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Bearingcapacity

Bearingcapacity
Failuremechanismsandderivationofequations
Bearingcapacityofshallowfoundations
Presumedbearingvalues
Bearingcapacityofpiles
Theultimateloadwhichafoundationcansupportmaybecalculatedusingbearingcapacitytheory.
Forpreliminarydesign,presumedbearingvaluescanbeusedtoindicatethepressureswhichwould
normallyresultinanadequatefactorofsafety.Alternatively,thereisarangeofempiricalmethods
basedoninsitutestresults.
Theultimatebearingcapacity(qf)isthevalueofbearingstresswhichcausesasuddencatastrophic
settlementofthefoundation(duetoshearfailure).
Theallowablebearingcapacity(qa)isthemaximumbearingstressthatcanbeappliedtothe
foundationsuchthatitissafeagainstinstabilityduetoshearfailureandthemaximumtolerable
settlementisnotexceeded.Theallowablebearingcapacityisnormallycalculatedfromtheultimate
bearingcapacityusingafactorofsafety(Fs).
Whenexcavatingforafoundation,thestressatfoundinglevelisrelievedbytheremovaloftheweight
ofsoil.Thenetbearingpressure(qn)istheincreaseinstressonthesoil.
qn=qqo
qo=D
whereDisthefoundingdepthandistheunitweightofthesoilremoved.

Failuremechanismsandderivationofequations

Bearingcapacity

Upperandlowerboundsolutions
Semicircularslipmechanism
Circulararcslipmechanism

ArelativelyundeformedwedgeofsoilbelowthefoundationformsanactiveRankinezonewith
angles(45+'/2).
Thewedgepushessoiloutwards,causingpassiveRankinezonestoformwithangles(45
'/2).
Thetransitionzonestaketheformoflogspiralfans.
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Forpurelycohesivesoils(=0)thetransitionzonesbecomecircularforwhichPrandtlhadshownin
1920thatthesolutionis
qf=(2+)su=5.14su
Thisequationisbasedonaweightlesssoil.Thereforeifthesoilisnoncohesive(c=0)thebearing
capacitydependsonthesurchargeqo.ForafootingfoundedatdepthDbelowthesurface,the
surchargeqo=.Normallyforashallowfoundation(D<B),theshearstrengthofthesoilbetween
thesurfaceandthefoundingdepthDisneglected.
radiusofthefanr=r0.exp[.tan'].
isthefanangleinradians(between0and/2)
'istheangleoffrictionofthesoil
ro=B/[2cos(45+'/2)]

Upperandlowerbound
solutions

Failuremechanismsandderivationof
equations

Thebearingcapacityofasoilcanbeinvestigatedusingthelimittheoremsofidealrigidperfectly
plasticmaterials.
Theultimateloadcapacityofafootingcanbeestimatedbyassumingafailuremechanismandthen
applyingthelawsofstaticstothatmechanism.Asthemechanismsconsideredinanupperbound
solutionareprogressivelyrefined,thecalculatedcollapseloaddecreases.
Asmorestressregionsareconsideredinalowerboundsolution,thecalculatedcollapseload
increases.
Therefore,byprogressiverefinementoftheupperandlowerboundsolutions,theexactsolutioncan
beapproached.Forexample,Terzaghi'smechanismgivestheexactsolutionforastripfooting.

Semicircularslipmechanism

Failuremechanismsandderivationofequations

Supposethemechanismisassumedtohaveasemicircularslip
surface.Inthiscase,failurewillcausearotationaboutpointO.
Anysurchargeqowillresistrotation,sothenetpressure(qqo)is
used.Usingtheequationsofstatics:
Momentcausingrotation
=loadxleverarm
=[(qqo)xB]x[B]
Momentresistingrotation
=shearstrengthxlengthofarcxleverarm
=[s]x[.B]x[B]
Atfailuretheseareequal:
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(qqo)xBxB=sx.BxB
Netpressure(qqo)atfailure
=2xshearstrengthofthesoil
Thisisanupperboundsolution.

