FOUNDATION DESIGN

Foundations are structural elements that transfer loads from the building
or individual columns to the earth. If these loads are to be properly
transmitted, foundations must be designed to prevent excessive settlement
or rotation, to minimize differential settlement and to provide adequate
safety against sliding and overturning. Most foundations may be classified as
follows:

1) Isolated footings under individual columns

2) Strip foundations and wall footing
3) Compound footing supporting two or three columns
4) Raft or mat foundation is a large continues foundation supporting all
the columns of the structure.
5) Pile foundation

The choice of the type of foundation to be used in a given situations

depends on the number of factors:

a) Soil strata
b) Bearing capacity and standard penetration test value N of soil
c) Type of the structure
d) Type of loads
e) Permissible differential settlement and
f) Economy

Total load under the footing must be less than the permissible bearing
capacity of the soil to prevent excessive settlement. In general foundation
should resist vertical, horizontal load and moments. In cases where the
bearing capacity of the soil is weak, the super structure load is large and the
soil is not uniform, foundations which can transfer the load to large area of
foundation soil have to be selected.
Design of ribbed mat foundation

As stated above if the loads transmitted by the columns in the structure

are so heavy or the allowable soil pressure so small that individual footings
to cover more than one half of the area, it may better to provide a
continuous footing under the columns and walls. Such a footing is called a
raft or mat foundation. Raft foundations are also used to reduce the
settlement of the structure located above compressible deposit.

Mat foundation is of different type depending on the material it is formed

from and shape. These are flat plate; flat plate thickened under the column,
two beam and ribbed slab, flat plate with pedestals, cellular construction,
basement and ribbed mat foundations.

The site for the building is in the capital city of Ethiopia (Addis Ababa). So,
the site condition must be taken from representative values of the site. For
this building specific site condition of the site is not exactly known but
representative value is taken. The soil type in Addis Ababa is mostly clayey
soil with allowable bearing capacity of 150Mpa (taken from Alemayehu
Teferas book).

1) Weakness of the soil bearing strength

2) Large super structure load and
3) Presence of shear wall, justifies the use of mat foundation for the
building.

To justify more, it must be checked whether the total area of footing is

greater than half of the total area of the building or not. If the total area of
the footings for each column and shear wall is greater than half of the total
area of the building, provision of mat foundation will be encouraged.
Check
The approximate area of the total footing is calculating as shown below.

Sample calculation for area proportioning of footings

Take the foundation on axis E-4 P = 3030.6KN Mx =-121.024KNm My =

7.887KNm

Due to overburden pressure of the soil,( assuming 10% of the load)

P = 1.1* 3030.6 = 3333.6KN
Since Mx<My, assume Ly = 2*Lx
p 6 ex 6 ey
qult A {1 L x LY }

3333.6 6121.024 67.87

225= 2 LX 2 * {1 23333.6Lx 3333.60Lx }

1666.8 0.13
225= Lx
2 {1 Lx }
0.13
By trial & error, Lx2 = 7.41(1 + Lx )
Lx = 3.25m & Ly = 2*Ly = 6.5m

Then area of foundation = Lx*Ly = 3.25*6.5 = 21.25m2

Using the same procedure, area of the footings are calculated as follows.

Axial Mx
Poin load(K (KN My(KN Area(
t N) m) m) m2)
-
1902. 3.33 -
A6 96 3 34.378 8.4576
2417. 1.17 10.742
F6 12 5 -5.19 76
3662. - 16.279
B6 78 6.57 0.08 02
3892. 0.85 17.301
C6 85 4 1.648 56
4064. 18.062
D6 11 3.77 -4.312 71
4134. 18.377
E6 84 2.6 -1.575 07
F5 1739. - -3.189 7.7295
15 1.03 56
 9
1464. 0.30 6.5097
F4 69 5 1.493 33
-
3001. 0.07 13.339
F3 35 4 5.771 33
-
3395. 2.87 15.091
F2 68 9 5.151 91
2143. 1.51 9.5268
F1 55 6 -5.003 89
3770. 15.6 16.759
E1 95 57 9.891 78

