th

Proceedings of Slope 2015, September 27-30 2015

BEHAVIOR OF PILES IN LANDSLIDES AND SLOPE PROTECTION

Paulus P. Rahardjo 1, Aris Handoko 2, Adityaputera Wirawan 3 and Petrus C. S. Santoso 3

ABSTRACT: Piles have been used to stabilize slopes in landslides occurance and for
slope protection during construction of an embankment or an excavation or to increase
the stability of a slope in the critical condition that has caused the slopes to move, to
avoid further failures. A number of theories have been proposed (Poulos 2012) and
efforts have been made to analyse pile behavior by 2D and 3D finite element method
(Rahardjo, 2012), however the real behavior of the piles seldom measured. The main
concern is generally on the increase of safety factor of a slope due to pile installation.
This paper discuss the pile behavior in terms of pile deflections and shear forces or
moments calculated from the measured pile movements. Six case histories are used for
illustration, (1) piles used for protection of excavation, (2) piles used for foundation of bridge abutment, (3) piles
used to increase slope stability in landslides area, (4) piles used for protection of embankment near failure due to
reactivaed landslides, (5) Piles used for foundation of pipes in landslides area and (6) piles used for protection
and substitute of bridge foundation in landslides area.
In a number of slope stabilization projects, Rahardjo et al (2011, 2012) have shown how piles behaved using
embedded inclinometers inside the piles from time to time due to subsequent movement of pile stabilised slopes.
Also, in deep excavation, piles have been used and instrumented. Piles behavior were then can be observed and
the forces acting in the piles can be calculated as excavation progresses. Another interesting subjects are the
observations of piles in bridge abutment. Quite often the piles fail due to backfilling behind the abutments where
the foundation soils are soft. In a recent landslides in west Java, the author has used large boredpiles to support
foundation of steam pipes, where 9 bored piles are instrumented and being abserved. In most cases the design
and analysis are conducted using 3D finite element method to model the effect of ground movement to the piles.
In summary the use of piles for slope stabilisations is effective as long as there is sufficient fixity at the lower
soils layer and based on many observation from case histories, piles being used in unstable slopes or for slope
protection need to be monitored as part of warning system. Most effective observation is by using inclinometers
embedded in the piles. They can serve as indication of slope safety. Piles used to restraint debris flow shall be
sufficiently stiff to avoid significant movement. The study shows that the debris will flow surrounding the piles
and the piles movement should be limited.

Keywords: Slope stability, Finite Element Analysis, piles in landslides area

INTRODUCTION behavior are seldom verified by real measurements.

The use of piles for counter measures of
landslides and protection of slopes have been very
common and well acknowledged. The prediction of
the piles’ behavior by analytical and numerical
methods are normally conducted based on
assumption or charts such as developed by Poulos
and Davis (1980). However, in reality these
This paper discusses case histories of the
observation of piles in moving ground through real
projects from the results of measurement of pile
behavior mainly by use of inclinometers embedded
in the pile and the numerical method used in piles
for landslides control as well as in slope protection.

1
Professor, Civil Engineering Department, Parahyangan Catholic University, Bandung, INDONESIA,
rahardjo.paulus@gmail.com
2
Geotechnical Engineer, PT. Geotechnical Engineering Consultant, Bandung, INDONESIA
3
Engineer PT. Geotechnical Engineering Consultant, Graduate Student Parahyangan Catholic University, Bandung,
INDONESIA

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 These piles have been installed after the
landslides or previously designed to increase slope
safety in a construction phase. Landslides and man
made slopes failures are not identical. However,
they have similarity in the sense that both correlate
to the shear stress mobilised by geometry or change
in geometry of the land and the shear strength of
the soils. The first one being the driving force and
the second one is the resisting force. Landslides or
slope failures are caused by the fact that the driving
force has exceeded the resisting force. Safety factor
is commonly used to describe the ratio between the
resisting force and the driving force. Piles have
been used both in landslides and slope protection,
where the purpose of the piles is directly related to
the additional resisting force.
In most cases, the analysis of piles to stabilize
slope is related to the increasing safety factors. But,
the meaning of calculated safety factor may not be
realistic because failure in the model is not always
in the same mode as failure in the actual cases.
Frequently the piles could have failed due to large
lateral movement. In 2D finite element analysis
this situation is not accurate such as shown by
Santoso et al (2015) because the piles are actually
modelled as a plate. Although the safety factor may
be calculated, the main mechanism can not be well
modelled since there are significant differences in
pile stiffness and soil stiffness. In condition where
piles are used in debris flow, the soil debris might
flow surrounding the piles. In such cases, 3D finite
element analysis is required where the behavior of
the piles can be more realistically modelled if the
debris are allowed to move around the piles. The
debris will move larger than the piles.
Assuming certain movement of the soils at
certain distance behind the piles as those modelled
by Poulos may not be realistic either for modelling
piles in landslides. The reason is, the movement
may not be identical as those in reality. In fact the
soil movement is a function of the slope inclination,
the stiffness of the moving soils, the relative
rigidity of the piles against the soils, size of piles
and the distance betwen piles. Other factor that
must be considered is the degree of fixity of the
piles into the ground. To verify such assumption,
there must be measurement of the ground and the
piles at the same time, i.e., at least the inclinometers
must be installed in the piles and in the ground
nearby.
There are five cases where piles behavior have
been predicted and or measured for illustration in
this paper, all of them are based on experience of
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the authors in some projects where the authors have
been involved.
The five cases include the uses of piles (1) for
protection of excavation, (2) for foundations of
bridge abutment where soil under the abutment
might move during backfilling of the embankment,
(3) for landslides counter measures, (4) for control
of ground movement and increasing stability of
embankment on sliding ground and (5) for the
protection and substitute of bridge foundation or
pipe support in landslides area. Although these are
not the only cases of the use of piles in landslides
and slope protection, the five cases are the most
common found in civil engineering infrastructure
projects.
MEASUREMENT OF PILE BEHAVIOR USING
INCLINOMETER EMBEDED INTO THE PILES
A simple method of pile behavior in stabilizing
slope is measuring the pile top movement using
theodolite. However this measurement is lack of
accuracy due to the fact that it can not be used to
observed movement below the ground.
Pile behavior may be better measured using
inclinometers embedded into the piles during pile
installation. Basically it is assumed that the
deflection of the piles will be automatically
represented by the deviation of the inclinometers.
The measurement can be done from time to time
during construction or during the course of the
slope movement.
In bored piles, the inclinometer is attached at
the rebars when the rebars are lowered into the
drilling hole. Figure 1 shows this application where
in inclinometer is being installed and attached with
the rebar. For spun piles or steel pipe piles, the
inclinometer is inserted after the piles are driven
and then the space between the piles and the
inclinometer shall be backfilled with bentonite
cement or concrete of low quality such as lean
concrete. When using solid piles like precast square
driven piles, such technology is not applicable.
Figure 2 shows typical data of inclinometer
embeded in soldier piles. Where the lateral
movement measured by inclinometer is practically
interpreted as movement of the bored pile.
The first step is to read the initial reading of the
inclinometers. The initial reading means the
position of the inclinometers prior to any changes
or movement. The movement of the inclinometers
then can be measured using inclinometers’ probe
inserted into the inclinometer tube. Based on the
deflection of the inclinometers, the shear forces and
bending moments can be estimated using simple
formula based on finite difference method.
Figure 3 shows how deflection is defined in a
beam. Similarly this can also be used for piles.
Figure 1. Inclinometer being installed in soldier
piles to protect neigbour building during excavation
Figure 2. Inclinometer data embedded into
boredpile (Sovereign Tower Project – South
Jakarta)
Figure 3. Example of deformation of a beam and
the magnitude of slope and forces in differential
form
The derivatives can be approximated in the
form of finite difference method as shown on the
following expression :
dy  y i 1  y i 1 

