FOUNDATION
ENGINEERING - II
LECT– 2
Shallow Foundation: Safe
Bearing Pressure and
Settlement Calculation
References for Lecture Preparation:
-Lymon C, Reese, William M. Isenhower, Shin-Tower
Wang, Analysis and Design of Shallow and Deep
Foundations
2003 Commentary, Foundation Design Requirements
-Robert W. Day. Geotechnical and Foundation
Engineering, Design and Construction
-SEAOC Seismic Design Manual (UBC Version) Volume I,
Errata No. 2, 3/18/02
-Joseph E. Bowles, P.E. S.E. Foundation Analysis and
Design (fifth edition)
-Nilson H. Design of Concrete Structure (twelfth edition)
Safe Bearing Pressure and Settlement Calculation
Spread Footing/Shallow Foundation Analysis and Design
Types of Spreading Footings
Single Footing
Combined Footing
Strip Footing
Grid Foundation
Mat Footing
Single Footing
Shape of single footing may be square, rectangle or circular. Trapezoidal or any
other unsymmetrical shape should be avoided.
Combined Footing
Two columns may be combined because of the area limitation of one
column due to existent of property line or other structure.
Strip Footing
Two or more columns may be combined in single direction of line for economy
(continuous slab is cheaper then cantilever slab) and to reduce differential
settlement between adjacent columns.
Grid Foundation
Two orthogonal sets of strip footing are combined in two directions of lines.
Mat Footing
All the foundation slabs are merged into one resulting mat footing.
Rigidity is better and it reduces differential settlement and variation
or pressure under foundation.
The continuous foundation such as strip, grid and mat may be
designed with or without beam and pedestals. A footing without
beam is flexible and its analysis may request more accurate
method such as finite element or finite difference methods.
Behavior of Spread Footing on Soil
Load from super-structure is spread to satisfactory soil
directly underlies the structure by means of footing.
There are uncertainties in determining the actual
distribution of upward pressure and foundation elements
represent themselves massive blocks or thick slab subject to
heavy concentrated load from the structure above. That is
why the stresses in foundation can not be determined
accurately. When one uses simplified method in foundation
analysis, footing is always assumed as a rigid plate which is
not bent and pressure under footing is assumed as linearly
varied or uniformly distributed.
Various Critical Stages of Footing
Soil Failure Stage Weak bearing
capacity Foundation on unstable
slope
Support yielding under side load
Ground water table
Liquefaction
Structural Failure Stage
Unbalanced conditions between acting
loads and bearing pressure under
individual footing
Assumed pressure distribution is not
enough for equilibrium Over all
stability of building and its footings
Overturning
Sliding
Strength Failure Stage
When stress analysis is not accurate,
One-way shear failure
Two-way shear failure
Flexural moment failure
Serviceability Stage
Total settlement is larger then
allowable
Differential settlement is not
acceptable
Design Requirements for
Spreading Footing
Total Settlement of the structure be limited to a
tolerable amount and differential settlement of the
various parts of the structure be eliminated as
nearly as possible. To limit settlements, the strength
of the soil stratum underneath the footing must be
sufficient and spread the load over a sufficient area
to minimize bearing pressure.
Design Procedure
Ultimate Strength Design (USD)
Allowable Stress Design (ASD)
Foundation design procedures typically provide soil bearing
pressures on an allowable stress design basis while seismic
forces in the 1997 UBC, and in most concrete design under
ACI 318, are on a strength design basis. This requires that the
designer make a transition from the ASD procedure used to
size the footing to the USD procedures used to design the
footing.
Bearing Capacity
The building foundation without seismic forces applied must be
adequate to support the building gravity load. When seismic effects
are considered, the soil capacities can be increased considering the
short time of loading and the dynamic properties of the soil.
Following factors should be included in bearing capacity
calculations.
-Eccentricity
-Load inclination factors
-Base and ground inclination
-Shape factor
-Depth factor
-Water table location
Settlements
Maximum settlement should occur under the center of
foundation and the minimum under the edges. The
difference between maximum and minimum, that is,
differential settlement should be some fraction of the
maximum.
Both total and differential settlements must be
considered in design Prediction of immediate and time-
related movement of the foundation should be consistent
with the stiffness of the superstructure.
