GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING

CHAPTER 4

FOUNDATION AND STRESS DISTRIBUTION

IN SOIL
By
SITI NOORAIIN MOHD RAZALI
Content Title
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Function of Foundation
4.3 General Factors that Influence the Design & Size of
Foundation
4.4 Types of Foundation
4.5 Vertical Pressure below a Concentrated Load
4.6 Vertical Pressure below a Rectangular Area
4.7 Method based on Elastic Theory
4.7.1 Circular Area
4.7.2 Uniform Load on a Rectangular Area
4.7.3 Uniform Load on a Strip Area
4.1 Introduction
• Foundations (sub structure) is a lower portion of building,
usually located below ground level, which transmits the load
of the super structure to the sub soil.
• A foundation is a part of the structure which is in direct
contact with the ground to which the loads are transmitted.
• The soil which is located immediately below the base of the
foundation is called the sub soil or foundation soil.
• The lowermost portion of the foundation which is in direct
contact with the sub soil is called the footing

Source: Shanik, A Asst. Prof. MES School of Architecture

Foundation is the most important part of a building, thus
need special attention on its stability.
It is also the lowest part of a building structure and placed
on the soil that sustain it.
Contains building underground structure (sub-structure)
including footing and piling system.
The construction of this part of a building need specific
design to enable it to sustain load.

Source: Shanik, A Asst. Prof. MES School of Architecture

 4.2 Function of Foundation
Distribute building load to a larger contact
area of an underneath soil
Prevent buiding from sudden settlement due
to movement and erosion.
Provide flat surface for the construction of a
building.
Increase the stability of a building by
lowering its center of gravity; as the reason to
construct such as the construction of
underground car park in a shopping
complexes.

Source: Shanik, A Asst. Prof. MES School of Architecture

4.3 General Factors that Influence the Design & Size of Foundation

Soil physical condition – bearing capacity

Building load including sustained life load, dead
load and wind load.
Economic and safety factor – important in
optimizing cost between types of foundation used
in the construction

Source: Shanik, A Asst. Prof. MES School of Architecture

4.4 Types of Foundations

Source: Shanik, A Asst. Prof. MES School of Architecture

 - Used
extensively;
economic
- Suitable
for : soil
with
medium
bearing
capacity soil
- to sustain a
single
column or a
wall for
light
structure.
Source: Shanik, A Asst. Prof. MES School of Architecture
 To support two
or more
columns where
one of them is
located near the
boundary line or
next to the
existing
building.
Source: Shanik, A Asst. Prof. MES School of Architecture
Source: Shanik, A Asst. Prof. MES School of Architecture
 -construction on low
bearing capacity soil

- excavation of low
bearing capacity soil,
replaced by better soil
and construct of wide
reinforced concrete
shallow footing namely
raft foundation

- Also used on a very

high bearing capacity
soil where the use of
piling is not advisable
(for example in cut
area).
Source: Shanik, A Asst. Prof. MES School of Architecture
Source: Shanik, A Asst. Prof. MES School of Architecture
Source: Shanik, A Asst. Prof. MES School of Architecture
Source: Shanik, A Asst. Prof. MES School of Architecture
Source: Shanik, A Asst. Prof. MES School of Architecture
4.5 Vertical Pressure below a
Concentrated Load
• The pressure magnitude
generally increasing
with depth, this pressure
is the result of both
overburden pressure and
newly introduced load
on the point

• It can be seen that the

General distribution of stress
in soil
stress distribution is
maximum at centre and
reducing moving away
from the centre as well
as with depth
• TWO method to calculate stress increase due to point
load are:

1) Westergaard
2) Bousinesq equation
Where;
• p = Vertical Stress at depth z (m)
• P = concentrated load (kN)
• µ = Poisson’s ratio
• z = depth (m)
• r = horizontal distance from point of application of P to point at which P is desired.
IB and Iw ( refer graph below)
4.6 Vertical Pressure below a Loaded Rectangular Area (2:1-
Approximate Method)