dx 2x
d y  y i 1  2 y i  y i 1 
2

dx 2 x 2
d 3 y  y i 1  2 y i 1 2 y i 1  y i  2 

dx 3 2x 3
Using the above finite difference approach, the
shear force and the moments can be calculated
based on the pile deflection. Although the
calculation might not be accurate, the authors have
found that this simple formula is very useful when
used for single pile not connected to other piles
such as contiguous bored pile or other structures.
Normally the displacement of the piles are
measured at intervals of 50 cm. In many cases the
reading might not be so smooth and averaging the
deflection is a useful method prior to the
calculation of the forces.
It has to be noted the the validity for the
calculation of the forces is applicable for single
piles, hence for contiguous borepiles such as shown
on Figure 4, the measurement can be done but the
forces does not represent the real forces due to
constraint by adjacent piles. In Diaphgram wall, the
forces are linear to the length perpendicular the
excavated side. Contiguous bored pile might also
adopt the calculation in the diapghragm wall by
using the equivalent stiffness (EA and EI) of the
piles, where EA is the longitudinal stiffess and EI is
the flexural stiffness. I (inertia of cross section) is
known as the power of 4, hence the values are
significant in restraining deformaton.
These calculated shear forces and moments are
important values which can be used for assessment
of the pile capacity whether the shear force or
moment capacity values might have been exceeded.
Sometimes it is also a good tool with regards to the
safety as well as for comparison within the pile
cross section capacity confirming the percentage to
those that has been achieved compared the original
shear or moment capacity in the design stage.
Another use of the data is for comparison between
the designed shear and moment compared to the
actual condition.
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Figure 4. Example of contiguous bored piles for
protection of excavation (Pondok Indah phase II
project, south Jakarta), where inclinometers can be
used to measure pile behavior but estimation of
forces are subject to the assumption of the
equivalent stiffness
(photograph courtecy from Davy Sukamta)
CASE 1 : PILE USED FOR PROTECTION OF
EXCAVATION (SOLDIER PILES)
Common application of soldier piles are in the
protection of excavation for basement mainly in
urban areas. Open cut slopes may not be applicable
due to the existence of the neighbour buildings. The
use of bored piles or soldier piles for this situation
is familiar specially where the water table is low or
the soils are practically impermeable such as clay.
Excavation creates a slope of particular
geometry with tend to cause movement of the
ground due to the increase of shear stresses. The
use of piles as soldier piles are mainly to limit the
movement of the surrounding to protect neigbour
buildings or infrastructures. Where large empty
ground are available, one will choose to make open
cut and backfilled later on, except if the soils are
very soft.
The use of piles to protect excavation could be
in some variety of method depending on the ground
condition and the site conditions, using either one
of bored piles or driven piles. Where the ground are
penetrable and sufficient stiff soils exist below the
ground, the use of driven piles are preferable.
Sometime the piles are installed in combination
with the sheetpiles. Driven piles are commonly
installed with certain distance as soldier piles.
Bored piles are used due to its possibility of
penetrating hardground and the larger size. The
stiffness is significant in terms of its inertia. Bored
piles can be used with certain distance interval (as
soldier piles), or contiguous (with no gap between
piles) or as secant piles (with bentonite cement as
primary piles). When the use of piles is not possible
then the excavation can be protected using
Diagphragm wall or other method.
8-4
Behavior of Boredpiles in Excavation of Medium
to Stiff Soils or Partially Cemented Soils
This kind of soils are generally strong and
excavation can be done in open slope, however
when the excavation is very close to the
neighbouring building, soldier pile shall be used to
limit the movement. Two examples are used for
illustration in the measurement of deflection of free
standing bored piles, both excavation are not
supported by ground anchor, nor by struts. In other
words, the piles was left in free standing and yet
survived with relatively small deflection.
Soldier Piles for Protection of Excavation in South
Jakarta Area
Commonly the soil condition at south Jakarta is
medium to stiff clay at the upper level, only some
situation where the upper layer is soft. In many
situation, when the building is constructed with no
neighbouring building, the excavation can be done
as open cut without protection except surface
protection using shortcrete.
Figure 5 shows exposure of excavation for a
high rise building (Sovereign Tower) at south
Jakarta. Behind excavation is three storey high-
school buiding.The typical soil condition along
Jalan Simatupang is the upper part soft to medium
clay with NSPT 3 – 9 at depth of 5 – 10m. The lower
layer is dense sand or cemented sands and silts.
Depth of excavation is 11 – 12 m and it was
originally designed using soldier piles of 800 mm
diameter and center to center spacing of 1.6 m. The
length of boredpile is 18 – 21 m, hence about 6 – 9
m depth of embedment, supported by 2 layers of
strut. However, upon excavation inside the area, it
was shown that vertical cut of 12 m without
protection could stand firmly. Hence it was decided
that strut will be installed when movement
exceeded 20 mm. In reality the movement was only
6.0 – 10 mm maximum (Figure 2), hence it was left
free standing.
Other project (GKM tower) with similar soil
condition was also conducted at jalan Simatupang,
south Jakarta, with the same depth of excavation
and the same boredpile size. From the drilling holes
conducted at the site, typical soil condition at South
Jakarta was found in the project site. Water table is
located 8 – 10 m below ground surface, hence the
use of soldier piles at certain distance is possible.
The depth of excavation is 12 m. Soldier piles of
diameter 800 mm and spacing from center to center
of 1.6 m hence allowing a gap of 80 cm between
each pile. This time the reinforcement is using soil
nailing at depth of 4.0 m.
 Figure 5. Excavation with soldier piles protection at Souvereign tower, south of Jakarta

There were also inclinometers installed, two

inclinometers in the soils behind the soldier pile
and one embedded in the boredpiles. The deflection
of the inclinometers are shown on Figure 6.
Maximum deflection is about 10 mm in the piles
however in soil, the movement is less (in the order
of 6 mm) due to the confinement by the soldier pile.
Deflection and forces are calculated and subsequent
analysis using Plaxis 2D was conducted. Both the
measurement and the results of back analysis are
shown on the figure.
Figure 6. Instalation of inclinometers inside bored
pile at Souvereign Tower Project

BT 97 Deflection (mm) Shear Force (kN) Moment (kNm)

-15 -10 -5 0 5 10 15 -150 -100 -50 0 50 100 150 -200 -100 0 100 200
0 0 0

5 5 5

10 10 10
Depth (m)

Depth (m)
Depth (m)

15 15 15

20 20 20

Plaxis 2D
Plaxis 2D Plaxis 2D
Inclinometer Inclinometer
Inclinometer 25 25
25

Figure 7. Plot of boredpile deflection, interpreted forces and results of back analysis using FEM

It is interesting to discuss on the comparison and moment) there is differences. At depth of 4 m

between the results of back analysis and the actual where soil nailings were installed, there is an abrupt
measurement. Even though the calculated change in shear due to the reaction at the level of
deflection is similar to the results of measurement, soil nailing. The magnitude of shear at that
however if we look carefully on the forces (shear elevation is 100 kN which is excatly the magnitute

8-5
of reaction calculated by plaxis 2D. However in the
real measurement, this abrupt change does not
exists. The results of calculation show higher
bending moment but the actual measurement is
much less.
Excavation at Central Jakarta
Other projcet similar to the one at south Jakarta
is the use of boredpiles for protection of excavation
in Central Jakarta (Ciputra Stage II project). This is
also freestanding soldier piles to protect 12.5 m
excavation. Boredpiles with 800 mm diameter and
23 m long. The neighbourhood is crowded with
buildings or installation of infrastructure. Seven
inclinometers were installed and monitored from
time to time. Due to the large areas, the excavation
was conducted in stages. Figure 8 shows the
boredpile configuration, Figure 9 shows general
view of the excavation and Figure 10 shows the
geotechnical profile at the project. Figure 11 and
Figure 12 are the inclinometer readings and
interpretation.

