Investigating the response of Tripod Suction Bucket foundations to multidirectional lateral cyclic loading

In this paper, the angular rotation of the dense soil-tripod foundation system due to monotonic and cyclic loading was analyzed by performing a series of 3D finite element analyses. The UBC3D-PLM soil model implemented in PLAXIS 3D is employed in the analysis of the moment response of tripod bucket foundations subjected to wind and wave loading. Within this context, the numerical predictions were first validation effort undertaken using welldocumented centrifuge tests on tripod installed in silty sand. Calibration of the UBC3D-PLM model was based on the monotonic and cyclic model tests, in-situ shear wave velocity measurements, and empirical relationships for shear moduli. The calibration process is described, and different alternative calibrations of the model are developed attempting to scrutinize key aspects of the behaviors such as the accumulation of deformations and geometric nonlinearities.