UNIT 4 SOIL BEARING CAPACITY

Pretest:

Simple recall: Describe/discuss the following structures

1. Wall footing or strip footing

2. Spread or square footing
3. Rectangular footing
4. Combined footing
5. Cantilever or strap footing

Lesson 1:

 Ultimate Soil-Bearing capacity for shallow foundations

 Terzaghi’s Bearing Capacity

The lowest part of the structure is referred to as the foundation. Its function
is to transfer the load of the structure to the soil on which it is resting. A properly
designed foundation transfers the load of the structure to the soil throughout the
soil without overstressing the soil. Overstressing the soil could result in either
excessive settlement or shear failure of the soil both of which cause damage to
the structure therefore soil bearing capacity must be evaluated in the design of
foundations.

For a foundation to function properly, two things must be considered:

1. The settlement of soil caused by the load must be within the tolerable limit.
2. Shear failure of the soil supporting the foundation must not occur.

Spread footings and mat foundations generally are referred to as shallow

foundations, with depth-of-embedment-to-width ratio of approximately less than
four. Piles and drilled shaft foundations are classified as deep foundations with
depth-of-embedment-to width ratio greater than four.

To have a better understanding of the ultimate soil-bearing capacity and

the mode of shear failure in soil, let us consider a rectangular footing of width B
located at the surface of a dense sand layer. When a uniformly distributed load of
q per unit area is applied to the footing, it will settle. If the uniformly distributed
load q is increased, the settlement of the footing will also gradually increase.
 When the value of q = qult is reached, bearing capacity failure occurs –
the footing undergoes a large settlement without any further increase of q. The
soil on one or both sides of the foundation bulges, and the slip surface extends to
the ground surface. In this case qult is called the ultimate bearing capacity of soil.

The bearing capacity failure described is called a general shear failure.

When the foundation settles under the application of a load, a triangular wedge-
shaped zone of soil is pushed down and in turn it presses the zones sideways and
then upward. At the ultimate failure pressure, the soil passes into a state of plastic
equilibrium and failure occurs by sliding

According to Terzaghi, a foundation may be defined as a shallow

foundation if the depth Df is less than or equal to its width B, also assumed that,
for ultimate soil bearing capacity calculations, the weight of soil above the base of
the footing may be replaced by a uniform surcharge q = 𝜸Df.

Shallow Strip Footing

Df unit weight of soil 𝜸

q = 𝜸Df
B
Df ≤ 𝑩

The failure mechanism assumed by Terzaghi for determining the ultimate

soil-bearing capacity (general shear failure) for a rough strip footing, located at a
depth Df measured from the ground surface.

A. General Shear Failure

1. Strip Footing

𝟏
qult = CNc + qNq + 𝜸BNy
𝟐

where:
qult = Ultimate bearing capacity
Nc, Nq Ny = Bearing capacity factors that are non-dimensional and are only
Functions of the soil friction angle
B = dimension of each side of the footing or diameter for a circular footing
∅ = angle of internal friction
C = cohesion of soil C=

𝑞 = unconfined compressive strength

𝜸 = unit weight of soil
q = 𝜸Df.
Ultimate Bearing Capacity

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 + 0.3 𝜸BNy
where:
qult = ultimate bearing capacity
C = cohesion of soil
C=
qu = unconfined compressive strength
𝛾 = unit weight of soil
q = 𝛾Df
B = diameter of circular footing
∅ = angle of internal friction

Bearing capacity factor (if no table is given)

∅
1) Ressner Formula: Nq = Tan2 (45 + )𝒆𝝅𝒕𝒂𝒏∅
𝟐
2) Prandtl Formula: Nc = (Nq – 1) cot ∅
3) Vesic Formula: Ny = 2(Nq + 1) tan ∅
4) Meyerfof Formula: Ny = (Nq – 1) tan 1.4 ∅

𝝈all

Ground surface

Df

B
Allowable Bearing capacity =

𝒒𝒖𝒍𝒕 𝑩𝟐
Allowable Load = 𝐴 𝝈all = 𝑭𝑺
F.S. = factor of safety (ranges
from 3 to 4)

