12.

12

DETERMINATION OF BEARING CAPACITY AND SETTLEMENT OF COARSE-GRAINED SOILS FROM FIELD TESTS

12 .12 DE T E R MINAT ION OF BE AR ING CAPAC IT Y

AND S E T T LE ME NT OF COARSE -GR AINE D S OILS
FR OM FIE LD T E ST S
We are going to consider the SPT and CPT results in estimating the bearing capacity and settlement of
shallow foundations. You need to be extra careful in selecting the N or qc values to use in the empirical equations given below. You should inspect the results and then eliminate excessively high values of
either N or qc that appear to be spurious. These high values may be due to an obstruction such as from
a boulder. A continuous set of low values of N or qc may indicate a weak soil layer. Depending on the
location of this layer, for example, within a depth B below the foundation, it may control the performance of the foundation.

12.12.1 Standard Penetration Test (SPT)

Computer Program Utility
Access www.wiley.com/college/budhu, click on Chapter 12, and then click on bc.xls for a spreadsheet to estimate bearing capacity and settlement from SPT data.
It is difficult to obtain undisturbed samples of coarse-grained soils for testing in the laboratory.
Consequently, the allowable bearing capacity and settlement of footings on coarse-grained soils are
often based on empirical methods using test data from field tests. One popular method utilizes results from
the standard penetration test (SPT). It is customary to correct the N values for overburden pressure.
Various correction factors have been suggested by a number of investigators. Energy and other corrections were considered in Chapter 3. Two suggestions for correcting N values for overburden pressure are
included in this text. These are
cN 5 a

95.8 1/2
b ;CN # 2 1 Liao and Whitman, 1985 2
srzo

cN 5 0.77 log10 a

1916
b;CN # 2;srzo . 24 kPa 1 Peck et al., 1974 2
srzo

(12.44)
(12.45)

where cN is a correction factor for overburden pressures, and s9zo is the effective overburden pressure
in kPa. A further correction factor is imposed on N values if the groundwater level is within a depth B
below the base of the footing. The groundwater correction factor is
cW 5

1
z
1
1
2
2 Df 1 B 2

(12.46)

where z is the depth to the groundwater table, Df is the footing depth, and B is the footing width. If the
depth of the groundwater level is beyond B from the bottom of the footing base, cw 5 1.
The corrected N value is
N1 5 cN cW N

(12.47)

The ultimate bearing capacity for a shallow footing under vertical loads is
qult 5 32 N1 B 1 kPa 2

(12.48)

where B is the width in m. In practice, each value of N in a soil layer up to a depth 1.5 B below the footing
base is corrected, and an average value of N1 is used in Equation (12.48).

457

458

CHAPTER 12

BEARING CAPACITY OF SOILS AND SETTLEMENT OF SHALLOW FOUNDATIONS

Meyerhof (1965) proposed that no correction should be applied to N values for the effects of
groundwater, as these are already incorporated in the measurement. Furthermore, he suggested that qult
calculated from Equation (12.45) using N1 5 cN N be increased by 50%. In using Equation (12.48), the
settlement is assumed to be less than 25 mm.
Burland and Burbidge (1985) did a statistical analysis of settlement records from 200 footings
located in quartzitic sand and gravel. They proposed the following equation for the settlement of a footing
in a normally consolidated sand at the end of construction:
r 5 fs f1sa B0.7Ic

(12.49)

where r is the settlement (mm),

fs 5 Shape factor 5 a

1.25 L /B 2
b
L /B 1 0.25

(12.50)

f1 5 (Ho /z1)(2 2 Ho /z1) is a correction factor if the thickness (Ho) of the sand stratum below the footing
base is less than an influence depth z1, sa is the vertical stress applied by the footing or allowable bearing
capacity (kPa), B and L are the width and length of the footing (m), respectively,
Ic 5 Compressibility index 5

1.71
N1.4

(12.51)

and N is the uncorrected N value. However, for very fine sand and silty sand, Burland and Burbidge recommended using a corrected N9 5 15 1 0.5 (N 2 15) in Equation (12.51). Further, if the soil is gravel or sandy
gravel, use N9 5 1.25N in Equation (12.51). The influence depth is the depth below the footing that will
influence the settlement and bearing capacity. If N increases with depth or N is approximately constant, the
influence depth is taken as z1 5 B0.763. If N tends to decrease with depth, the influence depth is z1 5 2B.
If the sand is overconsolidated,
r 5 f1 fs asa 2

2
srzc b B0.7 Ic,ifsa . srzc
3

Ic
r 5 f1 fs qa B0.7 ,ifsa , srzc
3

(12.52)

(12.53)

Burland and Burbidge also recommended a time factor to account for time-dependent settlement. You
can check the original reference for this factor.
The procedure for the BurlandBurbidge method is as follows:
1.
2.
3.
4.

