CE 423- FOUNDATION

ENGINEERING

Bearing Capacity of
Shallow Footings

Department of Civil Engineering

 Learning Objectives

• Discuss failure mechanisms

• Describe limit equilibrium analysis approach

• Learn basic design approach for shallow

footings (strength limit state)
 Foundation Design Philosophy
Limit State = “condition beyond which a
component/member of a foundation or other structure
ceases to satisfy the provisions for which the
component/member was designed”

• Strength Limit State (bearing capacity analysis)

• Service Limit State (settlement analysis)
• Extreme Event Limit State
• Fatigue Limit State
Common Types of Foundation

spread footing mat foundation

pile foundation drilled shaft foundation

 Failure of Shallow Footings

• Dense soil
• “Brittle” response

General Shear Failure

Local Shear Failure

• Loose soil
• “Ductile” response

Punching Failure
(Coduto)
Practice is to check general shear case
Then do settlement analysis
(implicitly checks local and punching)

(Coduto)
Modes of bearing capacity failure in
soil (Das, 2010)

GENERAL SHEAR FAILURE OF SOIL

LOCAL SHEAR FAILURE OF SOIL

 Limit Equilibrium Approach

1) Select plausible failure mechanism (failure surface)

2) Determine forces on failure surface
3) Use static equilibrium to determine failure load
Strip Footing on Saturated Clay
Semi-circular failure surface
(Undrained Analysis)

For refined geometry:

 Terzaghi’s Bearing Capacity Equation
Embedment depth (Df): accounts for frost,
Shallow Footing (B X L) environmental effects, etc., provides surcharge

General Shear Failure Surface

1
Ultimate Bearing Capacity qult  cN c  qN q  B N 
2
More general form… (Vesic, 1973)

1
qult  c' N c f c  qN q f q  B N  f 
2

qult = ultimate bearing capacity (stress)

c’ = cohesion (or su for undrained load andf = 0; short term analysis for clay)
q = overburden stress (q = Df)
B = footing width (or diameter)
 = total unit weight of soil (need to correct for water table)
Nc, Nq, Nf = “Bearing capacity factors” = f(f)
fc, fq, f = correction factors (shape, depth, load inclination, slope, etc…)
 Terzaghi’s Bearing Capacity Equation for General
Shear Failure
 For a continuous, or strip, foundation (i.e., one whose
width-to-length ratio approaches zero):

Bearing capacity
failure in soil under a
rough rigid continuous
(strip) foundation
 Terzaghi’s Bearing Capacity Equation for General
Shear Failure
 To estimate the ultimate bearing capacity of square
and circular foundations,

Ultimate Bearing Capacity

Where:
𝑞𝑢𝑙𝑡 = 𝑢𝑙𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑐𝑎𝑝𝑎𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝐵 = dimension of each side of
𝐶 = 𝑐𝑜ℎ𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙 foundation or for circular footing,
𝑞𝑢 it is equal to its diameter.
𝐶=
2 ∅ = 𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑓𝑟𝑖𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛
𝑞𝑢 = 𝑢𝑛𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑓𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑑 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ
𝛾 = 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡 𝑤𝑒𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑜𝑖𝑙
𝑞 = 𝛾𝐷𝑓
Bearing Capacity Factors
VARIATIONS OF THE BEARING CAPACITY FACTORS
Bearing Capacity Factors (Vesic, 1973)
(If no table given)

 f   tanf
Ressner Formula: N q  tan  45  e
2

 2
Prandtl Formula: N c  N q  1cot f

Vesic Formula: N  2N q  1 tan f

 Terzaghi’s Bearing Capacity Equation for LOCAL
Shear Failure
 (For loose sand and soft clay)
2 2
𝑐′ = 𝑐 tan ∅′ = tan ∅
3 3
1. Strip Footing

