DEEP FOUNDATIONS

Deep foundations are those foundations which derive their supporting capacity at some
depth below the structure, generally Df/B  4. These are selected when structure –
subsoil system makes a shallow foundation unfeasible for reasons of performance,
construction or economy.

There are three types of deep foundations

(a) Piles (b) Piers (c) Caissons

.Piles:

A pile is a structural member which transmit the building load (compression, tension or
combination of both) to a good bearing stratum at deep depth. This, in general,
resembles to a column but is burried in the ground.

Diameter < 3 ft, some define pile of diameter between 150 mm to 600 mm (6 to 2)

Piers:
Also called drilled pier, concrete pier, drilled shafts diameter larger than 3 ft, higher in
load carrying capacity than piles. Support axial load > 100 tons (1000 kN). They are
constructed by drilling/excavating a slender cylindrical hole into the ground, inserting
reinforcing steel and filling it with concrete. No need of cap, cannot be very deep, can
be constructed in gravelly soils as well.

Straight Shaft
Stepped/tappered Bell-bottom
Caissons
French word means box. Caissons are prefabricated boxes or cylinders that are sunk
into the ground to some desired depth, then filled with concrete. Also a caisson is a
structure which is sunk through ground or water for the purpose of excavating and
placing the foundation at the prescribed depth and which subsequently becomes an
integral part of the permanent work.

Piles are commonly used

1. To carry the superstructure loads into or through a soil stratum. Both vertical and
lateral loads may be involved. Piles are considered when soil layer of reliable
bearing capacity lies too deep, soil layer immediately underlying a structure is soft or
poorly compacted; soil layer immediately underlying a structure is highly variable in
nature.

2. To resist uplift, or overturning forces as for basement mats below the water table or
to support tower legs subjected to overturning.

3. To compact loose, cohesionless deposits through a combination of pile volume

displacement and driving vibrations. These piles may be later pulled.

4. To control settlements when spread footings or a mat is on a marginal soil or is

underlain by a highly compressible stratum.

5. To stiffen the soil beneath machine foundations to control both amplitude of vibration
and the natural frequency of the system.

6. As an additional safety factor beneath bridge abutments and/or piers, particularly if

scour is a potential problem.

7. In offshore construction to transmit loads above the water surface through the water
and into the underlying soil. This is a case of partially embedded piling subjected to
vertical (and buckling) as well as lateral loads.

8. Piles are sometimes used to control earth movements (as landslides).

9. For structures transmitting very high concentrated loads

Donald P. Coduto “Foundation Design, Principles and Practices” 2nd ed.
Engineers prefer to use spread footings wherever possible, because they are simple
and inexpensive to build. However, we often encounter situations where spread footings
are not the best choice. Examples include the following:

1. The upper soils are so weak and/or the structural loads so high that spread footings
would be too large. A good rule-of-thumb for buildings is that spread footings cease
to be economical when the total plan area of the footings exceeds about one-third of
the building footprint area.

2. The upper soils are subject to scour or undermining. This would be especially
important with foundations for bridges.

3. The foundation must penetrate through water, such as those for a pier.

4. A large uplift capacity is required (the uplift capacity of a spread footing is limited to
its dead weight)

5. A large lateral load capacity is required

6. There will be a future excavation adjacent to the foundation, and this excavation
would undermine shallow foundations.

In some of these circumstances, a mat foundation may be appropriate, but the most
common alternative to support footings is some type of deep foundations.
 CLASSIFICATION OF PILES