Determine the influence depth z1.

Find the average N value within the depth z1 below the footing.
Calculate Ic from Equation (12.51).
Determine r from the appropriate equation [Equation (12.49) or (12.52) or (12.53)] or, if r is specified,
you can determine sa.

E XAMPLE 12.13 Allowable Bearing Capacity Using SPT Data

The SPT results at various depths in a soil are shown in Table E12.13a.
TABLE E12.13a
Depth (m)
N (blows/ft)

0.6
25

0.9
28

1.2
33

1.5
29

2.1
28

2.7
29

3
31

3.3
35

4.2
41

12.12

DETERMINATION OF BEARING CAPACITY AND SETTLEMENT OF COARSE-GRAINED SOILS FROM FIELD TESTS

Determine the allowable bearing capacity for a square footing 2 m wide located at 0.6 m below the surface. The
tolerable settlement is 25 mm. The groundwater level is deep and its effects can be neglected.

Strategy The question that arises is what value of N to use. We will estimate the thickness of the soil (.2B)
below the footing that will be stressed significantly (.10% of applied stress) and take an average value of N within
that layer. The unit weight is not given, so we have to estimate this based on the description and the N values (see
Chapter 10, Table 10.4).

Solution 12.13
Computer Program Utility
Access www.wiley.com/college/budhu, click on Chapter 12, and then click on bc.xls for a spreadsheet to estimate bearing capacity and settlement from SPT data.
Step 1:

Determine N1.
Calculate s9zo and the correction factor cN using either Equation (12.44) or (12.45). Use a spreadsheet to
do the calculation, as shown in Table E12.13b.

TABLE E12.13b
Bearing capacity from SPT
1033
2
0.9
5
3

qa
Width of footing
Depth of footing
Groundwater
FS

kPa
m
m
m

Depth
(m)

Unit weight
(kN/m3)

Vertical
effective stress
(kPa)

Cn
calc.

Cn
use

N1

0
0.6
0.9
1.2
1.5
2.1
2.7
3
3.3
4.2

0
18.5
19
20
19
19
19
20
20.5
20.5

0
11.1
16.8
22.8
28.5
39.9
51.3
57.3
63.45
81.9

0
2.9
2.4
2.0
1.8
1.5
1.4
1.3
1.2
1.1

0
2.0
2.0
2.0
1.8
1.5
1.4
1.3
1.2
1.1

0
25
28
33
29
28
29
31
35
41

0
50
56
66
53
43
40
40
43
44

Avg

31

48

Step 2:

Calculate qa.
Equation (12.48):

qult 5 32N1B 5 32 3 48 3 2 5 3072 kPa

qa 5

qult
3072
5
5 1024 kPa
3
FS

The spreadsheet gives qa 5 1033 kPa because it uses more significant figures in doing the calculations.

459

460

CHAPTER 12

BEARING CAPACITY OF SOILS AND SETTLEMENT OF SHALLOW FOUNDATIONS

E XAMPLE 12.14 Allowable Bearing Capacity and Settlement Using SPT

Redo using the BurlandBurbidge method for a footing 3 m 3 4 m.

Strategy You have to determine whether the sand is normally consolidated or overconsolidated. No direct
evidence is provided to allow you to make a decision as to the consolidation state of the sand. One way around this
problem is to use Table 10.4 to make an estimate of the consolidation state.

Solution 12.14
Step 1:

Determine the consolidation state and find z1.

Within a depth equal to B (3 m), the average N value is 29. From Table 10.4, the sand can be classified
as medium (N in the range 1030). A reasonable estimate of the consolidation state is normally consolidated.
z1 5 B0.763 5 30.763 5 2.3 m

Step 2:

Find an average N for a depth 2.3 m below the base.