Figure 8. Boredpile configuration for Ciputra Stage II project

Figure 9. Soldier pile used for protection of basement excavation in Central Jakarta (Ciputra Stage II project)

8-6
 Figure 10. Soil profile at Ciputra Stage II project

SC 77 Deflection (mm) Increment (mm) Shear Force (kN) Moment (kNm)

-60 -40 -20 0 20 40 60 -1.00 0.00 1.00 2.00 3.00 4.00 -600 -400 -200 0 200 400 600 -1500 -1000 -500 0 500 1000 1500
0 0 0 0

5 5 5 5

10 10 10 10
Depth (m)

Depth (m)
Depth (m)

Depth (m)

15 15 15 15

20 20 20 20

25 25 25 25

Figure 11. Inclinometer reading and interpreted shear forces and bending moment for Ciputra Tower Phase II
project

SC 141 Deflection (mm) Shear Force (kN) Moment (kNm)

-20 -10 0 10 20 -200 -100 0 100 200 -600 -300 0 300 600
0 0 0

5 5 5

10 10 10
Depth (m)

Depth (m)
Depth (m)

15 15 15

20 20 20

25 25 25

Figure 12. Inclinometer reading where the bottom soldier pile were not fixed

8-7
 Some interesting comments and discussion for
the above project is as follows:
There are two different response measured at
the boredpiles. The first one is where the boredpiles
are sufficiently long and the soils firm at the bottom
to offer a perfect fixity of the piles. Such as this can
be seen where the deflection is practically zero.
Figure 11 is good example of this type. The second
response is where the piles at the bottom are not
really fixed as shown on Figure 12.
Figure 11 (SC 77) gives a perfect indication of
the location of sliding even though it is very small.
One can see it from the plot of the slope or
increment of inclinometeer. At this particular
example, the depth of ground slip is about 9 m
which is the boundary where the soil stiffness
change drastically. Similarly soldier pile no SC 141,
there is no such sharp sign. Based on observation of
the 7 inclinometers, the maximum bending
moments interpreted from the deflection. Looking
carefully at the increment (the difference between
displacement of upper and lower points) the
potential sliding plane is indicated as the highest
values (depth 9 m). At this point the value of shear
force is also the highest at the point. However the
bending moment at this point is not maximum,
instead the maximum bending moment is found as
shear is zero.
Excavation with soldier piles protection North
Jakarta area
On the contrary, the soil condition at north
Jakarta is very soft to soft at the upper level. In
most cases the soils are even underconsolidated.
Pore pressure still exist and has caused tilting of a
building in the past (1991).
Figure 13. Excavation with soldier piles protection
at Harco Glodok, north Jakarta
In many situation, the excavation in soft soils
can not be done as open cut without protection. The
following figure shows exposure of excavation for
2 level basement at north Jakarta with very soft to
soft soils. The lower layer is stiff clay and dense
sand at far greater depth about 15 – 17 m below
ground surface. In some places, the very soft soils
are found still consolidating meaning that excess
pore pressure is still there. In general the critical
depth of excavation at North Jakarta is about 2.5 m.
The following figure shows typical soil
condition at the project site.
Water table is very high about 0 – 2 m below
ground surface. The depth of excavation is 5 – 7 m.
Soldier piles of diameter 800 m and spacing from
center to center of about 1.2 m hence allowing a
gap of 40 cm between each pile. Four inclinometers
were installed, and typical movement is shown on
Figure 13 where the movement at the top is about is
65 mm.

Figure 14. Soil profile at projecy site, north Jakarta

8-8
 INCLINOMETER IN_HG-03 behind the embankment. These types of failures
A-A
Cummulative Displacement ( mm ) have been found to be typical in many areas due to
-100 -80 -60 -40 -20 0 20 40 60 80 100
0
excessive pore water pressures developed under the
2
backfill and lateral movement of the soft ground
beneath the fill causing significant force to the
4
foundation which has almost no lateral resistance.
6
An example of soil condition that may cause bridge
Depth ( m )

8
collapse was constructed in East Kalimantan. The
10 abutment was designed to be constructed first and
12 the backfill to be placed later. Movement started to
14 occur when the back fill was 2 m high. The
16
movement continued until heave was detected on
the other side of the wall and pile joints failed
18
causing tilting and collapse of the abutment.
Figure 15. Typical soil profile north Jakarta Subsequent investigation was conducted to find
causes and mechanism of failure. The soil condition
HG-3
-150 -100
Deflection (mm)
-50 0 50 100 150 -300 -200
Shear Force (kN)
-100 0 100 200 300 -1000 -500
Moment (kNm)
0 500 1000 1500
is shown on Figure 17 and additional CPTu (Figure
0 0 0
18) reveals that the soil is very soft with general
trend that it is still consolidating (OCR < 1.0)
5 5 5 based on the Bq value).
The following figures show the failure of the
Depth (m)

Depth (m)

bridge abutment during the backfilling behind

Depth (m)

10 10 10

abutment with thicknes of about 2m. The soft soils

15 15 15
underneath the foundation of the abutment move
laterally causing excessive displacement of piles.
This situation has been frequently found in
HG-3 20 HG-3 20 HG-3
20
Indonesia which is generally due to lack of
Figure 16. Bored pile movement, shear force and knowledge and experience on soft soils
bending moment at Harco Glodok,
characteristics. The foundation are seldom designed
soft soil excavation at North Jakarta
for possible lateral displacement due to soil
CASE 2 : BEHAVIOR OF PILES USED FOR squeezing. Most designers focus on the axial
FOUNDATIONS OF BRIDGE ABUTMENT capacity and lateral load by the upper structure.
While the soil lateral pressure beneath the pile top
Many bridges in Indonesia are constructed on may be more significant.
soft layers. Many of them failed during backfilling
N-SPT
0 2 4 6
N-SPT
0 10 020 30 40 50 60 0 2 4 6
1 0 10 0 20 30 40 50 60
0 2 1
3
0 2
4 3
5 4
6 5
5 7 5 6
7
8
9 8
10 9
10
10 11
10 11
12
12
13
14 13
14
15
15 16
15
15
16
17
17
18
18
19
19
20
20
D ep th (m )

20
20
D ep th (m )

21
21
22
22
23
23
24
24
25
25 26 25 25
26
27 27
28 28
29 29
30 30
30 30

35 35

40 40

Figure 17. Soil stratification on site (Wirawan et al., 2014)

8-9
 Soil Behaviour Type Cone resistance,qc(MPa) Sleeve resistance,fs(MPa) Pore pressure,u2(MPa) Friction ratio,FR(%) Pore pressure ratio,Bq
after Robertson,1986

0 2 4 6 0 0.05 0.1 0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 0 2 4 6 8 10 0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1
0 0 0 0 0 0
1 1 1 1 1 1
2 (3) Clays 2 2 2 2 2
3 3 3 3 3 3
(3) Clays
<- Depth in m to reference level

4 4 4 4 4 4
5 5 5 5 5 5
6 6 6 6 6 6
7 7 7 7 7 7
8 8 8 8 8 8
9 9 9 9 9 9
10 10 10 10 10 10
11 11 11 11 11 11
12 12 12 12 12 12
13 13 13 13 13 13
14 14
15
14
15
Underconsolidated Layer
14
15
14
15
14
15
15
16 16 16 16 16 16
17 17 17 17 17 17
18 (3) Clays 18 18 18 18 18
19 19 19 19 19 19
20 20 20 20 20 20
21 21 21 21 21 21
22 (3) Clays
22 22 22 22 22
23 23 23 23 23 23
(6) Sandy silt to clayey silt
24 (6) Sandy silt to clayey silt 24 24 24 24 24
25 25 25 25 25 25
(6) Sandy silt to clayey silt
26 26 26 26 26 26
(6) Sandy silt to clayey silt
27 27 27 27 27 27
28 28 28 28 28 28
29 29 29 29 29 29
30 30 30 30 30 30

Figure 18. Soil stratification by CPTu (Wirawan et al., 2014)

2) Reduce the load behind the abutment by

limiting the height of fill, in this sense
additional pilars may be required.
3) Improvement of soil below abutment back fill
by use of vertical drains and preloading, then
removed and backfilling in stages. In this case
it becomes necessary to change the sequence
of construction by first backfilling the soft
layers and let them consolidate prior to
construction of the abutment.
4) Strengthen the soft layer below abutment with
Figure 19. Example collapse of bridge abutment minipiles and mattress. This method was
during backfilling (after Rahardjo, 2013) selected when there is not sufficient time to
wait for the consolidation of the foundation
soils.