Circulararcslipmechanism

Failuremechanismsandderivationofequations

Consideraslipsurfacewhichisanarcincrosssection,centred
aboveoneedgeofthebase.Failurewillcausearotationabout
pointO.Anysurchargeqowillresistrotationsothenetpressure(q
qo)isused.Usingtheequationsofstatics:

Momentcausingrotation
=loadxleverarm
=[(qqo)xB]x[B/2]
Momentresistingrotation
=shearstrengthxlengthofarcxleverarm
=[s]x[2R]x[R]
Atfailuretheseareequal:
(qqo)xBxB/2=sx2RxR
SinceR=B/sin:
(qqo)=sx4/(sin)
Theworstcaseiswhen
tan=2at=1.1656rad=66.8deg
Thenetpressure(qqo)atfailure
=5.52xshearstrengthofsoil

Bearingcapacityofshallowfoundations

Bearingcapacity

Bearingcapacityequation(undrained)
Bearingcapacityequation(drained)
Factorofsafety
Theultimatebearingcapacityofafoundationiscalculatedfromanequationthatincorporates
appropriatesoilparameters(e.g.shearstrength,unitweight)anddetailsaboutthesize,shapeand
foundingdepthofthefooting.Terzaghi(1943)statedtheultimatebearingcapacityofastripfooting
asathreetermexpressionincorporatingthebearingcapacityfactors:Nc,NqandN,whichare
relatedtotheangleoffriction().
qf=c.Nc+qo.Nq+.B.Ng
Fordrainedloading,calculationsareintermsofeffectivestressesis>0andNc,NqandNare
all>0.
Forundrainedloading,calculationsareintermsoftotalstressestheundrainedshearstrength(su)
Nq=1.0andN=0
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Bearingcapacity

c=apparentcohesionintercept
qo=D(i.e.densityxdepth)
D=foundingdepth
B=breadthoffoundation
=unitweightofthesoilremoved.

Bearingcapacityequation
(undrained)

Bearingcapacityofshallow
foundations

Skempton'sequationiswidelyusedforundrainedclaysoils:
qf=su.Ncu+qo
whereNcu=Skempton'sbearingcapacityfactor,whichcanbeobtained
fromachartorbyusingthefollowingexpression:
Ncu=Nc.sc.dc
wherescisashapefactoranddcisadepthfactor.
Nq=1,N=0,Nc=5.14
sc=1+0.2(B/L)forB<=L
dc=1+(0.053D/B)forD/B<4

Bearingcapacityequation(drained)

Bearingcapacityofshallowfoundations

Bearingcapacityfactors
Shapefactors
Depthfactors
Terzaghi(1943)statedthebearingcapacityofafoundationasathreetermexpressionincorporating
thebearingcapacityfactors
Nc,NqandN.
Heproposedthefollowingequationfortheultimatebearingcapacityofalongstripfooting:
qf=c.Nc+qo.Nq+.B.N
Thisequationisapplicableonlyforshallowfootingscarryingverticalnoneccentricloading.
Forrectangularandcircularfoundations,shapefactorsareintroduced.
qf=c.Nc.sc+qo.Nq.sq+.B.N.sg
Otherfactorscanbeusedtoaccommodatedepth,inclinationofloading,eccentricityofloading,
inclinationofbaseandground.Depthisonlysignificantifitexceedsthebreadth.