B) Local Shear Failure

(For loose sand and soft clay)

𝟐
c’ = 𝑐 tan ∅ = 𝒕𝒂𝒏∅
𝟑

Strip Footing: qult = CNc’ + qNq’ + 𝜸BNy’

Square Footing: qult = 1.3CNc’ + qNq’ + 𝟎. 𝟒𝜸BNy’

𝟎.𝟑𝑩 𝟏 𝟎.𝟐𝑩
Rectangular Footing: qult = CNc’ + [1+ ] + qNq’ + 𝜸𝑩𝑵𝒚 [1 - ]
𝑳 𝟐 𝑳

Circular Footing: qult = 1.3CNc’ + qNq’ + 𝟎. 𝟑𝜸BNy’

Nc’ Nq’ and Ny’ are modified bearing capacity factors which are obtained by
using the value of angle of friction ∅

Modification of bearing capacity equations due to presence of water table

Case 1: If water table is located so that D1< 𝐷𝑓. The factor q in the bearing
capacity equations take the form:

q = D1𝜸 + D2 (𝜸sat - 𝜸w)

where:
q = effective surcharge
𝛾 = unit weight of soil
𝛾𝑤 = unit weight of water
𝛾𝑠𝑎𝑡 = saturated unit weight of soil

The value of 𝛾 in the last term of the equation has to be replaced by

𝛄 = 𝛄𝐬𝐚𝐭 − 𝛄𝐰
𝝈all

Water table
w
D1

Df D2
B
qult = 1.3CNc + qNq + 𝟎. 𝟒𝜸BNy

q = D1𝜸 + D2 (𝜸sat - 𝜸w)

change: 𝜸 in the 3rd term to 𝜸 = 𝜸sat - 𝜸w

Case 2: Water table located so that d< 𝑩

𝝈all

Ground surface

Df
B

d B

B-d 𝛾 = 𝛾sat - 𝛾w
Water table

q = 1.3CNc + qNq + 𝟎. 𝟒𝜸BNy

use:
q = 𝜸Df. Change 𝜸B in the third term to: 𝜸𝑩 = [𝜸d + 𝜸’ (B – d)]
𝜸 = 𝜸sat - 𝜸w
This is based on the assumption that there is no seepage force in the soil.

Case 3: For water table located so that d > B. The water will have no effect on the
Ultimate bearing capacity
𝝈all

Df Df
B

d> 𝑩

Water table
 qult = 1.3CNc + qNq + 𝟎. 𝟒𝜸BNy use q = 𝜸Df.
Case 4: For water table located at the bottom of the foundation
𝝈all
Ground surface

Df Water Table

qult = 1.3cNc + qNq + 𝟎. 𝟒𝜸BNy use q = 𝜸Df.

change: 𝜸 in the 3rd term to 𝜸 = 𝜸sat - 𝜸w

Factor of Safety

Generally, a factor of safety of 3 or more is applied to the ultimate soil

bearing capacity to arrive at the value of the allowable bearing capacity

Allowable Bearing Capacity of Shallow Foundation

1) Gross allowable bearing capacity

𝒒𝒖𝒍𝒕
qall =
𝑭.𝑺.

2) Net allowable bearing capacity

𝒒𝒖𝒍𝒕 𝒒
qall(net) = q = 𝜸Df. (vertical effective stress at the foundation)
𝑭.𝑺.
Allowable Loads Carried by the Foundation

1) Gross allowable load

𝒒𝒖𝒍𝒕
𝝈all = xA A = B2 A = cross-sectional area of footing
𝑭.𝑺.

2) Net allowable Load B

𝒒𝒖𝒍𝒕 𝒒
qall(net) = xA
𝑭.𝑺.
A = cross-sectional area
A = B2
B
Sample Problem 1:

A 1.2 square footing has its bottom 1 meter below the ground surface.
a. If the ground water table is at a depth of 1.2 m. below the ground surface.
Compute the allowable load that the footing could carry if it has a factor of
safety of 3.
b. Find the ultimate bearing capacity of the soil if the ground water table is at
the bottom of the footing.
c. Find the ultimate bearing capacity of the soil if the ground water table is 0.5
m. above the bottom of the footing.

