Parametric Investigation of p-y Curves for Improving the Design of Large Diameter Monopiles for Offshore Renewable Energy Applications

This study establishes a direct and quantitative link between field-scale monopile behavior, three-dimensional finite element (FE) modeling, and practical p-y curve formulations for large-diameter offshore monopiles. A validated three-dimensional FE model, benchmarked against a full-scale monopile field test, was employed to derive depth-dependent p-y curves under monotonic lateral loading and to evaluate the applicability of classical formulations proposed by Matlock and Reese. A systematic parametric analysis was performed to investigate the influence of pile diameter, embedment depth, and undrained shear strength of the surrounding soil. The results demonstrate that pile diameter and soil shear strength exert a dominant control on lateral stiffness and ultimate soil reaction, whereas embedment depth has only a minor influence on near-surface p-y behavior within the deep embedment range considered. Increasing the pile diameter leads to a transition from bending-dominated response to rigid-body rotation accompanied by three-dimensional soil wedge formation. Quantitative comparisons show that, at depths of 1–4 m and for working displacement levels of approximately 5–10 mm, FE-derived soil reactions are typically 3.0–4.8 times higher than those predicted by the Matlock formulation, as well as Reese curves. These findings demonstrate that classical p-y methods can significantly underestimate lateral soil resistance for modern large-diameter monopiles and highlight the necessity of calibrated three-dimensional FE analyses or FE-informed p-y modifications for reliable offshore wind turbine foundation design.