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Bearingcapacity

Bearingcapacityfactors

Bearingcapacityequation(drained)

Thebearingcapacityfactorsrelatetothedrainedangleoffriction(').Thec.Nctermisthe
contributionfromsoilshearstrength,theqo.Nqtermisthecontributionfromthesurchargepressure
abovethefoundinglevel,the.B..Ngtermisthecontributionfromtheselfweightofthesoil.
Terzaghi'sanalysiswasbasedonanactivewedgewithangles'ratherthan(45+'/2),andhisbearing
capacityfactorsareinerror,particularlyforlowvaluesof'.CommonlyusedvaluesforNqandNc
arederivedfromthePrandtlReissnerexpressiongiving

ExactvaluesforNgarenotdirectlyobtainablevalueshavebeenproposedbyBrinchHansen(1968),
whicharewidelyusedinEurope,andalsobyMeyerhof(1963),whichhavebeenadoptedinNorth
America.
BrinchHansen:
N=1.8(Nq1)tan'
Meyerhof:
N=(Nq1)tan(1.4')

Shapefactors

Bearingcapacityequation(drained)

Terzaghipresentedmodifiedversionsofhisbearingcapacityequationforshapesoffoundationother
thanalongstrip,andthesehavesincebeenexpressedasshapefactors.BrinchHansenandVesic
(1963)havesuggestedshapefactorswhichdependon'.However,modifiedversionsoftheTerzaghi
factorsareusuallyconsideredsufficientlyaccurateformostpurposes.
sc
sq
s

square
1.3
1.2
0.8
circle
1.3
1.2
0.6
rectangle(B<L) 1+0.2(B/L) 1+0.2(B/L) 10.4(B/L)
B=breadth,L=length

Depthfactors

Bearingcapacityequation(drained)

Itisusualtoassumeanincreaseinbearingcapacitywhenthedepth(D)ofafoundationisgreaterthan
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Bearingcapacity

thebreadth(B).Thegeneralbearingcapacityequationcanbemodifiedbytheinclusionofdepth
factors.
qf=c.Nc.dc+qo.Nq.dq+B..d
forD>B:
dc=1+0.4arctan(D/B)
dq=1+2tan('(1sin')arctan(B/D)
d=1.0
forD=<B:
dc=1+0.4(D/B)
dq=1+2tan('(1sin')(B/D)
d=1.0

Factorofsafety

Bearingcapacityofshallowfoundations

AfactorofsafetyFsisusedtocalculatetheallowablebearingcapacityqafromtheultimatebearing
pressureqf.ThevalueofFsisusuallytakentobe2.53.0.

Thefactorofsafetyshouldbeappliedonlytotheincreaseinstress,i.e.thenetbearingpressureqn.
Calculatingqafromqfonlysatisfiesthecriterionofsafetyagainstshearfailure.However,avaluefor
Fsof2.53.0issufficientlyhightoempiricallylimitsettlement.Itisforthisreasonthatthefactorsof
safetyusedinfoundationdesignarehigherthaninotherareasofgeotechnicaldesign.(Forslopes,the
factorofsafetywouldtypicallybe1.31.4).
Experiencehasshownthatthesettlementofatypicalfoundationonsoftclayislikelytobeacceptable
ifafactorof2.5isused.Settlementsonstiffclaymaybequitelargeeventhoughultimatebearing
capacityisrelativelyhigh,andsoitmaybeappropriatetouseafactornearer3.0.

Presumedbearingvalues

Bearingcapacity

Forpreliminarydesignpurposes,BS8004givespresumedbearingvalueswhicharethepressures
whichwouldnormallyresultinanadequatefactorofsafetyagainstshearfailureforparticularsoil
types,butwithoutconsiderationofsettlement.
Category
Typesofrocksandsoils
Presumedbearingvalue
Noncohesivesoils Densegravelordensesandandgravel >600kN/m
Mediumdensegravel,

<200to600kN/m
ormediumdensesandandgravel

Loosegravel,orloosesandandgravel <200kN/m

Compactsand
Mediumdensesand

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>300kN/m
100to300kN/m
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Loosesand