Average N value over a depth of 2.3 m below the base is 29. (Note: 2.3 m below the base is equivalent to
a depth of 2.9 m, so use the N values up to 3 m.)

Step 3:

Calculate Ic.
Ic 5

Step 4:

1.71
N1.4

1.71
291.4

5 0.015

Calculate qa.
L
4
1.25L / B 2
1.25 3 1.33 2
5 5 1.33;fs 5 a
b 5a
b 5 1.11
B
3
L / B 1 0.25
1.33 3 0.25
f1 5 1 1 thickness of sand stratum greater than 2.3 m 2
qa 5 sa 5

r
fs f1B0.7Ic

25
1.11 3 1 3 30.7 3 0.015

5 696 kPa

12.12.2 Cone Penetration Test (CPT)

Computer Program Utility
Access www.wiley.com/college/budhu, click on Chapter 12, and then click on bc.xls for a spreadsheet to estimate bearing capacity and settlement from CPT data.
Schmertmann (1970) and Schmertmann et al. (1978) proposed a methodology to determine settlement from the quasi-static cone test data for sands. They assumed that the sand is a linearly elastic
material, and only stress changes within depths of 2B for axisymmetric conditions and 4B for plane
strain conditions influence the settlement. Settlement is calculated by integrating the vertical strains;
that is,
r 5 3 zdz

(12.54)

12.12

DETERMINATION OF BEARING CAPACITY AND SETTLEMENT OF COARSE-GRAINED SOILS FROM FIELD TESTS

The equation proposed for settlement (mm) by Schmertmann et al. is

r5

n
1 Ico 2 i
cD ct
Dzi
qnet a
b
i51 1 qc 2 i

(12.55)

where
cD 5 Depth factor 5 1 2 0.5

srzo
$ 0.5
qnet

ct 5 Creep factor 5 1.0 1 A log10 `

t
`
0.1

(12.56)
(12.57)

b is cone factor [b 5 2.5 for square footing (axisymmetric condition), b 5 3.5 for strip footing (plane strain
L
condition . 10)], qnet is the net footing pressure in kPa (applied stress minus soil pressure above the
B
base of footing), s9zo is the original vertical effective stress in kPa at the depth of the footing, t is time in year
(t $ 0.1), A is an empirical factor taken as 0.2, Dzi is the thickness of the ith layer, and (Ico)i is the influence
factor of the ith layer given as:
Axisymmetric: L 5 B
Ico 5 0.1 1 2 1 Icp 2 0.1 2
Ico 5 Icp c 1 2

z
z
1
for #
B
B
2

2 z
1
z
1
a 2 b d for2 $ .
3 B
2
B
2

(12.58)
(12.59)

Plane strain: L . 10B

Ico 5 0.2 1 1 Icp 2 0.2 2
Ico 5 Icp c 1 2

z
z
for # 1
B
B

1 z
z
a 2 1b d for4 $ . 1
3 B
B

(12.60)
(12.61)

qnet
; (qc)i is the cone tip resistance for the ith layer; s9zp is the original vertical
srzp
B
effective stress at the depth where Icp occurs, which is
for axisymmetric condition and B for plane
2
strain; and n is the number of sublayers. The unit of B is meters.
where Icp 5 0.5 1 0.1

The procedure to determine the settlement from cone data is as follows:

1. Divide the soil below the footing into a number of sublayers. For square footings, the total depth of
the sublayers is 2B and a reasonable number of sublayers is four. For strip footing, the total depth is
4B and a reasonable number of sublayers is eight.
2. Determine the average value of (qc)i for each sublayer from the field data of qc versus depth.
3. Find Ico at the center of each sublayer.
4. Estimate r using Equation (12.54).
The bearing capacity from the CPT test is estimated by taking a weighted average of the cone resistance
over a depth of 2B for axisymmetric condition and 4B for plane strain condition below the bottom of
the footing base.