The following two cases reflect method (3) and

(4) to be used in construction of abutment on soft
soils.

Use of minipiles and modification of abutment

system (Ciheurang Bridge)
Out of four alternatives previously discussed,
option 3 was selected for Ciheurang bridge which is
the first bridge of Cikopali highway connecting
Figure 20. Lateral displacement and failures of
Cikopo to Subang in West Java. In the first phase,
bridge foundation due to placement of fill behind
abutment (after Rahardjo, 2013) the design consist of 3 spans with 30 m each span.
However, during construction, it was found that the
To overcome this situation, practically there are slope of the river bank is not stable. The landslides
some methods available : was caused by the soft soil condition and triggered
1) Use of light weight material behind the by river flood which eroded the river bank and
abutment such as geofoam. This method is might have caused suddendrawdown. The pile
regarded highly cost because the cost of the driven moved laterally as shown on Figure 21.
geofoam is still regarded very high.

8-10
 bending moment. It can be seen that the design
force is less than the actual measured forces. This
steps was taken to avoid the pile capacity exceeded,
hence to ascertain the safety of the foundation.
Maximum deflection measured by
inclinometers is 16 mm at the position of pile top.
Pile fixity was found at 25 m (where deflection is
negligible and shear and bending moment also nil.
Measured maximum shear force is slightly higher
than 200 kN and maximum bending moment is 500
kN-m, which are much less than the designed
values.
Figure 21. The old piles moved laterally due to
landslides at the river bank

Following the failures, additional soil

investigation was conducted to assess this problem.
Ten boreholes and a number of CPT were
conducted to redesign the new foundation
system.After careful thought the design was
changed into single span of 70 m wide. And the
design of abutment was modified with opening at
each side.
Due to the condition of slope instability, the
new design of Ciheurang Bridge foundation was Figure 22. Installation of inclinometers embedded
changed into bored piles with 800 mm diameter and in boredpile for Ciheurang Bridge in west Java
28 m long. The selection of this piles is considering
that bigger diameter of bored pile enables higher
intertia to resist lateral forces caused by soil
movement.
To avoid the risk of failure, the bridge
foundation was intrumented with inclinometers.
Figure 22 shows installation of the inclinometers
and Figure 23 shows the position of inclinometer
before concreting of the pile cap.
During the construction of the bridge, the
foundation then could be monitored from time to
time until the bridge was completed. The shear
force and the bending moment were calculated to
find the actual forces. These forces were then
compared with the design. Figure 24 shows typical
soil stratification, and Figure 25 shows pile Figure 23. Installation of Inclinometers embedded
movement and the interpreted shear forces and in the bored piles for Ciheurang River Bridge

Figure 24. Soil profiles at Ciheurang River site

8-11
 Deflection (cm) Shear Force (kN) Moment (kN)
-4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4 -400 -200 0 200 400 -2000 -1000 0 1000 2000
0 0 0

5 5 5

10 10 10

Depth (m)

Depth (m)
Depth (m)

15 15 15

20 20 20

25 25 25

Midas 3D Midas 3D Midas 3D

Inclinometer Inclinometer Inclinometer
30 30 30

Figure 25. Comparison of measured and calculated pile movement (using 3D FEM) and forces at Ciheurang
River Bridge Foundation (Santoso, et al, 2015)

Ground Improvement Prior to Construction of Bridge The foundation system consists of pipe piles of
Abutment (Lembak River Bridge, East Kalimantan) diameter 600 m and 27 m long. Four piles at the edge
of the pile cap of the abutment were instrumented
This research was conducted at Lembak River
using 4 inclinometers and the piles were backfilled
Bridge in East Kalimantan (Astriani D., and Rahardjo,
with mortar concrete of low grade.
P.P., 2014). The bridge has three spans using steel
Method of construction follows type 4 where the
girders for the purpose of hauling road and heavy
foundation ground were improved using preload and
vehicles with maximum load of 250 tons. The height of
vertical drain. Then the preload was excavated before
embankment behind the abutment is 8 m which will
piling and the construction of the abutment. Astriani,
cause the soft foundation soils to move laterally during
D., and Rahardjo PP (2014) conducted 2D finite
fill placement. The soil condition may be represented
element analysis with and without soil improvement
by a series of CPT data as shown on Figure 26. The
stage. For comparison, the results of the pile movement
soft soil layer is as deep as 20 m with three loose sand
were plotted as shown on Figure 28. As demonstrated
lenses alternating with the clay with thickness of 2 – 3
the real movement of the piles are much less than
m.
computed in the design stage.

Figure 27. Installation of inclinometer insite pile

through pile cap (Astriani, D. And Rahardjo, PP, 2014)
Figure 26. Soil condition at Lembak River Bridge
(Astriani, D. and Rahardjo, PP, 2014)

8-12
 Figure 29. View of high cut slope in Semarang
Ungaran Bawen highway project

Figure 28. Comparison of measured pile movement to

results of analysis (Astriani, D. And Rahardjo, PP,
2014)

CASE 3 : PILES USED TO INCREASE SLOPE

STABILITY IN LANDSLIDES AREA
Figure 30. Crack is observed on Nov 2014 and slope
This particular case is common in Indonesia, where failures in Dec 2014
the existence of clayshale is under the volcanic breccia.
The clayshale formation is tertiary while volcanic The decision was to protect the the slope by use of
breccia was formed much later during quartenary 1200 mm diameter boredpiles for the lower part of the
geologic period. The main things is once the clayshalle slope and the use of ground anchor in the upper part.
formation is open to air and water, it is degrading so Some boredpiles were instrumented with the
fast creating a continuous area of sliding plane. This inclinometers. The construction of boredpiles faced
site is a steep cut slope of 40 m high and most material challenges due to the slope already failed, hence
excavated was laharic breccia. The original design was counterweight was placed at the toe with compacted
to put long anchor to stabilise the exposed slope. local soil as a platform for the heavy equipment to
At this study area, the existence of the clayshale is work on.
not continuous and detected later when the excavation
almost reached the final level. It was started with a lot
of vertical cracks. Some efforts were conducted
including a trial grout to go into the crack, however
even though the grout materials have been subtantials
reaching more than 10 tons of cement, there is still
unforeseen when the gap will be fully closed.
It is interesting the phenomena of vertical cracking.
There is no satisfactory geological explanation so far
on the possible cause. The first author has thought
about combination of stress release due to excavation Figure 31. Slope failures at high cut in Ungaran-Bawen
and movement or sliding of breccia on clayshale layer toll road project
which might be related to the divergency thus the crack
is propagated along with the progress of work. Other
factor that might be of possible cause of the crack is
the relative movement (creep) of the brecia along with
the swelling and shrinking of the underneath clayshale.