Cohesivesoils

Verystiffbolderclays&hardclays

<100kN/mdependson
degreeoflooseness
300to600kN/m

Peat
Madeground

Stiffclays
Firmclay
Softclaysandsilts
Verysoftclay

150to300kN/m
75to150kN/m
<75kN/m
Notapplicable
Notapplicable
Notapplicable

PresumedbearingvaluesforKeuperMarl
Weathering

Zone Description

Fullyweathered IVb
IVa
Partially
III
weathered
II
Unweathered

Matrixonly
Matrixwithoccasionalpelletslessthan3mm
Matrixwithlithoreliticsupto25mm
Angularblocksofunweatheredmarlwithvirtually
nomatrix
Mudstone(oftennotfissured)

Bearingcapacityofpiles

Presumedbearing
value
ascohesivesoil
125to250kN/m
250to500kN/m
500to750kN/m
750to1000kN/m

Bearingcapacity

Drivenpilesinnoncohesivesoil
Boredpilesinnoncohesivesoil
Drivenpilesincohesivesoil
Boredpilesincohesivesoil
Carryingcapacityofpilesinalayeredsoil
Effectsofgroundwater
Theultimatebearingcapacityofapileusedindesignmaybeonethreevalues:
themaximumloadQmax,atwhichfurtherpenetrationoccurswithouttheloadincreasing
acalculatedvalueQfgivenbythesumoftheendbearingandshaftresistances
ortheloadatwhichasettlementof0.1diameteroccurs(whenQmaxisnotclear).
Forlargediameterpiles,settlementcanbelarge,thereforeasafetyfactorof22.5isusuallyusedon
theworkingload.
Apileloadedaxiallywillcarrytheload:
partlybyshearstresses(s)generatedalongtheshaftofthepileand
partlybynormalstresses(qb)generatedatthebase.
TheultimatecapacityQfofapileisequaltothebasecapacityQbplustheshaftcapacityQs.

Qf=Qb+Qs=Ab.qb+(As.s)
whereAbistheareaofthebaseandAsisthesurfaceareaoftheshaftwithinasoillayer.
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Fullshaftcapacityismobilisedatmuchsmallerdisplacementsthan
thoserelatedtofullbaseresistance.Thisisimportantwhen
determiningthesettlementresponseofapile.Thesameoverall
bearingcapacitymaybeachievedwithavarietyofcombinationsof
pilediameterandlength.However,alongslenderpilemaybeshown
tobemoreefficientthanashortstubbypile.Longerpilesgeneratea
largerproportionoftheirfullcapacitybyskinfrictionandsotheir
fullcapacitycanbemobilisedatmuchlowersettlements.
Theproportionsofcapacitycontributedbyskinfrictionandend
bearingdonotjustdependonthegeometryofthepile.Thetypeof
constructionandthesequenceofsoillayersareimportantfactors.

Drivenpilesinnoncohesivesoil

Bearingcapacityofpiles

Ultimatepilecapacity
Standardpenetrationtest
Conepenetrationtest
Drivingapilehasdifferenteffectsonthesoilsurroundingitdependingontherelativedensityofthe
soil.Inloosesoils,thesoiliscompacted,formingadepressioninthegroundaroundthepile.Indense
soils,anyfurthercompactionissmall,andthesoilisdisplacedupwardcausinggroundheave.Inloose
soils,drivingispreferabletoboringsincecompactionincreasestheendbearingcapacity.
Innoncohesivesoils,skinfrictionislowbecausealowfriction'shell'formsaroundthepile.Tapered
pilesovercomethisproblemsincethesoilisrecompactedoneachblowandthisgapcannotdevelop.
Pilecapacitycanbecalculatedusingsoilpropertiesobtainedfromstandardpenetrationtestsor
conepenetrationtests.Theultimateloadmustthenbedividedbyafactorofsafetytoobtaina
workingload.Thisfactorofsafetydependsonthemaximumtolerablesettlement,whichinturn
dependsonboththepilediameterandsoilcompressibility.Forexample,asafetyfactorof2.5will
usuallyensureapileofdiameterlessthan600mminanoncohesivesoilwillnotsettlebymorethan
15mm.
Althoughthemethodofinstallingapilehasasignificanteffectonfailureload,therearenoreliable
calculationmethodsavailableforquantifyinganyeffect.Judgementisthereforelefttotheexperience
oftheengineer.

