Bearing Capacity

Bearing Capacity

• Shallow foundation transmit the applied structural loads to the

near-surface soil
• They induce both compressive and shear stresses in the soil
• If the bearing pressure is large enough or the size of the
footing is small enough, shear stresses may exceed the shear
strength of the soil, which causes bearing capacity failure.
• Three types of bearing capacity failure: general shear failure,
local shear failure, and punching shear failure
 Bearing Capacity

• General shear is the most common

failure mode. Could simulate failure
conditions especially in clayey soils or
dense sands (Dr>67%).
• Local shear could simulate failure
conditions in medium dense sandy
soils (30%<Dr<67%).
• Punching shear could simulate failure
conditions in very loose sandy soils
(Dr<30%).
 Bearing Capacity

• General shear failure involves total

rupture of the underlying soil.
• There is a continuous shear failure of
soil from below the footing to the
ground
• When the load is plotted versus
settlement of the footing, there is a
distinct load at which the foundation
fails. Designated as Qult
 Bearing Capacity
• Local shear failure involves rupture of
the soil only immediately below the
footing
• Bulging of soil around the foundation is
not as significant as general shear failure
• Can be considered as a transitional
phase between general shear and
punching shear
• The bearing capacity could be defined as
the first major nonlinearity in the load-
settlement curve or at the point where
the settlement rapidly increases.
 Bearing Capacity

• Punching shear failure does not

develop the distinct shear surfaces
associated with a general shear
failure
• The process of deformation of the
footing involves compression of soil
directly below
• The soil outside the loaded area
remains relatively uninvolved and
there is minimal movement of soil on
both sides of the footing
 Bearing Capacity
 Design for bearing Capacity

• Shallow foundations are designed to prevent general shear

bearing capacity failure
• Several methods have been developed for bearing capacity
analysis
• Most common: Terzaghi’s and Vesic’s Method
 Bearing Capacity
Terzaghi’s Bearing Capacity Method

Assumptions in the method:

• Depth of the foundation (D) ≤ its width (B)
• Bottom of the foundation is rough (i.e. no sliding between its bottom
and soil)
• Soil underneath the foundation extends to a large depth and
homogeneous (soil properties are uniform)
• The shear strength of the soil is described as:
 Bearing Capacity
• General shear mode of failure governs
• No consolidation of soil occurs (i.e settlement of foundation is
due only to the shear and lateral movement of the soil)
• The foundation is very rigid compared to soil
• The soil between the ground surface and a depth D has no
shear strength (serves only as surcharge load)
• The applied load is compressive and applied vertically to the
centroid of the foundation and no applied moment loads are
present
 Bearing Capacity
 For Continuous Footings:

 For Square Footings:

 For Rectangular Footings:

 Bearing Capacity
 For Circular Foundations:

Where:
Terzaghi's Bearing Capacity Factors
 Allowable load

where:
– factor of safety (ranges from 3 to 4)
Example: Terzaghi’s Method
A square footing is to be constructed as shown in the figure. The ground water table is
at a depth of 50ft below the ground surface. Compute the ultimate bearing capacity
and column load requirement to produce a bearing capacity failure.
Solution:
Example: Terzaghi’s Method
The proposed continuous footing shown in the figure will support the exterior wall of
a new industrial building. The underlying soil is an undrained clay, and gwt is below
the bottom of the footing. Compute the ultimate bearing capacity, and compute the
wall load required to cause a bearing capacity failure.
Solution:
 Vesic’s Equation
• The formula developed by Vesic is based on theoretical and experimental
findings
• It produces more accurate bearing values and it applies to much broader
range of loading and geometry conditions
• The primary disadvantage is its added complexity
 Vesic’s Equation
• The basic form of the ultimate bearing capacity formula is the same with
Terzaghi’s.
 Vesic’s Equation
Shape factors
• Vesic considered a broader range of loading shapes and defined them as his s
factors:

NOTE: For continuous footings, B/L=0, so shape factors equal to 1

 Vesic’s Equation
Depth Factors factors
• Vesic equation has no limitation on the depth of the footing

• if D/B ≤ 1 use

• k=D/B

• if D/B > 1 use k=tan-1(D/B) , where

tan-1 term is in radians
Load Inclination factors
these factors are used when there is a shear component (V) of the applied load at the
base of a footing. If there is no V, all i factors are equal to 1.
For loads inclined in B directions:

For loads inclined in L directions:

Base Inclination factors
• these factors are used very seldom as most of footings have horizontal bases.

Ground Inclination Factors

• foundations near the top of a slope have lower bearing capacity than those on level
ground
Bearing capacity factor

′
𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝜙 > 0
Ground Water Table Effect
 Case 1 Case 2 Case 3
Modify No change in No change in
Calculate :
Calculate : No change in :
Example: Vesic’s Method
A 30m by 50m mat foundation is to be built as shown in the figure.
Compute the ultimate bearing capacity using Vesic’s method.
Solution:
Determine groundwater case:
Solution:
Example:
A column has the following design vertical loads: will be
supported on a spread footing located 3 ft below the ground
surface. The underlying soil has an undrained shear strength of
and a unit weight of . The groundwater table is at depth of 4 ft.
determine the minimum required footing width to maintain a
factor of safety of 3 against a bearing capacity failure.
Solution:
Solution:
 Example:
A column carrying a vertical downward dead load and live load of
150 k and 120 k, respectively, is supported on a 3-ft deep square
spread footing. The soil beneath this footing is an undrained clay
with and . The groundwater table is below the bottom of the
footing. Compute the width B required to obtain a factor of safety 3
against bearing capacity failure.
Solution:
Example:
A 120-ft diameter cylindrical tank with an empty weight of 1,900,000 lb
(including the weight of the cylindrical mat foundation) is to be built. The
bottom of the mat will be at a depth of 2-ft below the ground surface. This
tank is to be filled with water. The underlying soil is an undrained clay with
and , and the groundwater table is at adepth of 5-ft. using Terzaghi’s
equations, compute the maximum allowable depth of the water in the tank
that will maintain a factor of safety of 3.0 against a bearing capacity failure.
Assume the weight of the water and the tank is spread uniformly across the
bottom of the tank.
Solution: