilization | Researchers will compare limit equilibrium and advanced numerical methods for slopes reinforced with stabilizing piles. | $13,500 |
| Landslides and Slope Stabilization and Anchored Earth Retention | Evaluate probabilistic stability analysis to evaluate how factoring structural resistance affects system reliability and develop consensus guidance for appropriate consideration of structural resistance for slope stabilization. | $29,650 |
| Micropiles | Proposed method for design of bonded connections of micropiles to existing footings. | $29,500 |
| Seismic and Lateral Loads | Evaluate experimental evidence for a brittle response in rock p-y curves through review of lateral load test data and 3-D numerical analyses. | $29,990 |
| Soil Mixing | Continued Research on the Effect of Curing Stress | $29,700 |
| Testing and Evaluation | Comparing CSL and Thermal Integrity Profiling Test Data on Drilled Shafts with Known Defects. | $30,000 |