Piled Raft NPP Foundation

Cuts Seismic Acceleration

This piled raft foundation filters high-frequency seismic waves through soil-structure interaction and mobilizes passive earth pressure via embedment to reduce seismic response of the nuclear island.

Feng, Dong · Meng, Chu · 78173777 · Yu, Ren · 77008746 · Dai, Guoliang · Li, Bing · Wang, Yanhua

Journal of Building Engineering 2025

Advantages

Fundamental frequency substantially reduced

By lengthening the natural period of the superstructure, the piled raft foundation absorbs seismic energy and significantly reduces the fundamental frequency of the reactor building, thus reducing resonance risk.

Peak acceleration amplification reduced

Soil-piled raft-structure interaction filters high-frequency components of upward propagating seismic waves, thereby reducing the amplification of peak seismic acceleration of the superstructure.

Embedment further reduces response

Structural embedment promotes passive earth pressure of surrounding soil, increasing lateral confinement and further reducing seismic acceleration response of the system.

Applications

• Seismic Design of NPPs：Provides test data to validate numerical models, avoiding overestimation of seismic demand.
• Nuclear Island on Non-rock Sites：Replaces rigid base assumption with piled raft design, enabling safe construction on non-rock sites.
• Shake Table Testing：Validates seismic reduction effects of piled raft and embedment, supporting design parameter selection.