SOIL MECHANICS - II

BEARING CAPACITY OF SOIL

Lecture No. 9

Muhammad Usman Arshid

DEparTmEnT of civil EnginEEring

UnivErsiTy of EnginEEring & TEchnology Taxila 1
 Foundations
 Foundations are designed to transmit
load from the structure to the soil
 Foundations are generally grouped into
two categories:

A. Shallow Foundations
B. Deep Foundations
 Key Terms
• Foundation: structure that transmits loads to
underlying soils.

Shallow Foundations
(Df/B < 4.0)

Deep Foundations
(Df/B > 4.0)

Df = Embedment Depth
B = Breadth of Foundation (Coduto)
 Types of Foundation Loads
1) Normal Loads
2) Shear Loads
3) Moment Loads
4) Torsion Loads

Load Sources:

1) Dead Loads 8) Impact Loads

2) Snow Loads 9) Temperature Induced Loads
3) Earth Pressure 10) Stream/Ice Loads
4) Fluid Loads 11) Centrifugal/Braking
5) Earthquake Loads 12) Shear Loads
6) Wind Loads

(Coduto)
 Shallow Foundations
 the most common (and cheapest) type
of shallow foundations are
SPREAD FOOTINGS

 square spread
footings to support
individual columns
(also circular)
McCarthy, 6th Ed.
 Shallow Foundation Types
Spread Footing (column loads)

(Alex Mead)
 Shallow Foundation Types
Strip Footing (wall loads)
 Shallow Foundation Types
Mat (Raft) Foundation
(floor loads)
 Strip Footings to support wall loads

McCarthy, 6th Ed.

 Rectangular and Trapezoidal Footings for two

columns (combined footing) or machine base

McCarthy, 6th Ed.

 RAFT or MAT Foundations

McCarthy, 6th Ed.

 To lower the bearing pressure and reduce

differential settlement on soils with low bearing
capacity or erratic or variable conditions
 Deep Foundations
• Insufficient soil “bearing capacity” near surface

• Excessive settlements on shallow foundations

• Differential settlements on shallow foundations

• Constructability issues (e.g., shallow GWT)

• Lateral loads, uplift forces

• (wind, waves, earthquakes, earth pressure)
 Deep Foundations
 used when soil near surface has poor
load-bearing capacity

loose soil

bedrock

 they transmit load through weak soil

strata (overburden) to stronger, load-
bearing stratum (eg., bedrock, dense
sand and gravel, etc.)
 Types of Deep Foundations
PIERS  where load-bearing stratum
no more than 5 m deep
 not used much any more
McCarthy, 6th Ed.

CAISSONS  where over-

burden no more
than 8 - 9 m
thick
 replacing piers
McCarthy, 6th Ed.
PILES
 deep over-burden
more than 8 - 9 m
thick
 Various types and
placement
methods

Craig, 6th Ed.

 Ultimate Bearing Capacity, qf
The least pressure that would cause shear
failure of supporting soil immediately below
and adjacent to a foundation

Craig, 6th Ed.

 Allowable Bearing Capacity
 the allowable bearing capacity, qa is the value
used in the design of footing size
 A factor of safety against general shear failure,
F is applied to the ultimate bearing capacity, qf:

qf
qa 
F
 BASIC DEFINITIONS :
1) Ultimate Bearing Capacity (qu) :
The ultimate bearing capacity is the gross
pressure at the base of the foundation at which
soil fails in shear.
2) Net ultimate Bearing Capacity (qnu) :
It is the net increase in pressure at the base of
foundation that cause shear failure of the soil.
Thus,
qnu = qu – γDf (overburden pressure))
 BASIC DEFINITIONS :
3) Net Safe Bearing Capacity (qns) :
It is the net soil pressure which can be safely
applied to the soil considering only shear failure.
Thus,
qns=qnu/FOS
4) Gross Safe Bearing Capacity (qs) :
It is the maximum pressure which the soil can
carry safely without shear failure.

qs = qnu / FOS + γ Df
 BASIC DEFINITIONS :
5)Net Safe Settlement Pressure (qnp) :
It is the net pressure which the soil can carry
without exceeding allowable settlement.

6) Net Allowable Bearing Pressure (qna ):

It is the net bearing pressure which can be used
for design of foundation.
Thus,
qna = qns ; if qnp > qns
qna = qnp ; if qns > qnp
 Basic Definitions :
• Gross Allowable Bearing Pressure, qa is expressed as:

• where Fs = factor of safety.

• Net Allowable Bearing Pressure, qna

• Safe Bearing Pressure, qs

• qs is defined as the net safe bearing pressure which produces a

settlement of the foundation which does not exceed a permissible limit.