Piles can be classified in a number of ways as discussed below:

w.r.t to load transfer

End bearing pile
If the pile is driven until it rests on a hard, impenetrable layer of soil or rock, the load
of the structure is primarily transmitted axially through the pile to this layer. Such a
pile is called an end-bearing pile. OR
A pile shall be considered to be an end bearing pile if the major portion of support
capacity is derived from the resistance of the foundation material on which the pile
tip rests.
In the case of an end-bearing pile, care must be exercised to ensure that the hard,
impenetrable layer is adequate to support the load.
Friction or floating pile
If the pile cannot be driven to a hard stratum of soil or rock (e.g. such a stratum is
located too far below the ground surface), the load of the structure must be borne
primarily by skin friction or adhesion between the surface of the pile and adjacent
soil. Such a pile is called friction pile. OR
A pile shall be considered to be a friction pile if the major portion of support capacity
is derived from soil resistance mobilized along the side of the embedded pile.
Combination Friction and End Bearing Piles
Under certain soil conditions and for certain pile materials, the bearing capacity of a
pile may be considered as the sum of the resistance mobilized on the embedded
shaft and that developed at the pile tip, even though the forces that are mobilized
simultaneously are not necessarily maximum values.
Batter Piles
When the lateral resistance of the soil surrounding the piles is inadequate to
counteract the horizontal forces transmitted to the foundation, or when increased
rigidity of the entire structure is required, batter piles should be used in the
foundation. Where negative skin friction loads are expected, batter piles should be
avoided, and an alternate method of providing lateral restraint should be used.
The use of battered shafts to increase the lateral capacity of foundations is not
recommended due to their difficulty of construction and high cost. Instead,
consideration should first be given to increasing the shaft diameter to obtain the
required lateral capacity. (Ref: AASHTO Specifications for Highway Bridges)

w.r.t. installation technique

Driven piles: Preformed units, usually in timber, concrete or steel, driven into the soil
by the blow of a hammer
 Driven and cast-in-place piles: Formed by driving a tube with a closed end into the
soil, and filling the tube with concrete. The tube may or may not be withdrawn.
Jacked piles: Steel or concrete units jacked into the soil.
Bored and cast-in-place piles: Piles formed by boring a hole into the soil and filling
it with concrete.
Composite piles: combination of two or more of the preceding types, or combination
of different materials in the same type of pile.
The first three of the above types are sometimes called displacement piles since the
soil is displaced as the pile is driven or jacked into the ground.
Jetting piles: Water jetting may be used to aid the penetration of a pile into a sand
or sandy gravel stratum. Jetting is ineffective in firm to stiff clays or any soil
containing much coarse gravel, cobbles, or boulders.

w.r.t. shape
A pile can be of the following shapes
(a) round, (b) square, (c) H-shape, (d) Battered, (e) Tapered, (f) Under-reamed/Bell
bottom.

w.r.t. size of pile

Small diameter piles: 150 – 600 mm (6 – 2)
Large diameter piles: dia. > 600 mm (also called piers)
Micro piles: dia. < 150 mm. According to M.J. Tomlinson, micropiles are bored and
cast-in-place piles with a diameter of less than 300 mm.

w.r.t. function of pile

Compression pile: for vertical dead loads
Tension or anchor pile: To resist uplift due to horizontal or inclined loading
Compaction pile: to compact loose cohesionless soils.
Sheet pile: to control seepage as in Cofferdams

w.r.t material of construction

Timber:
Suitable for light loads or temporary works. Unsuitable for heavy loads. Subject to decay
due to fluctuating water table. Liable to unseen splitting or brooming if driven too
heavily.
Concrete:
Suitable for all ranges of loading. Concrete can be designed to suit corrosive soil
conditions. Readily adaptable to various sizes and shapes. Disadvantages: additional
reinforcement must be provided for handling and driving stresses; liable to unseen
damage under heavy driving; delay between casting and driving.
Steel:
Suitable for all ranges of loading. Can be readily cut down or extended. Can be driven
hard without damage. Can be driven in very long lengths by welding on additional
lengths. Some types have small ground displacement. Disadvantages: subject to
corrosion in marine structures and requires elaborate paint treatment and/or cathode
protection; long and slender piles liable to go off line during driving.
Composite Piles:
Composite piles are used in ground conditions where conventional piles are unsuitable
or uneconomical. A frequently used type of composite pile is the concrete and timber
pile. The timber pile is terminated below the lowest ground water level and the upper
portion formed in concrete.
 LOAD CARRYING CAPACITY OF PILES

FACTORS AFFECTING AXIAL CAPACITY

1. The difference between the supporting capacity of a single pile and that of a
group of piles (i.e. Group Action)
2. The capacity of an underlying stratum to support the load of the pile group.
3. The effects of driving piles on adjacent structures or slopes
4. The possibility of scour and its effect on axial and lateral capacity
5. The effects of negative skin friction or downdrag loads from consolidating soil
and the effects of uplift loads from expansive or swelling soils.
6. The influence of construction techniques such as augering or jetting on
capacity; and
7. The influence of fluctuations in the elevation of the ground water table on
capacity.