Settlements and Differential Settlements The total settlement of a structure
consists of three components as given in Equation
Out of these, usually the consolidation (primary) settlement Sc is the most
important part of the total settlement as discussed in Section 3.7. Though there
may not be a collapse or shear failure of the soil due to large settlement, the
structures and foundations may become unserviceable. Further tilting and
cracking of beams and slabs may occur due to differential settlements. These are
shown in Figure 8.1. If the foundation of structure settles uniformly as shown in
Figure 8.1(a), there may not be any structural damage. However, if one part
settles differentially with respect to other parts of the foundation, as shown in
Figures 8.1(b) and (c), then the structure undergoes distortion and the
connecting beams, slabs and interfaces may crack and the floors may become
unusable.
For example a building with rigid components undergoes a uniform
settlement (Figure 8.1(a)). Figure 8.1(b) shows a uniform tilt, where the
entire structure rotates. Figure 8.1(c) shows a common situation of non-
uniform settlement, namely dishing. Non-uniform settlement results
from: 1. uniform stress acting upon a homogeneous soil, or 2. non-
uniform bearing stress, or 3. nonhomogeneous subsoil conditions. As
shown in Figure 8.1 the differential settlement Ds between two points is
the larger settlement minus the smaller one. Differential settlement is
also characterized by angular distortion d L which is the differential
settlement between two points divided by the horizontal distance between
them and may be referred to as a ratio.
The amount of settlement a structure can withstand is called the
allowable settlement or permissible settlement. This depends on many
factors, including the type, size, location and intended use of the
structure and the pattern, rate, cause and source of settlement. Tables
8.4 and 8.5 give typical values of allowable settlements and differential
settlements.
Total Settlement Generally the amount of total settlement is not a problem of
concern. But it is primarily a question of serviceability. However, there are
situations where large total settlements can cause
Suggestions to Reduce Large Differential Settlements :
large differential settlements are more detrimental than the
individual settlement to structures and foundations. To
safeguard against large differential settlements, the following
alternatives in design could be helpful 1. Use a raft foundation
with or without stiffening beams in one or more directions. 2.
Reduce the net pressure transmitted to the soil by providing
deep basements. 3. Use piles, piers or basement slab
foundations, pile–raft systems to transfer large loads from the
superstructure to strong deeper soils with low compressibility.
4. Provide jacking pockets or brackets in columns to relevel the
alignment of the superstructure when necessary. 5. Provide
additional loads on lightly loaded parts of the structure if
feasible.
Codes and Standard
Many of the codes are silent on aspect of the design of foundations, but
the engineer will study carefully any provisions that are given to prevent a
violation.
Most of the Uniform Building Code includes requirements for Excavation,
Foundations and Retaining Walls.
Strength Design
Factor of Safety
The engineer must refer to the building code covering the project for a list of
requirements. A study to determine the quality of data related to the design
can help to decide factor of safety. The idea of limit states provides the basic
consideration of factor of safety. All of ultimate limit states and serviceability
limit states should be considered.
Selection of Total Factor of Safety
The total factor of safety can be expressed as follow.
F = Rmean/Smean , F = factor of safety , Rmean = mean value of resistance
Smean = mean value of loads .
Soil resistance should be selected lower-bound values with the service loads
which lead to either overstressing a component of foundations or excessive
deflection. The safety factor should be increased in local failure of soil (loose
soil).
In allowable bearing capacity estimation, total safety factor is mostly used and
it is assumed between 2.5 and 3. For the fairly stiff footing such as grid and
mat factor of safety may be reduced to 2.5 while 3 for single footing.
In allowable bearing capacity estimation, total
safety factor is mostly used and it is assumed
between 2.5 and 3. For the fairly stiff footing such
as grid and mat factor of safety may be reduced to
2.5 while 3 for single footing.
Selection of Partial Factor
of Safety
The partial safety factors are considered
separately to reduce the strength of material,
to account for deficiencies in fabrication and
for inadequacies in the theory or model of
design.
Some partial safety factors are expressed
according to ACI318 and UBC.
Design to Accommodate Construction
Dewatering During Construction
When the foundation is placed under water table, pumping from a
sump in the excavation is frequently unacceptable because of the
danger of the collapse of the excavation as a result of the lowered
effective stress due to the rising water. The use of well point of good
control is acceptable. Make an attention to nearby building not to be
affected by lowering the water level beneath the building.