′
𝟏 ′
𝒒𝒖𝒍𝒕 = 𝒄𝑵𝒄 + 𝒒𝑵𝒒 + 𝜸𝑩𝑵𝒚′
𝟐
2. Square Footing

𝒒𝒖𝒍𝒕 = 𝟏. 𝟑𝒄𝑵𝒄′ + 𝒒𝑵𝒒′ + 𝟎. 𝟒𝜸𝑩𝑵𝒚′

3. Rectangular Footing

𝟎. 𝟑𝑩 𝟏 𝟎. 𝟐𝑩
𝒒𝒖𝒍𝒕 = 𝒄𝑵𝒄′ 𝟏+ ′
+ 𝒒𝑵𝒒 + 𝜸𝑩𝑵𝒚′ 𝟏 −
𝑳 𝟐 𝑳
4. Circular Footing

𝒒𝒖𝒍𝒕 = 𝟏. 𝟑𝒄𝑵𝒄′ + 𝒒𝑵𝒒′ + 𝟎. 𝟑𝜸𝑩𝑵𝒚′

MODIFIED BEARING CAPACITY FACTORS
 Correction Factors
Shape Depth Inclination

f q  Fqs Fqd Fqi 

f c  Fcs Fcd Fci 
f  Fs Fd Fi 

P b

Df

L
B
 Ultimate, Net, and Allowable Capacity
1
qult  cN c f c  qN q f q  B N  f 
2
qnet  qult  D f Subtract pressure from excavated soil above footing
qnet
qall  F.S. = factor of safety (F.S. = 2 – 4)
F .S .
Pall  qall A
 Effect of Water Table
Case 1 (Shallow water table):
If Dw < Df, then use ’ in 1/2BN term , where (’ =  – w)
If Dw = 0, then use ’ in qNq term and 1/2BN term

Case 2 (Intermediate Water Table):

If Df < Dw < Df + B, then use “average ” in 1/2BN term

  Dw  D f 
 avg     w 1   
  B 
Case 3: (Deep Water Table):
If Dw > Df +B, then no effect

Case 1 Case 2 Case 3

1. Gross Allowable Bearing Capacity

𝒒𝒖𝒍𝒕
𝒒𝒂𝒍𝒍 =
𝑭. 𝑺.
2. Net Allowable Bearing Capacity

𝒒𝒖𝒍𝒕 − 𝒒
𝒒𝒂𝒍𝒍(𝒏𝒆𝒕) =
𝑭. 𝑺.
 Example: Sand
P Find Pall for FS = 3.0

0
1
qult  cN c f c  qN q f q  B N  f 
Df = 5’ 2
L = 10’
Check water table:
B = 6’ Sand (c = 0) Dw (13) > Df + B (11) so no effect
Dw = 13’  = 110 pcf
From Vesic (1973): for f = 33 deg.
f = 33
Nq = 26.1
N = 35.2
Correction factors:
Pall  qall A B
Fqs  1  tan f  1.39
L
qnet
qall   Df
Fqd  1  2 tan f 1  sin f  
2 
  1.22
FS  B 
qnet  qult  D f B
Fs  1  0.4  0.76
L
Fd  1
 P
Find Pall for FS = 3.0

0
1
Df = 5’ qult  cN c f c  qN q f q  B N  f 
L = 10’
2
1
B = 6’ qult  D f N q Fqs Fqd  BN  Fs Fd
Dw = 13’ Sand (c = 0) 2
 = 110 pcf qult  110526.11.391.22
f = 33 1
  611035.2 0.761
2
qult  24334  8826  33160 psf
qnet  33160  1105  32610
qnet 32610
qall    10870
FS 3
Pall  qall A  10870 psf 6'10'  652 kips
 Example: Clay
P

Dw = 0 • Find Pall for FS = 3.0

• Assume undrained (rapid) loading (f = 0, su)
Df = 6’ • This is the critical case (weakest soil)
L = 10’
B = 6’
Clay
 = 100 pcf t

Results from UU tests on Clay:

Test s3f (psi) s1f (psi) Undrained Shear Strength
su = 8.7 psi = 1250 psf
A 10 27
B 20 38
s (psi)
C 40 57
 1
P qult  su N c f c  qN q f q  B N  f 
2
Dw = 0 From Vesic (1973), for f = 0:
Nq = 1.0
Nc = 5.14
Df = 6’
N = 0
L = 10’
B = 6’ No need to check water table (N = 0)

Clay Correction Factors:

 = 100 pcf
 Df 
Fcd  1  0.4   1.4
 B 
0
2 Df 
Fqd  1  2 tan f 1  sin f     1.0
 B 
B  Nq 
Fcs  1     1.2
L  Nc 
B 0
Fqs  1  tan f  1
L
 P

Dw = 0 0
1
Df = 6’
qult  su N c f c  qN q f q B N  f 
2
qult  12505.14 1.4 1.2  1006 11
L = 10’
B = 6’
qult  11394 psf
Clay
 = 100 pcf qnet  11394  1006   10794 psf
qnet 10794
qall    3598 psf
FS 3
Pall  qall A  35986 10  216 kips