Static Pile Capacity Equations

The load carried by a pile is expressed in equation form as:

Qult.  Q f  Qb (1)
where,
Qult = ultimate bearing capacity of a single pile
Qf = bearing capacity furnished by friction or adhesion between the sides of the
pile and the soil.
Qb = bearing capacity furnished by the soil just beneath the base of the pile.
The term Qf in equation (1) can be evaluated by multiplying the unit skin friction
or adhesion between the sides of the pile and the soil (f) by the surface area of the
pile (As). The term Qb in equation (1) can be evaluated by multiplying the ultimate
bearing capacity of the soil at the tip/base of the pile (q) by the area of the base of
the pile (Ab). Hence equation (1) can be expressed as:
 Qult  f  As  q  Ab (2)

Equations (1) and (2) are generalized and therefore applicable for all soils. The
manner in which some of the terms of equation (2) are evaluated differs, however,
depending on whether the pile is driven in sand or in clay. It is convenient,
therefore, to consider separately piles driven in sand and piles driven in clay.
Piles in sand
The net ultimate bearing capacity of the pile is:

Qult  f  As  q  Ab
  vK tan   As   v N q  Ab
Where,
 v = effective overburden pressure at the pile tip for end bearing part and average
effective overburden pressure in the layer for skin friction part.
Nq = a bearing capacity factor based on angle of shearing resistance,  and D/B
ratio
175

150
Bearing capacity factor, Nq

125

100

75
D/B = 20

50
D/B = 5
D/B = 70
25

0
26 28 30 32 34 36 38 40
Angle of shearing resistance, o
(After Tomlinson)
K = a coefficient of earth pressure dependent largely on the relative density of the
soil.

 = angle of friction between the pile and the soil.

The base and shaft friction resistances do not develop linearly with depth below
certain depths. This is probably mainly due to arching effects in the soil related to
its relative density and compressibility. It is therefore recommended that the
effective overburden pressure in the above equation should be calculated linearly
with depth only down to a limiting depth (Dc) and then assumed to remain constant
below this. Tests indicate that the critical depth ranges from about 10 piles
diameter for loose sand to about 20 pile diameters for dense compact sand.

The limiting value of pile end bearing capacity in sands and gravels is 15 MN/m 2
and that of unit skin friction is 110 kPa.

Values of After US Army Corps of Engineers)

Pile material 

Steel 0.67 to 0.83

Concrete 0.90 to 1.0
Timber 0.80 to 1.0
Piles in Clay
Qult  f  As  q  Ab

 sc  dL  cN c  d2
4
where
As = area of pile shaft
Ab = area of base of pile
c = average undrained shear strength along the pile
c = average undrained shear strength at base of pile
Nc = bearing capacity factor = 9
s = shape factor = 1.0 for a plain shaft and = 1.2 for a tapered pile
d = diameter of pile
L = length of pile
= adhesion factor whose value depends on unconfined compression strength,
= 1 for soft clay and <1 for stiff clay.

Allowable pile capacity can be calculated using overall load factor often taken as
2.0 i.e.
Qs  Qb
Qa 
2
or 1.5 in skin friction and 3 in end bearing, i.e.
Qs Qb
Qa  
1.5 3.0
The lower safety factor in skin friction is because the peak value of skin friction on
a pile in clay is obtained at a settlement of only 3-8 mm, whereas the base
resistance requires a greater settlement for full mobilization. The frictional
resistance on the shaft develops rapidly and almost linearly with settlement and is
generally fully mobilized when the settlement is about 0.5% of the shaft diameter.
Thereafter, it either remains sensibly constant, or decreases slightly as the
settlement is increased further. On the other hand, the base resistance is seldom
fully mobilized until the pile settlement reaches 10 to 20% of the base diameter.
Example
As shown in the figure and no ground water encountered, approximate axial
capacity of the concrete pile if the coefficient of lateral pressure (K) is assumed to
Qdesign = ?

