Abstract
An economical method, Sampling & Cone Penetration Test (S&CPT), was proposed for investigation of the mechanical properties of the seabed for foundation design of bottom-mounted offshore wind turbine towers. After a prototype apparatus was manufactured, series of laboratory and field tests were carried out to investigate the feasibility of the proposed test method. The test results demonstrated that the percussion method was effective for driving a CPT probe equipped with a tubular sampler. Furthermore, clogging should be prevented at the tip of the sampler for still higher penetrability and better sampling performance.
Introduction
An economical method to investigate the mechanical properties of surface layers on seabed is required for foundation designs of bottommounted offshore wind turbine towers. The authors proposed a new method of sampling and cone penetration test, denoted as S&CPT for short, that can perform sampling and sounding simultaneously. Using a vibro or a percussion hammer, a test device with the probe used for cone penetration tests connected to a long tubular sampler is statically or dynamically and continuously driven into the ground. The purpose of S&CPT is to collect continuous soil samples not only of soft ground but also relatively hard ground while conducting cone penetration test or weight sounding test at the same location.