Ultimatepilecapacity
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Drivenpilesinnoncohesivesoil

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Theultimatecarryingcapacityofapileis:
Qf=Qb+Qs
Thebaseresistance,QbcanbefoundfromTerzaghi'sequationforbearingcapacity,
qf=1.3cNc+qoNq+0.4BN
The0.4termmaybeignored,sincethediameterisconsiderablylessthanthedepthof
thepile.
The1.3cNctermiszero,sincethesoilisnoncohesive.
Thenetunitbaseresistanceistherefore

qnf=qfqo=qo(Nq1)
andthenettotalbaseresistanceis

Qb=qo(Nq1)Ab
Theultimateunitskinfriction(shaft)resistancecanbefoundfrom
qs=Ks.'v.tan
where'v=averageverticaleffectivestressinagivenlayer
=angleofwallfriction,basedonpilematerialand
Ks=earthpressurecoefficient
Therefore,thetotalskinfrictionresistanceisgivenbythesumofthelayerresistances:

Qs=(Ks.'v.tan.As)
Theselfweightofthepilemaybeignored,sincetheweightoftheconcreteisalmostequaltothe
weightofthesoildisplaced.
Therefore,theultimatepilecapacityis:

Qf=AbqoNq+(Ks.'v.tan.As)
ValuesofKsandcanberelatedtotheangleofinternalfriction()usingthefollowingtable
accordingtoBroms.
Ks
Material
lowdensity highdensity
steel

20

concrete 3/4
timber
2/3

0.5
1.0
1.5

1.0
2.0
4.0

Itmustbenotedthat,likemuchofpiledesign,thisisanempiricalrelationship.Also,fromempirical
methodsitisclearthatQsandQbbothreachpeakvaluessomewhereatadepthbetween10and20
diameters.
Itisusuallyassumedthatskinfrictionneverexceeds110kN/mandbaseresistancewillnotexceed
11000kN/m.

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Standardpenetrationtest

Drivenpilesinnoncohesivesoil

ThestandardpenetrationtestisasimpleinsitutestinwhichtheN
valueisthemumberofblowstakentodrivea50mmdiameterbar
300mmintothebaseofaborehole.
Schmertmann(1975)hascorrelatedNvaluesobtainedfromSPT
testsagainsteffectiveoverburdenstressasshowninthefigure.
Theeffectiveoverburdenstress=theweightofmaterialabovethe
baseoftheboreholethewightofwater
e.g.depthofsoil=5m,depthofwater=4m,unitweightofsoil=
20kN/m,'v=5mx20kN/m4mx9.81kN/m60kN/m
Onceavalueforhasbeenestimated,bearingcapacityfactorscanbedeterminedandusedinthe
usualway.
Meyerhof(1976)producedcorrelationsbetweenbaseandfrictionalresistancesandNvalues.Itis
recommendedthatNvaluesfirstbenormalisedwithrespecttoeffectiveoverburdenstress:
NormalisedN=Nmeasuredx0.77log(1920/v)
Piletype Soiltype

Ultimatebaseresistance Ultimateshaftresistance
qb(kPa)
qs(kPa)