Overburden pressure, psf

0

Critical Depth, Dc = 20'

Medium dense to
dense sand
25 ft  = 128 pcf

Depth, ft
 = 35o
K = 0.95 (assumed)

20 128 x 20 = 2560 psf

25 2560 psf

12"
be 0.95 and the FoS = 2.

Solution:
Critical depth, Dc = 20  dia. of pile = 20  1 = 20 ft
Nq = 50 for  = 35 tan = tan ¾(35) = 0.493
Qult  f  As  q  Ab   vK tan   As   v N q  Ab
 0  2560     2
   0.95  0.493    1  20  2560  0.95  0.493    1  5  2560  50  1 
 2    4 
 37437.7  18718.9  100531  156687 lbs  157 kips
Qdesign = Qult/FoS = 157/2 = 78.5 kips
Example:
Same conditions as in the example above, except that GWL is located 10 ft below the NSL.
Solution: Overburden Pressure, psf
0

GWL 128 x 10 = 1280 psf

10'

Depth

20' 1280 + 10 x (128 - 62.4) = 1936 psf

25' 1936 psf

Qult  f  As  q  Ab
  vK tan   As   v N q  Ab
 0  1280   1280  1936     2
    10     10  1936  5  0.95  0.493    1  1936  50  1 
 2   2    4 
 6400  16080  9680  1.462  76027  47018  76027  123045lbs  123.045 kips
Qdesign = 123.045/2 = 61.5 kips

Example:
A 12 diameter concrete pile is driven at a site as shown in the Figure. The embedded length of
pile is 35 ft. Find out the design capacity using a FoS = 2.

Solution: Qdesign = ?

c = qu/2 = 1400/2 = 700 psf

Qult  f  As  q  Ab

 c  dL  cN c  d2
4
 0.9  700    1  35  700  9  0.785  12 Normally consolidated clay
 = 104 pcf

 69272  4945.5  74218 lbs  74.2 kips 35 ft qu = unconfined compression

strength = 1400 psf
 = 0.9 for 0.7 tsf (qu)
Qdesign = 74.2/2 = 37.1 kips

12"
Example:
A 12 diameter concrete pile is driven at a site as shown. Find out the design capacity of the pile
using a FoS = 2.
Qdesign = ?
Solution:
Qult  Q friction  Qtip
Q friction  f  Asurface  f1  Asurface1  f 2  Asurface2
 c11  dL1  c2 2  dL2 Normally consolidated clay
 = 105 pcf
 700  0.9    1  20  2000  0.56    1  15 20 ft qu = 1400 psf
 = 0.9 for 0.7 tsf (qu)
 39584  52779  92363lbs  92.4 kips
Qtip  c 2 N c  Atip
Overconsolidated clay
  = 126 pcf
 2000  9  1 2
15 ft qu = 4000 psf
4  = 0.56 for 2.0 tsf (qu)
 14137 lbs  14.1 kips
12"
Qult = 92.4 + 14.1 = 106.5 kips
Qdesign = 106.5/2 = 53.25 kips

Example:
A 14 square pre-stressed concrete pile is to be driven in a clay soil as shown in the figure. Find
the required length of pile if FoS = 2.

Qdesign = 80 kips
Solution:
Qult = FoS  Qdesign = 2  80 = 160 kips
c = qu/2 = 2400/2 = 1200 psf
Qtip = cNcAtip
= 1200  9  [(1414)/(1212)] CLAY
 = 115 pcf
L =? qu = 2400 psf
= 14700 lbs = 14.7 kips  = 0.76

Qult  Q friction  Qtip

Q friction  Qult  Qtip  160  14.7  145.3 kips

Qfriction = f  Asurface =  c Asurface

145.3 = 0.761200(144/12) L 14" square

 L = 34 ft