8-13
Figure 32. Prepartion of the construction of boredpiles
to protect the slope

CASE 4 : PILES USED FOR PROTECTION OF Figure 33. Geological condition of the site (Rahardjo,
EMBANKMENT NEAR FAILURE DUE TO RE- 2012)
ACTIVATED LANDSLIDES

Construction of Semarang-Solo highway has been

completed in February 2011 and a number of
landslides occured just before opening of the highway
at STA 3+525 – STA 8+475. In general, the
infrastructures consist of cuts and fills with high
embankment, Overpass, Underpass, Box culverts and 2
bridges, Susukan Bridge and Penggaron Bridge.
The author was involved to investigate the causes
and the consequences of the landslide for assessment of
the safety of the highway and to recommend action for
the safety of the embankment.
This section discusses embankment at sta 5+500 –
sta 5+800 which experience substantial mass
movement just prior to the opening of the highway. At
the start of the construction, clay shales were found Figure 34. Satelite image of the landslide area (2012)
with varying depth below ground surface. Information
on old landslide was also a concern. During fill Chronology of Landslides
placement and subsequent pavement installation, there
Right after the highway was nearly completed, due
were cracks on the embankment resulted from the
to long duration or rains in March 2011 severe
movement of the soil mass. A number of works were
movement on slopes identified as landslides occured
conducted including the installation of bored piles and
toward east. Monitoring of the slopes were
instrumentation for detection of the failure planes.
subsequently conducted due to possibility of impacts of
the landslides to the damages of the pavement,
Geological Condition
however it was too late. Beside measuring and
The geological map of Magelang and Semarang levelling of the pavement, monitoring slope movement
shows that the route of the new road is through Kerek were conducted by a number of inclinometers. The
Formation Tmk) consisting of clay stone, sandy tuff, results showed that land movement still continues
conglomerate and volcanic breccia and in some area, which might endanger the embankment. The
lime stones are also found (Figure 33). This units are subsequent significant movement occured on noted by
recognised as mid mioceen. Area with Kerek the broken inclinometers and further movement
formation is believed to be significant land-slide occured subsequently The slides were known as two
phrone areas. It can be explained from the degradation different movement, the upper part with average of
changes of the engineering propertes of the materials, 15 – 25 m thickness are engineered fill, and the second
specifically the alteration of clayshale as rock material part are weathered clayshale with thickness of 2 – 5 m.
into soft mud when exposed to water and air.

8-14
 What has actually occurred was that the
embankment has been constructed on the debris of old
landslides and the additional load of embankment has
triggered reactivation of the old landslides. However
the main reason is due to the existence of clayshale
below embankment. This material degraded very
quickly when in touch with water. Due to clearing of
top soil in the preliminary work of the embankment,
the rainwater easily penetrate into the breccia debris
Figure 35. Pavement cracks developed due to
landslides (Rahardjo, 2012) and once the water was on top of clayshale layer, the
infiltration is terminated and water start to flow in the
Emergency actions were carried out to save the boundary between the embankment soil and the
embankment including, removal of landslides debris, weathered clayshale.
installation of gabions, installation of horizontal drains
and construction of boredpiles.
After sufficient investigation, it was decided that a
significant effort to stabilize the embankment was
regarded a necessity. Additional boredpiles and
lowering the embankment by 7.5 m were completed in
March 2011. The cut of the embankment was intended
to reduce the driving force. The first phase of
excavation was only at the crown of landslide and the
second phase was leveling by elevation down to about
7.5 m below original. The main purpose is to reduce
the amount of sliding force since it is a function of
weight of moving material, slope of the clayshale
Figure 36. Old scarp of landslides in 1974 and previous
below groundsurface and the residual strength of the
one (Rahardjo 2012)
interface between soil and weathered clayshale.
During remedial actions geotechnical
instrumentation (mainly inclinometers) were installed
and geotechnical drilling were conducted at the
position of onclinometers with coring, soil and rock
sampling and Standard Penetration Test (SPT).

Mechanism of Landslides
Several landslides accidents occurred in the past
and recently, mainly after long rain duration. The
breccia is porous material, hence infiltration is possible,
while the clayshale is practically impermeable.
It was found from the local information and Figure 37. Positions of inclinometers for monitoring of
convinced by the results of inclinometers that the slope movement in the area of landslides
breccia hill on the east side of the embankment is
actually moving along and on the clayshale formation Figure 39 shows the plan view of the highway
below it. Such an experience was explained by section with approximate length of 300 m and it is
Rahardjo (2003) in the nearby area in Semarang as shown with boredpiles that have been used for the
reactivation of the breccia re-sliding over clayshale. protection of the slope. And yet it is not stable.
Such a mechanism was known as creep.
Information on the ground movement was
acknowledged by people living in the surrounding area
where the escarpment could still be seen. Based on
their knowledge, the area is active landslides with thick
debris. Slope failures were noted in 1974 and
previously unknown dates.

8-15
 Figure 38. Slope Movement as indicated by IN-11

Figure 39. Plan View of embankment of Sta 5+500 – Sta 5+800

Figure 40. Interpreted soil condition from boreholes

8-16
 Figure 41. Interpretation of the plane of failure in landslides of Sta 5+500 – Sta 5+800

Back Analysis of Landslides assuming there is no cohesion and by trial and error
For safety assessment, 2D and 3D finite element to obtain a safety factor of 1.0. The analysis has
analysis were carried out to back analyze and used Plaxis computer program using phi-c
simulate the effects of soil movements on the reduction. The results give the residual friction
performance of highway. The main tasks of the angle of 10 – 16. This value is typical for clay-
geotechnical analysis are to ensure (1) whether shale in this location, however a number of
ground movement would still occur, (2) location, researchers recommended a value of less than those,
direction and rate of movement (3) additional loads and hence for being conservative, the following
on existing borede-piles due to landslides and (4) analysis have used the lowest value of residual
decision for strengthening the slope. The results of shear strength. Figure 42 shows the mechanism of
both geotechnical and structural studies are to be slope failures used for back analysis of to estimate
used for decision before commissioning of the the residual shear strength.
highway.
The first step toward the assessment is back
analysis of the mechanism based on geometry and
interpreted sliding plane from the inclinometers and
drilling results. The drillings were conducted one
borehole at inclinometers locations. Figure 42. Back analysis of slope failures
Depth of failure planes are importance
The action for decelerating embankment
information for understanding the mechanism of
movement was by reducing the height of the
landslides and evaluation for the analysis of soil
embankment by 7.5 m, which caused redesign of
parameters. After landslides occurred, the soil shear
geometry in the longitudinal alignment. However,
strength is governed by residual shear strength of
that is more on the highway engineer concern. The
the soils. The failure plane is estimated using
value of residual shear strength was used for
inclinometers data IN-1A, IN-2A, and IN-11 and
analysis and the resulting safety factor was SF = 1.1,
also through the position of crack on the surface of
which is regarded insufficient for safety reason.
embankment.
Unfortunately the installation of previous
Figure 38 shows results of inclinometer IN-11
boredpiles were not long enough since the
where the depth of failure plane is between 20-22
movement is below the bored piles, as shown by
from the top of inclinometer, and this is verified by
the inclinometers and verified by the back analysis
inclinometer reading IN-1A and IN-IB. Both
hence the frst few hundereds boredpiles have not
inclinometers broke down and readings can not be
been effective. Movement still occurred.
continued. The depth of sliding plane was then
decided at 21 m, and this is used for subsequent
analysis to model the existing condition and the
slope repair.
Evaluation of slope condition is by assessment
of existing condition (including the existing
boredpiles, the geometry etc.). Then back analysis Figure 43. Cut to reduce embankment height
is attempted to find the residual shear strength (r)

8-17
Use of Bored Piles to Increase the Stability of
Embankment
Conceptual action for stabilizing the
embankment has been decided by installation of
larger and deeper bored piles. Provisional action (if
movement still occurred is by use of ground
anchor). The bored piles of 1000mm and
1500mm diameter and length of 45 m has been
design with spacing of 2.5D. At this stage, the
resulting safety factor is SF = 1.33 (Figure 44), and
to achieve a SF = 1.51, ground anchors must be
installed. Figure 46. Preparing pile cap, Inclinometer is
For installation of bored piles, a further shown
excavation of 12.000 cubic meters is required to
obtain a flat surface. Figure 46 shows progress of
bored piles construction.

Figure 44. Recommendation for slope stabilization

using bored piles and ground anchor

Figure 47. Progress of bored piles construction

Figure 48 shows the inclinometer movement

and interpretation of the boredpile displacement
and forces. It is found that movement is relatively
small (less than 10 mm). Potential sliding planes
are found at 12 m, 19 m and 30 m.

