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Characteristics of Satisfactory Shallow Foundations:

ULTIMATE BEARING CAPACITY 1. Safe against overall shear failure in the soil that supports
CE 522 them.
2. Cannot undergo excessive displacement of settlement

qu General Shear Failure

Occurs in footing resting on the surface of a dense sand or stiff
The load per unit area of the foundation at cohesive soil
which shear failure in soil occurs

When the load per unit area = qu a sudden failure in the soil supporting the
foundation will take place, and the failure surface in the soil will extend to the
ground surface.

Local Shear Failure
The foundation under consideration rests on sand or clayey soil
of medium compaction
The failure surface in the soil will gradually extend outward from the foundation.
When the load per unit area on the foundation equals qu(1), movement of the
foundation will be accompanied by sudden jerks.
Dr = relative density of sand
Df = depth of foundation measured from the
ground surface
B =
where: B = width of foundation
L = Length of foundation
For Square Foundations:
B=L
For Circular Foundations:
B = L = diameter
Vesic, A. S. (1973). Analysis of Ultimate Loads of Shallow
Foundations, Journal of Soil Mechanics and Foundations Division,
B* = B
American Society of Civil Engineers, Vol. 99, No. SM1, pp. 4573.
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Punching Shear Failure
The foundation under consideration rests on fairly loose soil.
The failure surface in soil will not extend to the ground surface. Little or no bulging
occurs at the ground surface. Beyond the ultimate failure load, qu, the load
settlement plot, will be steep and practically linear.
Terzaghi suggested that for a continuous, or strip, foundation (i.e., one whose
width-to-length ratio approaches zero), the failure surface in soil at ultimate load
may be assumed to be similar to that shown in Figure
The failure zone under the
foundation can be separated into
three parts :
1. The triangular zone ACD
immediately under the
foundation
2. The radial shear zones ADF
and CDE, with the curves DE
and DF being arcs of a
logarithmic spiral
3. Two triangular Rankine
passive zones AFH and CEG
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Consider Triangle ACD Consider Line DC

where:
b = B/2
W = weight of soil wedge ACD
= b2 tan
C = cohesive force acting each
face (AD and CD) that is
equal to the unit cohesion
times the length of each face
= c2b/cos Contribution of soil Contribution of soil Contribution of
weight, cohesion, c surcharge, q
Fv = 0 Note: H = b tan
(qu)(2b)(1) = -W + 2Csin + 2Pp q = + c tan tan (Eq. 1)
Pp = sum of contributions of , c, and q P = b tan K + c b tan K + c b tan K
(Eq. 2)
P = H K + c HK + qHK

Table 10: Terzaghis Bearing Capacity Factors

Combining Eq. 1 and Eq. 2

q = c N + qN + BN N = cot 1
where:
Nc, Nq, N = bearing capacity factors = cot Nq 1

N =

N = tan K tan 1

Ref: Kumbhojkar(1993)
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Estimated qu of Square Foundation:

1. A strip footing 1m wide is laid at a depth of 2m in a soil with the
following characteristics: c = 20 kPa, = 28o, and unit weight of 18
q = 1.3c N + qN + 0.4BN kN/m3. Determine the ultimate bearing capacity of the soil
2. A square foundation is 1.5m x 1.5m in the plan. The soil supporting the
where: B = dimension of the side of foundation
foundation has a friction angle equal to 20o, and cohesion of 15.2 kPa.
The unit weight of soil is 17.8 kN/m3. Determine the ultimate bearing
Estimated qu of Circular Foundation: capacity of the soil. Assume Df = 1.2 m.

q = 1.3c N + qN + 0.3BN
where: B = diameter of the foundation

Application of FS to the gross ultimate bearing capacity (qu) to

determine the gross allowable load-bearing capacity (qall) A square foundation is shown in
the figure. The footing will carry
a gross mass of 40,000 kg. using
q
q = FS = 3, determine the size of the
FS footing. Unit weight of soil is
Note: 18.1 kN/m3, cohersion is zero,
and angle of friction is 35o.
FS value should be at least 3.

Q Allowable gross load

q = =
A Area of foundation
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Table 11: Terzaghis Modified Bearing Capacity Factors

Modified qu of soil for a strip footing: where:

Nc, Nq, N = modified bearing
q = c N + qN + BN capacity factors due to:

Estimated qu of Square Foundation: tan = tan

Use Table 11
q = 1.3c N + qN + 0.4BN c = c
where: B = dimension of the side of foundation
Estimated qu of Circular Foundation:

q = 1.3c N + qN + 0.3BN
where: B = diameter of the foundation

CASE 1: If the GWT is located so that 0 < D1 < Df,

1. A 1-m square footing carries a total load (including its own weight) of about the factor q in the bearing capacity equations
60,250 kg. The depth of the footing base is 1 m below the ground surface. The takes the form:
average density of the clay soil is 1850 kg/m3, cohesion is 15kPa, and = 20o.
Determine: q = effective surcharge = D1 + D2,
a. The gross foundation pressure (qall) and =
b. The overburden pressure
CASE 2: For a GWT located so that 0 d B,
c. The ultimate bearing capacity of the soil (qu) q = Df, but for will be replaced by:
d
d. The ultimate bearing capacity, assuming local shear failure (qu) = + ( )
B

CASE 3: When the GWT is located so that d B,

the water will have no effect on the ultimate
bearing capacity
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1. A square footing is shown in the figure.

Determine the gross allowable load, Qall,
that the footing can carry. Assume Fs = 3.
Given: = 105 lb/ft3, sat = 118 lb/ft3, c = 0,
= 35o, B = 5 ft, Df = 4 ft, and h = 2 ft.
2. Repeat Problem 1, assume h be the depth of
ground water table bellow the base of the
foundation.