A platform for research: civil engineering, architecture and urbanism
A platform for research: civil engineering, architecture and urbanism
Pikes Peak: Subsurface Conditions and New Summit Visitor Center Foundation Design
Standing at 14,115 ft above sea level, Pikes Peak is the 31st highest of Colorado’s 54 fourteeners and is one of the most visited mountains in North America. Subsurface conditions at the summit consist of an active soil layer of in-place weathered Pikes Peak granite subject to seasonal freeze/thaw cycles, underlain by an intermediate and unstable ice-rich permafrost zone, followed by bedrock with subfreezing temperatures. The current summit house was constructed in the early 1960s with a shallow foundation bottomed in the active overburden layer and has suffered from differential heave and settlement associated with freezing and thawing. Pikes Peak—America’s Mountain is planning a new summit visitor center to replace the current facility which will be founded on spread footings bottomed on the lower, massive Pikes Peak granite. Micro-pile foundations, isolated from the active and ice-rich permafrost zones will support a series of designated walkways throughout the summit. The purpose of this paper is to present the subsurface conditions determined by a series of geotechnical investigations in preparation for the new summit visitor center, document some of the geotechnical challenges associated with construction on Pikes Peak, and describe the proposed geotechnical solutions to be incorporated in the summit complex design.
Pikes Peak: Subsurface Conditions and New Summit Visitor Center Foundation Design
Standing at 14,115 ft above sea level, Pikes Peak is the 31st highest of Colorado’s 54 fourteeners and is one of the most visited mountains in North America. Subsurface conditions at the summit consist of an active soil layer of in-place weathered Pikes Peak granite subject to seasonal freeze/thaw cycles, underlain by an intermediate and unstable ice-rich permafrost zone, followed by bedrock with subfreezing temperatures. The current summit house was constructed in the early 1960s with a shallow foundation bottomed in the active overburden layer and has suffered from differential heave and settlement associated with freezing and thawing. Pikes Peak—America’s Mountain is planning a new summit visitor center to replace the current facility which will be founded on spread footings bottomed on the lower, massive Pikes Peak granite. Micro-pile foundations, isolated from the active and ice-rich permafrost zones will support a series of designated walkways throughout the summit. The purpose of this paper is to present the subsurface conditions determined by a series of geotechnical investigations in preparation for the new summit visitor center, document some of the geotechnical challenges associated with construction on Pikes Peak, and describe the proposed geotechnical solutions to be incorporated in the summit complex design.
Pikes Peak: Subsurface Conditions and New Summit Visitor Center Foundation Design
Sloan, Joel A. (author) / Hoffmann, William (author) / Glavan, Jack (author)
Rocky Mountain Geo-Conference 2018 ; 2018 ; Golden, Colorado
2018-11-01
Conference paper
Electronic Resource
English
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