461

CHAPTER 12

BEARING CAPACITY OF SOILS AND SETTLEMENT OF SHALLOW FOUNDATIONS

E XAMPLE 12.15 Allowable Bearing Capacity and Settlement Using CPT Data
A representative set of cone data at a site is shown in Figure E12.15a. A square footing 3 m wide imposing an
applied stress of 217 kPa is to be located 1 m below ground level at this site. Determine (1) the bearing capacity and
qc (MPa)
0

10

15

20

25

30

Depth (m)

2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18

FIGURE E12.15a

(2) the settlement of the footing one year after construction. The bulk unit weight of the sand is 17 kN/m3. Groundwater level is 8 m below the ground surface.

Strategy For a square footing, the influence depth is 2B. You need to divide this depth into soil layers and then
use Equation (12.54).

Solution 12.15
Step 1:

Determine the influence depth below base of footing.

Influence depth 5 2B 5 6 m

Step 2:

Inspect qc values over the influence depth below the bottom of the base of the footing. Ignore excessively
large qc values and sketch a composite distribution, as shown in Figure E12.15b. Find the average value
of qc, Ico, and r over the influence depth.

0
2

qc (MPa)
8
10

12

14

16

18

Bottom of footing

4
Depth (m)

462

6
8
10
12
14

FIGURE E12.15b

16

Use a spreadsheet program (www.wiley.com/college/budhu_bc.xls; see Table E12.15).

Since this is an axisymmetric case, the depth at which Icp occurs is B/2.
qap 5 applied pressure, D 5 depth of footing from original surface, Df 5 depth of footing from finished
surface.
qnet 5 qap 2 gDf 5 217 2 1 3 17 5 200 kPa
srzp 5 ga

B
3
200
1 Df b 5 17 3 a 1 1b 5 42.5 kPa;Icp 5 0.5 1 0.1
5 0.72
2
2
42.5

12.12

DETERMINATION OF BEARING CAPACITY AND SETTLEMENT OF COARSE-GRAINED SOILS FROM FIELD TESTS

Muni Budhu Soil Mechanics and Foundations, John Wiley & Sons, NY, 2007
Bearing capacity and settlement of shallow footings using CPT data
Condition
1 Axisymmetric
HELP
Settlement
Bearing capacity

q
217 kPa
Df
1 m
1 m
D

17 kN/m3
3 m
B
3 m
L
'zp
42.5 kPa
'zo
17 kPa
net or qnet 200 kPa
0.72
lcp
t
1 yr
Layer
m

z
m
1
2
3
4

TABLE E12.15

1.00
1.00
2.00
2.00

0.2

0.8

z/B

2
Axisymmetric

2.5
3

Plane strain

3.5
4
4.5

0.33
0.67
1.33
2.00

lco

(lco /qc)

qc
MPa

0.51
0.64
0.32
0.00

Sum 6.00

qc z
MPa.m

8.80
6.30
6.30
6.30

0.058
0.101
0.101
0.000

8.8
6.3
12.6
12.6

Sum

0.260

40.3

ct 5 1 1 0.2 log10 `

17
5 0.96
200

1
` 5 1.2
0.1

Calculate the bearing capacity.

qult 5

Step 4:

0.6

1.5

srzo 5 gD 5 1 3 17 5 17 kPa;cD 5 1 2 0.5 3

Step 3:

0.4

0.5

0.96
1.20

cD

z/B

z
m

0
1.00
2.00
4.00
6.00

Influence factor, lco

24 mm
6.7 MPa

Sqc Dz
40.3
5 6.7 MPa
5
6
SDz

Calculate the settlement

r5

n 1
Ico 2 i
cDct
0.96 3 1.2
qnet a
Dzi 5
3 200 3 0.26 5 24 mm
b
2.5
i51 1 qc 2 i

12.12.3 Plate Load Test (PLT)

Tests on full-sized footings are desirable but expensive. The alternative is to carry out plate load tests
(Figure 12.18) to simulate the load settlement behavior of a real footing. The plates are made from steel,
with sizes varying from 150 to 760 mm. Two common plate sizes are used in practice. One is a square
plate of width 300 mm and the other is a circular plate of diameter 300 mm. The test is carried out in a
pit of depth of at least 1.5 m. Loads are applied in increments of 10% to 20% of the estimated allowable
Stress or load

Bp

FIGURE 12.18

Plate load test.

Settlement

463