Solution:

a) Allowable load if ground water table is 1.2 m below the ground surface

From Table:
Nc = 35
Nq = 22
Ny = 19
qult = 1.3CNc + qNq + 𝟎. 𝟒𝜸BNy
𝜸𝑩 = [𝜸d + 𝜸’ (B – d)]
𝜸 = 𝜸sat - 𝜸w
𝜸 (1.2) = [ 1846(0.2) + (1965 – 1000) (1.2 – 0.2)]
𝜸 = 1111.83 kg/m3
qult = 1.3(1605) (35) + (1846) (22) + 0.40 (1111.83) (1.2) (19)
qult = 123,779.40 kg/m2
𝒒𝒖𝒍𝒕 , .
qall = =
𝑭.𝑺.
, . ( . )
qall = 41,259.80 kg/m2 =
qall = 404.76 kPa

𝜎all = qall (area) = 404.76 (1.2) (1.2)

𝝈all = 582.86 kN
b) Ultimate bearing capacity if ground water table is at the bottom of the
footing

qult = 1.3CNc + qNq + 𝟎. 𝟒𝜸BNy

q = 𝜸Df. (vertical effective stress at the foundation)
q = 1846 (1)
q = 1846 kg/m2

𝜸 = 𝜸sat - 𝜸w = 1965 – 1000

𝜸 = 965 kg/m3

qult = 1.3(1605) (35) + 1846 (22) + 0.40 (965) (1.2) (19)

qult = 122,440.30 kg/m2
, . ( . )
qult =
qult = 1201.14 kPa
c) Ultimate bearing capacity of soil if the ground water table is 0.5 meters
above the bottom of the footing

q = 1846 (0.5) + (1965 – 1000) (0.5)

q = 1405.50 kg/m2

𝜸 = 𝜸sat - 𝜸w = 1965 -1000

𝜸 = 965 kg/m3
qult = 1.3CNc + qNq + 𝟎. 𝟒𝜸BNy
qult = 1.3 (1605) (35) + 1405.50 (22) + 0.40 (965) (1.2) (19)
qult = 112,749.30 kg/m2
, . ( . )
qult =

qult = 1106.07 kPa

Sample Problem 2:

A circular footing with a diameter of 1.5 m is to be constructed 1.25 meters

below the ground surface. The sub-soil consists of a uniform deposit of dense soil
having the following characteristics:

Angle of internal friction = 25o

Unconfined compressive strength = 96 kN/m2
Unit weight of soil = 20.12 kN/m3
The ground water table is deep and can be ignored.
a) Compute the ultimate bearing capacity of the soil.
b) Compute the allowable gross bearing capacity of the soil using a factor of
safety of 3.
c) Compute the total allowable load (including column load, weight of footing
and surcharge)
use: Nc = 24.1
Nq = 13.1
Ny = 9.1
Solution:
a) Ultimate bearing capacity of soil
qult = 1.3CNc + qNq + 0.3 𝜸BNy

q = 20.12 (1.25) = 25.15 kN/m2

C= qu = = 48 kN/m2

qult = 1.3 (48) (24.1) + (25.15) (13.1) + (0.30) (20.12) (1.5) (9.1)

qult = 1915. 70 kN/m2

b) Gross allowable bearing capacity

.
qall(gross) = qall(gross) =638.57kN/m2

c) Total allowable load:

( . )
𝜎 = qall(gross) x area = 638.57 ( ) 𝝈 = 1128.45 kN
Learning Activity:

A square footing carries an allowable load of 60000 kg. including its own weight.
The bottom of the footing is 1.2 m below the ground surface. Using the formula:
qult = 1.3CNc + qNq + 𝟎. 𝟒𝜸BNy

a) Compute the effective surcharge at the bottom of the footing.

b) Compute the value of B using a gross factor of safety of 3. Assume
general shear failure.
c) Compute the net factor of safety.
16000 kg
Ground surface 𝛾 = 1846 kg/m3
C = 1605 kg/m2
∅ = 30o
Df = 1.2m ground water table
𝛾 = 1965 kg/m3
B