The purpose of this investigation is to determine the feasibility of using precast, prestressed concrete piles in jointless bridges and to develop design criteria and pile-abutment joint details that can be used in practice. This phase of the project comprised an experimental and analytical study of the load-deflection behavior of HP10-42 and 12 x 12 in. (305 x 305 mm) precast, prestressed piles, and a computer analysis of the pile-soil interaction. The test results show that the proposed joint would allow the use of concrete piles in integral abutment bridges of lengths comparable to those with steel piles. A field investigation to study the performance of two prestressed concrete piles in a fullscale integral abutment bridge is currently being carried out.
