SETTLEMENT OF A SHALLOW

FOUNDATION

Name: P.H.S Madusanka

Index No: 150385E
Date of sub: 20/12/2019
Contents
1 Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 1
2 Problem statement ................................................................................................................... 1
3 Analysis ................................................................................................................................... 3
3.1 Stages of construction ...................................................................................................... 3
4 Results ..................................................................................................................................... 3
4.1 Settlement of the existing wall and column foundation before the construction of the
sump 3
4.2 Anticipated maximum settlement of the proposed sump ................................................. 4
4.3 Additional settlements due to construction of the sump .................................................. 4

Table 1- Subsurface Details ............................................................................................................ 2

Table 2- Structural Element Properties ........................................................................................... 3
Table 3 Settlement values of wall and column foundation before construction ............................. 4
Table 4 Anticipated maximum vertical settlement of sump ........................................................... 4
Table 5 Additional Settlements of wall and column foundations ................................................... 4

Figure 2-1 Ground Profile ............................................................................................................... 2

Figure 4-1 Settlement profile of existing wall and column foundation .......................................... 3
Figure 4-2 Settlement profile due to Sump Construction ............................................................... 4

i
1 Introduction
Construction of new foundation and application of loads on ground exerts further settlements of
existing structures in the vicinity. It is necessary to calculate these settlements once after the
construction has been done and the service loads have been applied, to see whether the
settlements are in tolerable limits.
Elastic settlements due to application of loads/ foundations can easily be calculated using elastic
settlement equation given by;
𝑞(1 − 𝑣 2 )𝐵𝐼𝑤
𝑠𝑒 =
𝐸
𝑠𝑒 − 𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑐 𝑠𝑒𝑡𝑡𝑙𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑡 (𝑚)
𝑞 − 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 (𝑘𝑁/𝑚2 )
𝑣 − 𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑠𝑠𝑜𝑛′ 𝑠 𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜
𝐵 − 𝑤𝑖𝑑𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑓𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 (𝑠𝑚𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑟 𝑑𝑖𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 − 𝑚)
𝐸 − 𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑐 𝑚𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑢𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙
𝐼𝑤 − 𝑖𝑛𝑓𝑙𝑢𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟
Charts have also been developed to establish settlements due to loads based on several theories.
Other than mathematical equations, the elastic settlements can also be calculated using finite
element model based computer programs and PLAXIS is a software used widely in the industry
for range of geotechnical applications. This exercise is based on Plaxis simulation for a
settlements of existing foundation.

2 Problem statement
It is planned to refurbish an existing building as a shopping complex and a city hotel. As part of
the proposed development, it is required to construct a sump at the basement level of the
proposed building. The dimensions of the sump are 7.0m×15.0m with a height of 3.0m. The
foundation of the proposed sump will be constructed very close to the already existing column
and wall foundations each having width of 2.0m and a thickness of 0.5m. ground water table was
assumed to be at the basement level of the building conservatively.

The following ground profile was established using bore hole details and SPT values.

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 Table 1- Subsurface Details
Depth (m) Soil type γ𝑏𝑢𝑙𝑘 γ𝑠𝑎𝑡 C’ Φ’ E (kN/m2) ν
(kN/m2) (kN/m2) (kN/m2)
0-3.5 Loose sand 17 18 0 26 10000 0.33
3.5- 6.0 Medium dense 18 19 0 30 18000 0.3
sand
6.0-7.5 Very loose sand 15 17 0 24 5000 0.33
7.5-11.0 Lateritic soil 19 20 8 29 15000 0.3
11.0-16.5 Completely 20 21 8 29 15000 0.3
weathered rock 1
16.5-20.0 Completely 20 21 10 38 25000 0.3
weathered rock 2

Figure 2-1 Ground Profile

Loose sand
Medium dense sand
Very loose sand
Lateritic soil
Completely weathered rock 1
Completely weathered rock 2

2
Details of the plate properties are as follows
Table 2- Structural Element Properties
Parameter Wall/column Sump Unit
Normal stiffness (EA) 26,000,000 63,700,000 kN/m
Flexural rigidity (EI) 541,700 650,300 kNm2/m
Equivalent thickness (d) 0.5 0.35 m
Weight (w) 12.5 8.75 kN/m/m
Poisson’s ratio (ν) 0.15 0.15 -
Service Load 75 35 kN/m2/m

3 Analysis
3.1 Stages of construction
Stage 1 Application of service and dead load on existing column/ wall foundation
Stage 2 Application of dead load due to sump construction
Stage 3 Application of service load on sump (due to water)

4 Results
4.1 Settlement of the existing wall and column foundation before the construction of the
sump
As per the first phase, existing wall and column foundations were modeled with their dead and
service loads together.

Figure 4-1 Settlement profile of existing wall and column

foundation

3
The reported maximum settlements before the construction of the sump
Table 3 Settlement values of wall and column foundation before construction
Wall foundation 41.15 mm
Column foundation 40.43 mm

4.2 Anticipated maximum settlement of the proposed sump

Table 4 Anticipated maximum vertical settlement of sump
Due to self-weight of the sump 5.77 mm
Due to both self-weight and service load (final settlement due to total 50.00 mm
effect)

4.3 Additional settlements due to construction of the sump

Figure 4-2 Settlement profile due to Sump Construction

Table 5 Additional Settlements of wall and column foundations

Wall column
After constructing the sump (due to self-weight: from phase 1 3.91 mm 3.25 mm
to phase 2)
After starting to use the sump (from phase 1 to phase 3) 18.33 mm 15.17 mm