Figure 45. Use of large and long bored piles for

slope stabilization of sta 5+500 – sta 5+800

M-24 Deflection (mm) Increment (mm) Shear Force (kN) Moment (kNm)
-10 -5 0 5 10 -0.50 -0.25 0.00 0.25 0.50 -400 -200 0 200 400 -1500 -1000 -500 0 500 1000 1500
0 0 0 0

5 5 5 5

10 10 10 10

15 15 15 15

20 20 20 20
Depth (m)

Depth (m)

Depth (m)

Depth (m)

25 25 25 25

30 30 30 30

35 35 35 35

40 40 40 40
18-Dec-13 18-Dec-13
24-May-14 24-May-14
18 Dec 13 3m 24 May 14 3m 18 Dec 13 3m 24 May 14 3m
45 45 45 45

Figure 48. Movement of boredpiles and the calculated shear force and bending moment

8-18
CASE 5 : PILES USED FOR FOUNDATION OF
PIPES IN LANDSLIDES AREA

Landslide occurred at certain slope of Gunung

Bedil in form of debris flow material. This
landslide cut the pipe line between WWQ and
WWS. Total area of landslide and debris are
approximately 12 Ha with length about 600 m and
wide of 200 m. This landslide has caused extensive
damage to about 300 m of the multiple pipes and
foundation along the two-phase services corridor as
well as extensive damage to parts of the village.
Prior to landslides, some cracks and soil Figure 49. Landslide at Pengalengan
movement was identified at surrounding area. Any
reinforcement for the critical area had been already
recommended, such as make a deeper pipe
foundation, construct a drainage system beside pipe
line, and install monitoring system for soil
movement.
The pipe lines needs to be repaired immediately
to recover productivity. Evaluation and discussions
have been conducted on alternatives of new pipe
line. Elevated pipe line on bored piles across debris
area is selected as pipe support. However,
additional soil investigations have been conducted Figure 50. Condition of soil debris
for this new pipe line area to collect more soil data
which is needed for foundation design and also Total numbers of the soil investigations taken
slope stability analysis. are 15 boreholes and 30 CPTs. There are some
inclinometers and piezometers that are installed for
future monitoring.

Figure 51. Soil investigation program

8-19
 Based on boring logs and CPT data, soil
condition is dominated by debris material defined
as soft clayey silt to the depth of 5 – 10 m. Second
layer consist of tuff material until depth of 17 –
25 m. Third layer is dominated by very stiff to hard
clay as bearing layer.
From the soil investigations, the debris
materials at the surface are dominated by relatively
light weight soil of tuffaceous clayey silt, defined
as colluvium material formed by volcanic activity
and chemical process. Light cementation can be
found at certain depth and this material has a very
high porosity. Tuff is a sediment material from
Figure 52. Soil condition on site
volcanic eruption. Although tuff is cemented in
natural condition but it is very dispersive when
Based on soil investigation data and
disturbed. Fill work using this material will loosen
topographic study, it is predicted that landslide is
its strength when encountered with water.
triggered by heavy rain fall at the past time which
Design for new pipe line foundation will use
cause top layer consist of soft clay (colluvium
soil profiles and interpreted parameters from soil
material) and tuffaceous sliding on stiff material
investigation data.
defined as weathered andesite.

Figure 53. Longitudinal section with soil investigations

Considering the huge forces by the pipe
pressure, seismic condition, and also from
additional debris load, the type of foundation is
selected using bored piles as a deep foundation. Pile
foundation is needed to penetrate through weak
layer defined as debris and soft layer. However the
tuff material has medium to stiff consistency, but
when it encounter with the water become loose and
reduce the shear strength. This foundation type
provides larger diameter of piles in order to resist
any movement of debris material. Using larger
diameter will result in smaller number of piles to be
installed, and shorter time for construction.
However, elevated frame is needed to be
constructed as base support of the pipes to mobilize
the debris flow under the pipes. In principal, higher
elevation of pipes is more safe than normally pipes
elevation of 75 cm. Pipe support foundation
concept is not retain the debris, otherwise to let the
debris and soft layer flow under the pipes. With this
concept, it will much reduce additional forces to
foundation from debris flow or creep. Ground
clearance of frame is limited to 3m from the finish
ground level considering to ease pipes maintenance.
Typical concept of pipe line frame support is shown
in the following figures.

8-20
 Figure 54. Design concept of pipe line support
using frame

Foundation of pipe support at this location shall

be designed to support loads from soil movement.
Figure 55. Simulation of debris flow through pipe
Considering the soft layer approximately 7m-10m
support foundation
and potentially move under debris flow, pipe
foundation must be designed the additional load Figure 56 shows model when the foundation is
under debris flow and creep. To determine debris placed perpendicular to the direction of debris flow
flow load is quietly difficult. 3D modeling is or the landslide, the higher deformation and internal
conducted to simplify the case of debris flow. forces will occur at the front pile which is directly
Debris flow is assumed to move with soft soil along facing with the debris. The rear pile foundation will
weak layer, however the soil movement profile resist a smaller forces and deformation due to its
which is recommended by Poulos (1980) position.
When piles are situated in a soft soil layer that
is subjected to horizontal movement, horizontal
pressures are developed between the pile and the
soil, with a consequent development of bending
moments and deflections in the piles. This become
a major problem when the frame foundations are
1 2
constructed perpendicular with the flow of debris or
estimated future landslide. Foundations are
recommended to constructed parallel or one line
with the landslide flow.
Debris material will be spread out when contact
with bored pile. Shear forces and bending moment
of bored pile for each pile will be different depend
on the first bored pile contacted with the debris Figure 56. 3D Model of deep foundation subjected
to mud movement

Displacem ent (m ) Bending Moment (kNm) Shear Forces (kN)

0.00 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08 0.10 0.12 0.14 0.16 -3000.00 -2000.00 -1000.00 0.00 1000.00 2000.00 3000.00 4000.00 -1000.00 -500.00 0.00 500.00 1000.00 1500.00 2000.00
0.00 0.00 0.00

5.00 5.00 5.00

10.00 10.00 10.00

Length of Pile (m)

15.00 15.00 15.00

Length of Pile (m)
Length of Pile (m)

20.00 20.00 20.00

25.00 25.00 25.00

30.00 30.00 30.00

35.00 35.00 35.00

Figure 57(a). 3D analysis result (front pile)

8-21
 Displacement (m) Shear Forces (kN)
Bending Moment (kNm)
0.00 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08 0.10 0.12 0.14 -2000.00 -1000.00 0.00 1000.00 2000.00 3000.00 4000.00 -300.00 -200.00 -100.00 0.00 100.00 200.00 300.00 400.00 500.00 600.00 700.00
0.00 0.00 0.00

5.00 5.00 5.00

10.00 10.00 10.00

L en g th o f Pile (m )

15.00 15.00 15.00

L eng th o f Pile (m )

L en g t h o f Pile ( m )
20.00 20.00 20.00

25.00 25.00 25.00

30.00 30.00 30.00

35.00 35.00 35.00

Figure 58(b). 3D analysis result (rear pile)

Inclinometers are being installed inside bored Creep is the common type of land movement
piles and also at the ground between pipe supports causing progressive damages to buildings and
to verify the design and also acting as warning infrastructures, however in some cases, sudden
system. Displacement of inclometers inside the landslides may be triggered due to infiltration of
bored piles are considered as bored pile deflection rain water into the breccia layer due to its high
which shows actual internal forces, which can be permeability (Rahardjo, 2003). On the other hand,
compared to bored pile capacity. Any the thick deep layer of clay-shale is practically
countermeasure can be taken after displacement impermeable. Clayshale is thin laminated claystone
reach certain value. At the time this paper is being or mudstone which can slake or degrade due to
written the bored piles installation have been exposure to air and water.
completed and being monitored. The Penggaron Bridge is located in this area,
and just after completion of the bridge landslides
occurred which caused delay of the commissioning
of the bridge due to safety reason. The authors were
involved to investigate the causes and the
consequences of the landslide for assessment of the
safety of the bridge and to recommend action for
the safety of the bridge. The main task of the
geotechnical analysis are to ensure (1) whether the
ground movement would still occur, (2) location,
direction and rate of movement (3) the magnitude
of additional loads on piles caused by the ground
movement and (4) decision for strengthening of the
bridge foundation. Foundation monitoring and 2D
Figure 59. Construction of bored piles and and 3D finite element analysis were conducted. The
installation of inclinometers results of study concluded that even though the
ground are still moving, no damages were found in
CASE 6 : PILES USED FOR PROTECTION AND the foundation except due to workmanship,
SUBSITUTE OF BRIDGE FOUNDATION IN additional forces causing by the ground movement
LANDSLIDE AREA are so far still under pile cross section capacity,
Breccia Re-sliding over Clayshale has become however new piles were constructed to prevent the
the most responsible causes of landslides foundation from further damage including the
phenomena in the Semarang (Central Java) Area. installation of additional geotechnical
instrumentation.