-
6601. 2.62 29.338
E2 09 -2.606 2 18
-
5734. 1.28 25.488
E3 84 -3.425 7 18
-
3030. 121.0 7.88 13.469
E4 6 24 7 33
4339. 60.38 18.4 19.284
E5 1 2 27 89
-
5040. 3.25 22.400
B5 05 1.87 6 22
2615. 0.28 11.625
B4 75 -1.567 2 56
-
3122. 3.63 13.877
B3 35 -0.81 2 11
4542. 3.70 20.190
B2 81 -2.283 8 27
B1 1173. 1.52 - 5.2144
24 23.2
 74
-
2683. 8.98 11.925
A5 24 4.661 4 51
3888. 21.0 17.282
C5 61 -6.595 28 71
- -
5524. 11.01 3.44 24.551
D5 19 4 7 96
2353. 9.08 10.460
C3 64 -0.149 9 62
-
3617. 0.64 16.077
C2 54 0.795 6 96
5167. 3.27 22.968
D2 97 -3.229 6 76
3443. 3.17 15.305
D4 66 3.573 4 16
-
4357. 5.85 19.365
D3 26 -2.619 7 6
-
2675. 16.65 16.3 11.890
D1 29 8 97 18
605.4 4.99 2.6909
A2 6 -1.632 7 33
202.6
CIRC 8 2.1 -2.91 0.9008
-
333.6 4.26
CIRC 3 1.71 6 1.4828
-
369.9 1.89 1.6441
CIRC 4 -2.829 1 78
374.8 0.08 1.6658
CIRC 1 -3.957 1 22
1.17 1.6306
CIRC 366.9 -3.505 9 67
365.2 0.40 1.6234
CIRC 7 0.545 9 22
367.9 1.6355
CIRC 9 0.145 -1.17 11
 - -
363.4 1.59 2.18 1.6153
CIRC 5 4 2 33
-
356.5 1.71 1.5844
CIRC 1 -3.45 4 89
-
591.2 6.16 4.53 2.6276
CIRC 3 1 3 89
2.19 1.5604
CIRC 351.1 0.47 4 44
356.3 1.44 0.79 1.5837
CIRC 5 6 6 78
-
356.3 1.44 0.76 1.5839
CIRC 8 4 6 11
-
332.0 1.19 3.07 1.4759
CIRC 9 8 2 56
- -
1756. 6.93 2.05
p 53 9 6 7.8068
-
1360. 10.2 0.58 6.0472
p 64 67 3 89
-
773.4 1.91 1.33 3.4375
p 5 9 4 56
-
1300. 4.69 3.63 5.7811
p 76 6 1 56
-
975.7 1.52 4.3365
p 3 -8.97 5 78
- -
1059. 22.9 2.41 4.7106
p 9 22 3 67
 -
556.2 5.03 0.96 2.4723
p 8 2 2 56
-
1458. 0.06 20.2 6.4828
p 65 8 22 89
-
3387. 6.50 10.0 15.055
p 47 5 2 42
3872. 9.19 17.212
p 71 -6.69 6 04
-
260.7 0.32 0.27 1.1589
p 6 1 5 33
- -
440.2 1.53 1.66 1.9565
p 2 9 2 33
- -
420.1 2.92 2.76 1.8673
p 6 1 8 78
- -
247.0 1.01 1.58 1.0980
p 7 6 6 89
573.62
sum 39

The total area of the footing = 573m2

The total area of the building = 30*26.8 = 804m2

Area ratio = 573/804 *100 = 71.26% > 50% so that provision of mat
foundation is economical for this building.

Ribbed mat foundation is economical type of raft foundation which is

preferable for irregular column spacing.
 This building is provided with ribbed mat foundation due to advantages
stated above and others. It consists of the slab acted upon by upward soil
pressure at its under side and supported by beams from column to column
at its top with balancing downward columns load

In design of this foundation type it is assumed to be rigid and the portion

between beams is designed as a conventional one way or two way slab
resting on a system of beams and columns whereas, the beams are designed
for the loads coming from the slab.