Driven

Gravellysand
Sand

40(L/d)N
but<400N

Sandysilt
Silt

20(L/d)N
but<300N

Bored

Gravelandsands

13(L/d)N
but<300N

Sandysilt
Silt

13(L/d)N
but<300N

2Navg

Navg

L=embeddedlength
d=shaftdiameter
Navg=averagevaluealongshaft

Conepenetrationtest

Drivenpilesinnoncohesivesoil

Endbearingresistance
Theendbearingcapacityofthepileisassumedtobeequaltotheunitconeresistance(qc).However,
duetonormallyoccurringvariationsinmeasuredconeresistance,VanderVeen'saveragingmethodis
used:
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qb=averageconeresistancecalculatedoveradepthequaltothreepilediametersabove
toonepilediameterbelowthebaselevelofthepile.
Shaftresistance
Theskinfrictioncanalsobecalculatedfromtheconepenetrationtestfromvaluesoflocalside
frictionorfromtheconeresistancevalueusinganempiricalrelationship:
Atagivendepth,qs=Sp .qc
whereSp=acoefficientdependentonthetypeofpile

Sp
Typeofpile
Solidtimber)
Precastconcrete)
0.0050.012
Solidsteeldriven)
Openendedsteel 0.0030.008

Boredpilesinnoncohesivesoil

Bearingcapacityofpiles

Thedesignprocessforboredpilesingranularsoilsisessentiallythesameasthatfordrivenpiles.It
mustbeassumedthatboringloosensthesoilandtherefore,howeverdensethesoil,thevalueofthe
angleoffrictionusedforcalculatingNqvaluesforendbearingandvaluesforskinfrictionmustbe
thoseassumedforloosesoil.However,ifrotarydrillingiscarriedoutunderabentoniteslurry'can
betakenasthatfortheundisturbedsoil.

Drivenpilesincohesivesoil

Bearingcapacityofpiles

Drivingpilesintoclaysaltersthephysicalcharacteristicsofthesoil.Insoftclays,drivingpilesresults
inanincreaseinporewaterpressure,causingareductionineffectivestress.adegreeofgroundheave
alsooccurs.Astheporewaterpressuredissipateswithtimeandthegroundsubsides,theeffective
stressinthesoilwillincrease.Theincreasein'vleadstoanincreaseinthebearingcapacityofthe
pilewithtime.Inmostcases,75%oftheultimatebearingcapacityisachievedwithin30daysof
driving.
Forpilesdrivenintostiffclays,alittleconsolidationtakesplace,thesoilcracksandisheavedup.
Lateralvibrationoftheshaftfromeachblowofthehammerformsanenlargedhole,whichcanthen
fillwithgroundwaterorextrudedporewater.This,and'strainsoftening',whichoccursduetothelarge
strainsintheclayasthepileisadvanced,leadtoaconsiderablereductioninskinfrictioncompared
withtheundisturbedshearstrength(su)oftheclay.Toaccountforthisindesigncalculationsan
adhesionfactor,,isintroduced.Valuesofcanbefoundfromempiricaldatapreviouslyrecorded.
Amaximumvalue(forstiffclays)of0.45isrecommended.
TheultimatebearingcapacityQfofadrivenpileincohesivesoilcanbecalculatedfrom:
Qf=Qb+Qs
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wheretheskinfrictiontermisasummationoflayerresistances
Qs=(.su(avg).As)
andtheendbearingtermis
Qb=su.Nc.Ab
Nc=9.0forclaysandsiltyclays.

Boredpilesincohesivesoil

Bearingcapacityofpiles

FollowingresearchintoboredcastinplacepilesinLondonclay,calculationoftheultimatebearing
capacityforboredpilescanbedonethesamewayasfordrivenpiles.Theadhesionfactorshouldbe
takenas0.45.Itisthoughtthatonlyhalftheundisturbedshearstrengthismobilisedbythepiledueto
thecombinedeffectofswelling,andhencesoftening,oftheclayinthewallsoftheborehole.
Softeningresultsfromseepageofwaterfromfissuresintheclayandfromtheunsetconcrete,and
alsofrom'worksoftening'duringtheboringoperation.
Themobilisationoffullendbearingcapacitybylargediameterpilesrequiresmuchlarger
displacementsthanarerequiredtomobilisefullskinfriction,andthereforesafetyfactorsof2.5to3.0
mayberequiredtoavoidexcessivesettlementatworkingload.