8-22
 Penggaron bridge is Prestressed Concrete
Girder Bridge 421.5 m long consisting of 10 spans,
each of about 40 m length including 9 Piers. Figure
59 shows the longitudinal section of the bridge, the
SPT values on each pier and abutment and the
length of bored piles. Bored pile foundation of
diameter 1.2 m and depth ranging from 12 – 25 m
below pile cap are used as the foundation system to
support the upper structures. Simple I girders have
been installed including the bridge decks.
During construction and the excavation of pile
cap at 10 m depth, no problems were detected and
excavation was successfully conducted vertically
without any protection. It has to be noted that the
Figure 60. Longitudinal section of Penggaron Bridge
Figure 61. Site condition during excavation of pile
cap
Chronology of Landslides
Right after the bridge was nearly completed,
due to long duration or rains in March 2011 severe
erosions on slopes adjacent to the bridge open up
vegetation and landslides occured at the east part of
piers P-4, P-5 dan P-6. Monitoring ot the bridge
were subsequently conducted due to possibility of
impacts of the landslides to the stability of the
bridge. Aside from measuring and levelling of the
bridge decks, and piers verticality, two
inclinometers were installed at pier 4 and pier 6.
The results showed that land movement still
continues which might endanger the bridge. The
excavation works were conducted during dry
season. Figure 60 shows typical overview during
excavation.
This paper contains description of the occurence
of the landslides, evaluation of the possible
mechanism and impact to the bridge foundation and
an attempt of analysis in 2D and 3D finite element
model of the foundation in moving ground and
assessment on the method of foundation protection
against landslides. Of particular interest is the
investigation of the safety of the foundation due to
ground movement. Assessment using 2D and 3D
finite element analysis were conducted to estimate
the additional lateral load working on the piles.
slides were known as two different movement, the
upper part with average of 6.5 m thickness are
colluvial or debris, and the second part are either
volcanic breccia or weathered clayshale.
The subsequent significant movement occured
on May 14 2011 at pier 5 and pier 6 as noted by the
broken inclinometers and further movement
occured on May 17 2011 as recorded on the deck of
the bridge on top of pier 4 with movement of 6.6
cm and on top of Pier-6 recorded as 8.2 cm. An
important notes were the movement of abutment 2
on the south side. A long crack detected as the
begining of landslide was recorded. Upon grouting,
the soil gap requires 14 m3 of grouted material.
After sufficient investigation, it was decided
that strengthening the foundation was regarded a
necessity. Additional boredpiles surrounding
pilecap and construction of dewatering wells were
inisiated and completed in September 2011.
However, two subsequent landslides were repeated
in November and December 2011 after the
additional boredpiles were completed. The main
land movement is the upper soil layer which caused
different elevation at east of the landslide crown
about 3.5 – 5.0 m. At the time of writing this paper,
remedial works are still on going mainly to finish
the pile caps of new bored pile and stabilizing the
landslides by construction of deep subdrains.
8-23
Emergency Actions below groundsurface and the residual strength of
the interface between soil and weathered clayshale.
Emergency actions were carried out to save the
Three drain wells were constructed to monitor
bridge including excavation of nearby hills,
the water level as well as to dewater the
removal of landslides debris, installation of gabions,
groundwater level. The position of drain wells were
installation of horizontal drains and construction of
at the east side of the bridge. They showed that
drainage ditches. A temporary retention of
water tables are generally high due to infiltration of
landslides debris with bamboo piles was done
rain water into the soils. However, it is well known
mainly to reduce the amount of sliding material,
that the water is not real ground water, but water
however it was not intended as permanent
trapped above clayshale which cause the upper
stabilization. Commonly the bamboo piles were
more permeable layer to slide laterally due to
installed at or near the abutments.
softening as well as water flow in this layer.
It is also of interest the Pile Integrity Testing
(PIT) was also attempeted with accelerometers
mounted on the top side of bored piles as well as on
top of pile caps, although such position of pile
testing is uncommon and interpretations were
slightly complicated.
During emergency actions geotechnical
instrumentation (mainly inclinometers) were
installed and geotechnical drilling were conducted
at every pier with coring, soil and rock sampling
and StandardPenetration Test (SPT). Table 1 shows
the emergency action and their respective volume
of works.
Figure 62. Cross section showing first phase of
Table 1. Emergency actions between March-June excavation of the hill and inclinometer reading in
2011 May 2011
Type of action
Construction Description
nos depth/length
Surface Ditches 1 60 m
Horizontal Drains 8 6 - 12 m

Cuts for leveling 1 12,000 m3 Excavation of hills

Gabions 3 500 m3 *)
Well drains 3 6 m depth Diameter 800mm
Inclinometers 16 30 m 2 nos at each piers
Geotechnical Driling
18 30 m with SPT and UDS
UDS
Structure Monitoring Verticallity and deck movement
* Gabions were constructed to resist movement of soil below pile cap but it failed because sliding
plane was deeper

Figure 63. Installation of horizontal drains at pier 7

It was found from the local information and
convinced by the results of inclinometers that the Results of Geotechnical Monitoring
breccia hill on the west side of the bridge is actually
In the first stage, only two inclinometers and the
moving along and on the clayshale formation below
drain wells were used to monitor the movement of
it. Such an experience was explained by Rahardjo
the ground and the water level. It is of interest that
(2003) to exist in the nearby area in Semarang as
the results of lateral movement were detected very
reactivation of the breccia re-sliding over clayshale.
soon after the installation of the geotechnical
Such a mechanism was known as creep.
instrumentation. Although the inclinometers were
The cut of the hill was intended to reduce the
there only for less than one month, since the slope
driving force acting below the hill. The first phase
are still actively moved, two layers with different
of excavation was only on slope and the second
direction of movements were interpreted by the
phase was leveling by elevation down to about 6 m
author as colluvial with thickness of 6.5 m and
below original. The main purpose is to reduce the
weathered clayshale underneath the colluvial with
amount of sliding force since it is a function of
8.5 m. Figure 63 is the results of subsurface ground
weight of moving material, slope of the clayshale
movement by inclinometer at pier 4.

