Response to FDOT Report on ICP PHC Piles

 

Pretensioned Spun Concrete Piles (ICP PHC Piles) have been widely used in Malaysia for the past thirty years. Japan is the pioneer in this industry where it has more than forty years of history behind them. In addition, almost all reinforced concrete piles in Korea, Taiwan and Thailand have been replaced with PHC spun concrete piles. China, being a newcomer since early 1980’s, consumed 40 million ton of PHC spun concrete piles in 2003. The piles are part of foundation systems for bridges, all types of buildings, power plants, petrochemical and other heavy industry plants, marine structures, piled embankments and many more. Currently, most consulting engineers are confident in specifying this pile in their designs.

 

Not surprisingly, due to its excellent durability, high strength and economy in use, ICP PHC Piles have made inroads into several other Asian countries and also to North America. This product was subsequently tested by Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) and a report written by Mr. Thomas E. Beitelman, was released and can be accessed via internet. The report raised the author’s concerns on the usage of Pretensioned Spun Concrete Piles in marine environment, i.e. at coastal areas. The reasons given are as follows:-

 

i)                Lack of concrete cover of the piles

ii)              Effect of spot weld on prestressing bars

iii)            Crack width of more than 0.005 inch (0.127 mm) during static flexural test.

 

As the producers of ICP PHC Piles and the trademark owner of ICP, we would like to address the concerns of Mr Beitelman, as follows:-

 

1)     Lack of Concrete Cover of the Piles.

 

Due to spinning effect used in the process and usage of low water cement ratio of 0.3, the concrete of ICP PHC Piles is very dense and well compacted. Hence, the piles are very durable and have high resistance to corrosion. The piles are highly suitable for projects in coastal areas. These piles were used in many ports and jetties around the world. However, if a project requires thicker concrete cover, bigger sizes of ICP PHC Piles can be chosen. Bigger diameter ICP Piles (dia. 500 mm up to 1200 mm) can provide thicker concrete cover of 50 mm and more.

 

In addition to the above, Rapid Chloride Permeability Tests according to ASTM C1202 have been performed on concrete core samples obtained from ICP Piles to determine its permeability characteristic. The results of the cores taken from piles manufactured using ordinary Portland cement blended with pulverized fuel ash (pfa) were very good. The charges passing were recorded below 1000 coulombs. According to ASTM C1202, these samples are classified as ‘very low” chloride permeability. This reaffirms that ICP PHC Piles are suitable for use in the marine environment.