Carryingcapacityofpilesinlayeredsoil

Bearingcapacityofpiles

Whenapileextendsthroughanumberofdifferentlayersofsoilwithdifferentproperties,thesehave
tobetakenintoaccountwhencalculatingtheultimatecarryingcapacityofthepile.Theskinfriction
capacityiscalculatedbysimplysummingtheamountsofresistanceeachlayerexertsonthepile.The
endbearingcapacityiscalculatedjustinthelayerwherethepiletoeterminates.Ifthepiletoe
terminatesinalayerofdensesandorstiffclayoverlyingalayerofsoftclayorloosesandthereisa
dangerofitpunchingthroughtotheweakerlayer.Toaccountforthis,Meyerhof'sequationisused.
Thebaseresistanceatthepiletoeis
qp=q2+(q1q2)H/10Bbutq1
whereBisthediameterofthepile,Histhethicknessbetweenthebaseofthepileandthetopofthe
weakerlayer,q2istheultimatebaseresistanceintheweaklayer,q1istheultimatebaseresistancein
thestronglayer.

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Effectsofgroundwater

Bearingcapacityofpiles

Thepresenceandmovementofgroundwateraffectsthecarryingcapacityofpiles,theprocessesof
constructionandsometimesthedurabilityofpilesinservice.
Effectonbearingcapacity
Incohesivesoils,thepermeabilityissolowthatanymovementofwaterisveryslow.Theydonot
sufferanyreductioninbearingcapacityinthepresenceofgroundwater.
Ingranularsoils,thepositionofthewatertableisimportant.Effectivestressesinsaturatedsandscan
beasmuchas50%lowerthanindrysandthisaffectsboththeendbearingandskinfrictioncapacity
ofthepile.
Effectsonconstruction
Whenaconcretecastinplacepileisbeinginstalledandthebottomoftheboreholeisbelowthewater
table,andthereiswaterintheborehole,a'tremie'isused.
Withitslowerendloweredtothebottomoftheborehole,thetremmieis
filledwithconcreteandthenslowlyraised,allowingconcretetoflow
fromthebottom.Asthetremieisraisedduringtheconcretingitmustbe
keptbelowthesurfaceoftheconcreteinthepile.Beforethetremieis
withdrawncompletelysufficientconcreteshouldbeplacedtodisplaceall
thefreewaterandwaterycement.Ifatremieisnotusedandmorethana
fewcentimetresofwaterlieinthebottomoftheborehole,separationof
theconcretecantakeplacewithinthepile,leadingtoasignificant
reductionincapacity.
Aproblemcanalsoarisewhenboringtakesplacethroughclays.Site
investigationsmayshowthatapileshouldterminateinalayerofclay.
However,duetonaturalvariationsinbedlevels,thereisariskofboring
extendingintounderlyingstrata.Unliketheclay,theunderlyingbeds
maybepermeableandwillprobablybeunderaconsiderableheadofwater.The'tapping'ofsuch
aquiferscanbethecauseofdifficultiesduringconstruction.
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Effectsonpilesinservice
Thepresenceofgroundwatermayleadtocorrosionordeteriorationofthepile'sfabric.
Inthecaseofsteelpiles,amixtureofwaterandairinthesoilprovidesconditionsinwhichoxidation
corrosionofsteelcanoccurthepresenceofnormallyoccurringsaltsingroundwatermayaccelerate
theprocess.
Inthecaseofconcretepiles,thepresenceofsaltssuchassulphatesorchloridescanresultin
corrosionofreinforcement,withpossibleconsequentialburstingoftheconcrete.Therefore,adequate
covermustbeprovidedtothereinforcement,orthereinforcementitselfmustbeprotectedinsome
way.Sulphateattackonthecementcompoundsinconcretemayleadtotheexpansionandsubsequent
cracking.Corrosionproblemsareminimisediftheconcretehasahighcement/aggregateratioandis
wellcompactedduringplacement.

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