Dealing with Nearby Structures
An excavation with a substantial depth for a mat could create several
problems. Extraordinary measure must sometimes be taken, including
possible underpinning of the foundations of adjacent structures.
Shallow Foundation Subjected to Vibratory Loading
The analysis and design of foundations subjected to machine
vibration or impact from earthquake is a difficult problem
because of the complex interaction between the structural
system and supporting soil.
Vibration of sand can cause densification of the sand with
consequent settlement of the foundation. If the relative density
of the sand close to unity, vibration is likely not to be a problem.
Therefore soil-improvement method must be implemented to
make the sand to vibration.
Special Soil Conditions Collapsible Soil
Such soil consist of thick strata of windblown fine grains,
deposited over long periods of time, and reinforced by
remains of vegetation or by cementation. The will remain
under moderate loads, however, on becoming saturated, the
soil will collapse. Preventions from rising water table and
saturation are essential.
Expansive Clay
During dry weather, there will be seen cracks in the surface
soil and may extend several feet below ground surface. There
is a suggestion that a plasticity index of 15 or less means that
the swelling potential of clay is expected to be little.
If clay soil is expensive, the thickness of layer is determined
and shallow layer should be removed out. The improvement
can be treated using chemicals such line.
If the stratum is thick to remove or stabilize, engineer must
use stiffened slab on grade or truss ground beam with deep
foundation.
To avoid uplift from expending clay, beams and floors should
not be contact to such soil.
Layered Soil
Either the soil is of the same sort but with
widely varying properties, or two or more
layers exist in the zone beneath the
foundation, bearing may be based on
weakest layer or settlement will control the
design.
The shape of the failure surface is modified
to reflect the presence of layers with
different characteristics. A more favorable
approach is to employ finite element
method.
Seismic Resisting
In most codes permit a 33% increase in
allowable pressure when the effects of
wind or earthquake are included. But
following should be encountered in
judgments.
Liquefaction
It is important to note that soils composed
of sands, silts, and gravels are most
susceptible to liquefaction while clayey
soils generally are not susceptible to
liquefaction phenomenon.
Liquefaction hazard evaluation, should be
consulted when
Gravelly soils are encountered,
For soils containing more than 35 percent fines,
The weight of soil particles finer than 0.005 mm
is less than 15 percent of the dry weight of a
specimen of the soil,
The liquid limit of soil is less than 35 percent,
and
The moisture content of the in-place soil is
greater than 0.9 times the liquid limit. If these
criteria are not met, the soils may be
considered no liquefiable.
Surface Manifestations
Surface manifestations refer to sand boils
and ground fissures on level ground sites.
For structures supported on shallow
foundations, the effects of surface
manifestations on the structure could be
tilting or cracking.
Well reinforced mat foundations and
strongly inter-tied footings have been most
effective.
Loss of bearing strength
Loss of bearing strength can occur if the
foundation is located within or above the
liqefiable layer. The consequence of
bearing failure could be settlement or tilting
of the structure.
Ground settlement
For saturated or dry granular soils in a
loose condition, the amount of ground
settlement could approach 3 to 4 percent
of the thickness of the loose soil layer in
some cases. This amount of settlement
could cause tilting or cracking of a building,
and therefore, it is usually important to
evaluate the potential for ground
settlement during earthquakes.
Flow failures. Flow failures or flow slides
are the most catastrophic form of ground
failure that may be triggered when
liquefaction occurs. They may displace
large masses of soils tens of meters. Flow
slides occur when the average static shear
stresses on potential failure surfaces are
less than the average shear strengths of
liquefied soil on these surfaces. Standard
limit equilibrium static slope stability
analyses
Foundation ties
One of the prerequisites of adequate
performance of a building during an
earthquake is the provision of a foundation
that acts as a unit and does not permit one
column or wall to move appreciably with
respect to another. Structural measures
that are used to reduce the hazard include
deep foundations, mat foundations, or
footings interconnected with ties should be
considered.
Find the following:
Determine the design criteria and
allowable bearing pressure.
Determine footing size.
Check resistance to sliding
Questions ?
FE - II
LECT. 2