TRY!
4.7 Method based on elastic theory
4.7.1 circular area

p = Iw

Where;
I – influence coefficient (Table 4.1 or Figure 4.4)
w – uniform load

* For circular footing only

Example 4.2
A circular loaded area of 100 kN/m2 is exerted on a ground
surface. The radius of the circle is 3 meter. Determine the
vertical stress increase at the following point:
i. At 6 m below the center of the circle.
ii. At 6 m below the circle with 1.5 m measured
horizontally from the center (where, r =1.5 m, z = 6m).
iii. At 6 m under the edge of the circle.
iv. At 6 m under the surface and 5.5 m measured
horizontally from the center (where, r =5.5 m, z = 6m).

*The value of Iw can easily be referred to from Figure 4.4 without having to
do any interpolation like Table 4.1
Solution:
i. a = 3 m (radius of circle) , r = 0, z = 6m iii. a = 3 m (radius of circle), r = 3m, z = 6 m
r/a=0; r/a=3/3=1;
z/a=2; z/a=2;
I=0.284; I=0.194,
q=Iw=0.284x100=28.4kN/m2 q=19.4kN/m2

ii. a = 3 m (radius of circle), r = 1.5 m, z = 6 m iv. a = 3 m (radius of circle), r = 5.5m, z = 6m

r/a=1.5/3=0.5; r/a=5.5/3=1.83;
z/a=2; z/a=2;
I=0.258, I=0.0914,
q=25.8kN/m2 q=9.14 kN/m2
4.7.2 Uniform Load on a Rectangular Area

• Vertical stress, q = Iw

• Calculate m=A/z and n=B/z

to find the I value in Table 4.2 or Figure 4.6

where : Term definition for vertical

stress increase at point C under
A – width of the loaded area a corner of a rectangular

B – length of the loaded area

z – depth of point to be determined its stress value
from one of the rectangular corner
Table 4.2 Influence coefficient for points under uniformly loaded
circular area (Newmark, 1935)
Figure 4.6 Chart for use in determining vertical stresses below corners of
loaded rectangular surface areas on elastic, isotropic material, (Newmark,
1942
Example 4.3

Given a footing with

dimension of 1.5m x 1.5m
located 1m below the
ground surface as shown in
Figure 4.7 sustain a load of
650 kN (including all
component weights). Find
the vertical stress increase at
5 m under the footing.
Solution
m=A/z, n=B/z
A= 0.75m and z = 5m B= 0.75m and z = 5m
m= 0.75/5 = 0.15 n= 0.75/5 = 0.15

• From Table 4.2, the influence coefficient = 0.0103 for the area of 0.75m x
0.75m.
• Since the footing of 1.5m x 1.5m has 4 equal size of 0.75m x 0.75m area
which share the point A, so
• q = (4)(0.0103) (stress increase at point A, ΔQ)

• Therefore, q = (4)(0.0103)( 271.6 kN/m2) = 11.2 kN/m2

4.7.3 Uniform Load on a Strip Area
• Vertical pressure below a uniform load on a strip
area can be determined by utilizing Figure 4.8.
Where :

B - strip width
r - radial horizontal distance from centerline
z – depth
Figure 4.8 Influence
coefficient for uniformly
loaded strip area
Example 4.4
Given, soil with unit weight of
17.92 kN/m3, loaded on the
surface by a footing of 1m wide.
The load of the wall footing is
295 kN/m of wall length.
Required:
1. The vertical stress increase due
to wall footing at a point 3 m
below the edge of strip, Figure
4.9.
2. The total vertical load at the
same location.
Solution
1. From Figure 4.9 :
r/B = 0.5m/1m = 0.5
z/B = 3m/1m = 3.0
Influence coefficient = 0.20
p = (0.20)(295 kN/m) = 59 kN/m of wall length

2. Total vertical load = overburden pressure, po + vertical stress increment, p

po = γz = (17.92 kN/m3)(3m)=53.8 kN/m2 or 53.8 kN/m of wall length

Therefore
Total vertical load = 53.8 kN/m + 59.0 kN/m
= 112.8 kN/m
Tutorial
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