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 additional loads on piles due to landslides and (4)
decision for strengthening the bridge foundation.
The results of both geotechnical and structural
6.5 m
studies are to be used for decision before
commissioning of the bridge.
The first step toward the assessment is back
14.5 m
analysis of the mechanism based on geometry and
PASANG 11 APRIL interpreted sliding plane from the inclinometers and
PATAH 11 MEI = 9.2 cm
drilling results. The drillings were conducted one
borehole under each abutment and pillar.
Sliding plane is assumed based on inclinometer
Figure 64. Results of daily inclinometer readings at PG-1 where two potential sliding plane are known
pier 4 at depth 6.5 m and 14.5 m below ground level or at
elevation of +277.807 from sea level. The
Similar results were found for inclinometer inclinometer reading from April 11 2011 to May
readings at pier 6, however the direction is slightly 8th 2011 shows that soil movement is 9.2 cm and
different although both towards the Penggaron river. hereafter, the readings can not be continued.
The inclinometer readings were terminated, due to Based on the soil condition, finite element
breakage of inclinometer casing. model is used to back calculate the sliding
mechanism with the approximately sliding plane to
ARAH obtained a safety factor of 1.0 or very close to 1.0.
PERGERAKAN
INCLINO P4 ki Figure 65 shows the model.
INCLINO P6 ki

A1 P1 P2 P3 P4 P5 P6 P7 P8 P9 A2

Figure 65. Direction of upper ground movement

Mechanism of Reactivation of Old Landslides

Reactivation of breccia re-sliding over clay
shale has become common phenomena in the
Figure 66. Finite element model for back analysis
Semarang Area. Rahardjo (2003) has explained the
mechanism as follows: volcanic breccia was
Based on back analysis, shears and moments
deposited on top of clayshale very long time ago
may be calculated to estimate the working load due
due to lahar flows after volcano eruption. Clayshale
to land movement. it is concluded that the working
is material that is degrading fast due to exposure in
load did not exceed the section capacity of the piles.
water or air. In the long run after consolidation, the
Effort were extended with pile integrity testing to
material might be stable, however, the inclination
ascertain the safety of the foundation.
of clayshale enable creep or even sliding of the
Although theoretically the working load acting
breccia over the clayshale.
on the bored piles are still within the limits of the
Several landslides accidents occurred in the past
section capacity, there is no guarantee that the
and recently, mainly after long rain duration. The
bored piles are safe, hence taking into consideration
breccia is porous material, hence infiltration is
of the possible further movement, some actions
possible, while the clayshale is practically
were conducted including : (1) Pile integrity testing
impermeable. Creep or sudden landslides could
(PIT) to ascertain the pile safety (2) Cutting of
occur along the boundary of clayshale.
upper part of the hill to increase the global safety
factor and (3) Construction of additional bored piles
Finite Element Analysis for Stability Evaluation of
surrounding the existing foundation to resist further
Bridge Foundation
possible movement of the ground. The additional
2D and 3D finite element analysis were carried piles have dimension of 1.2 m diameter and 35 m
out to back analyze and simulate the effects of soil long which is beyond the sliding plane.
movements on the bridge foundation. The main
tasks of the geotechnical analysis are to ensure (1)
whether ground movement would still occur, (2)
location, direction and rate of movement (3)

8-25

Figure 67. Model showing the final foundation and
slope protection to obtain a SF = 1.45
Installation of Boredpiles for Protection of Bridge
Foundation and Embedded Inclinometers
It was decided to install bored piles surrounding
each pile cap of Pier 2 to pier 8. Each pile cap was
strengthened by 1.5 m diameter 16 bored piles, 35
m deep. The pile caps of the new bored piles were
connected to the existing pile cap. For each pier,
two inclinometers were installed inside the bored
piles. Figure 67 shows the installation of
inclinometer.
Figure 68. Installation of inclinometer inside
boredpile
Ten inclinometers were installed inside
protection bored piles, however only 8
inclinometers were valid for interpretation. It is of
interest for interpretation to use the results of
embedded inclinometers to assess the performance
of the bored piles in resisting the soil movement
and for calculation of internal forces in the bored
piles.
Installation of bored piles were completed in
mid November and inclinometer monitoring have
been started in early December 2011. Figure 68
shows development of inclinometer top movement
since December 2011 until March 2012. It is
detected that the protection bored piles started to
move in the first week of January 2012 and
relatively slowed down about the third week of
February 2012. Data of rain intensity shown in
same week is very high and it is regarded to cause
the ground movement.
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The bored piles have been apparently moved to
mobilize the passive resistance. If the results are
compared to the rain intensity, the movements
areclosely related to it. In January 2012, rain
intensity measured near the project site is almost
double then predicted.
Figure 69. Bored piles top movement measured by
embedded inclinometers
800
700
600
500
CH (mm)
400
300
200
100
0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17
Bulan
Figure 70. Predicted and actual rain intensities
The movement of the bored piles as measured
by the inclinometers can be used to estimate the
forces (shear and moments) in the bored piles using
finite difference approach. It is concluded that the
maximum bending moments occurred in the bored
piles were about 50% of the moment capacity of the
section.
Summary of Penggaron Bridge
The finite element analysis is capable of
simulating back analysis of the landslides
mechanism and shows the additional (primarily
lateral) load on the piles were still within the safe
range of pile capacity. However, further movement
might cause subsequent damages and hence
additional piles have been proposed and
constructed. At present the protection piles are
being monitored with inclinometers embedded in
the piles. The movement occurred in the months of
January – February 2012 was regarded due to
ground movement as a result of higher rain
intensity and the protection bored piles have been
effective to avoid further movement of the
foundation.
 Resultant of Cummulative Slope Moment (kNm) Geser (kN)
Displacement (m)
0.00 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08 0.10 0.000 0.002 0.004 0.006 0.008 0.010 -1.E+04 0.E+00 1.E+04 2.E+04 -5.E+03 0.E+00 5.E+03 1.E+04
0 0 0 0

5 5 5 5

10 10 10 10

15 15 15 15

20 20 20 20

Depth (m)

Depth (m)

Depth (m)
Depth (m)

25 25 25 25

30 30 30 30

35 35 35 35

40 40 40 40

Figure 71. Movement of bored piles and calculated forces at Penggaron Bridge

CONCLUSION SUMMARY REFERENCES

 Geological condition is an important key Astriani, D., Rahardjo, P. P., 2014, “Study on the
element in the case of slope and landslides. Effect of Method of Construction on the
Many cases of landslides in Java were due to Stability of Bridge Abutment on Soft
the existence of clayshale which is easily Soils,“ proceeding, “Southeast Asia Conference
weathered. The project locations described in on Soft Soils Engineering and Groud
the paper is geologically in the area of Subang Improvement,” Bandung – Indonesia.
Formation (west java) and Kerek Formation Geotechnical Engineering Consultant, PT, 2011,
(Tmb) central java which is convinced to be “Final Report of Landslides Evaluation of
area where ground movement is significant. Semarang _Bawen toll Road Section 1, Packet
 The use of bored piles to control slope II” submitted to PT Trans Marga Jateng.
movement is effective, however there should Handoko, A., Rahardjo, P. P., Wirawan, A.,
be sufficient depth where the piles are fixed. Sugiarto, S., 2014, “Evaluation of Abutment
 Based on inclinometers and other data, the Failure due to Embankment Backfill,
failure plane can be detected, furthermore if the “proceeding, “Southeast Asia Conference on
inclinometers are embedded into the boredpile, Soft Soils Engineering and Groud
valuable information can be obtained, not only Improvement,” Bandung – Indonesia.
the safety and the plane of failure, but also the Poulus, H. G. And Davis, E, 1980, “Design and
estimated forces acting in the boredpiles. This Contruction of Pile Foundation”.
information has been used to assess the safety Rahardjo, P. P., 2003, “Reactivation of Breccia
and performance of the bored piles and Resliding over Clayshale” Proceeding Pan
condition for further stabilization work. American Conference, Soil and Rock, Boston.
 During construction or following the remedial Santoso, P. C. S., 2015, “2D and 3D Finite Element
action, inclinometers can be installed inside the Analysis and Geotechnical Monitoring for
bored-piles to be monitored for long term. This Slope Stability Assessment of Ciherang Bridge
will help the understanding of further Abutment” Proceeding SLOPE 2015, Bandung.
movement and to ascertain the stability and
safety of the slope and embankment.
 The finite element analysis is capable of
simulating back analysis of the landslides
mechanism and shows the additional (primarily
lateral) load on the piles were still within the
safe range of pile lateral capacity. However,
further movement might cause subsequent
damages and hence additional action shall be
proposed. At present many new piles have
been constructed with inclinometers embedded
in the piles to monitor possible further
movement, and many more projects are now
using inclinometers inside boredpile.

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