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 Structural Requirements
1. Factor of Safety against General Shear Failure
of supporting soil is normally required to be in
the range 2.5 – 3.0
2. Tolerable amount of settlement; should not
cause significant damage to structure nor
interfere with function (s<25 mm)
3. Secondary to these, during construction, there
should be no adverse affect on adjacent
structures or services
 ASD vs. LRFD
qnet
Allowable Stress Design (ASD) qall 
F .S .
• Historical Approach in Geotechnical Engineering
• “Blanket” factor of safety

Less
conservative More conservative
(More Risk) (More Cost)
 ASD vs. LRFD

Load and Resistance Factor Design (LRFD)

• Modern Approach in Geotechnical Engineering

• Factored Load (Q) < Factored Resistance (R)

• i are “load factors” for different types of loads ( ≥ 1.0)

•  are “resistance factor(s)” for nominal resistance ( ≤ 1.0)

• Effectively accounts for uncertainty in a quantitative way

• Structures may be designed for a specific amount of risk

Bearing Capacity Failure
• a) General Shear Failure Most
common type of shear failure;
occurs in strong soils and
rocks

• b) Local Shear Failure

Intermediate between general
and punching shear failure

• c) Punching Shear Failure

Occurs in very loose sands
weak clays
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Bearing Capacity Failure

General shear failure

Local shear failure

Punching shear failure

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Transcosna Grain Elevator
Canada (Oct. 18, 1913)

West side of foundation sank 24-ft

modes of failure:
General Shear Failure

 on low compressibility (dense or stiff) soils

 plastic equilibrium throughout support and
adjacent soil masses
 heaving on both sides of foundation
 final slip (movement of soil) on one side only
causing structure to tilt
Local Shear Failure

 on highly compressible soils

 only partial development of plastic equilibrium
 only slight heaving on sides
 significant compression of soil under footing
Punching Shear Failure

 on loose, uncompacted soils

 vertical shearing around edges of footing
 high compression of soil under footing, hence
large settlements
 no heaving, no tilting
Bearing Capacity
Modes of Failure
• a) General Shear Failure Most
common type of shear failure;
occurs in strong soils and
rocks

• b) Local Shear Failure

Intermediate between general
and punching shear failure

• c) Punching Shear Failure

Occurs in very loose sands
weak clays
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 General Guidelines
• Footings in clays - -general shear

• Footings in Dense sands ( > 67%) D r

-general shear

• Footings in Loose to Medium dense

(30%< < 67%) - D r Local Shear

• Footings in Very Loose Sand ( < 30%)- D r

punching shear
TERZAGHI’S THEORY
Assumptions for Terzaghi's Method

 Depth of foundation is less than or equal to its

width
 No sliding occurs between foundation and soil
(rough foundation)
 Soil beneath foundation is homogeneous semi
infinite mass
 Mohr-Coulomb model for soil
 General shear failure mode is the governing
mode (but not the only mode)
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Assumptions for Terzaghi's Method

 No soil consolidation occurs

 Foundation is very rigid relative to the soil
 Soil above bottom of foundation has no shear
strength; is only a surcharge load against the
overturning load
 Applied load is compressive and applied
vertically to the centroid of the foundation
 No applied moments present
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 Terzaghi’s Theory

Craig, 6th Ed.

 strip footing of infinite length and width B

 uniform surcharge, q0 on surface of isotropic,
homogeneous soil
 Rankine active wedge, ABC: forces 
 Passive zones, ADE () & BGF ()
 Craig, 6th Ed.

 transition between &:ACD & BCG (zones

or radial shear or slip fans)
 above EDCGF: plastic equilibrium
 below EDCGF: elastic equilibrium
 the more general case is a footing at depth D

Craig, 6th Ed.

 Neglecting the shear strength of the soil above

depth D implies that this soil is a surcharge:
q0 = D
 Terzaghi’s general equation:
qf = 0.5BN + cNc + DNq
Contribution of: Soil Self Shear Surcharge
Weight Strength
 Bearing Capacity Factors
 N, Nc and Nq are bearing capacity factors and
are derived from various sources

Craig, 6th Ed.

 MODIFICATIONS OF
TERZAGHI’S THEORY
 General Shear Failure of Footings (Ultimate
Bearing Capacity)
 theory was developed q f  0.5γB( N S )  c( Nc Sc )  DNq
for strip footings
N q  e  tan( ) tan 2 (45  2 )
 to adapt to square,
N c  ( N q  1) cot(  )
circular and
rectangular shapes, N   ( N q  1) tan(1.4 )
Terzaghi & Peck FOOTING
Sγ Sc
TYPE
developed shape
factors here which Strip 1.0 1.0

are still widely used Square 0.8 1.2

today:
Circular 1.6 1.2

Rectangular 1  0 .2 ( BL ) 1  0 .2 ( BL )
Other Factors

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 Equations for Square, Circular, and
Rectangular Foundations
 Terzaghi's bearing capacity Eq. has been modified for other types of
foundations by introducing the shape factors. The equations are:

 Square Foundations:

 Circular Foundations:

 Rectangular Foundations:

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Equations for Square, Circular, and Rectangular Foundations

 Ultimate Bearing Capacity qu in Purely Cohesion-less and

Cohesive Soils Under General Shear Failure:

 For cohesion-less soil (for c = 0) and cohesive soils (for ɸ = 0) as follows.

 Strip Footing

 Square Footing:

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Equations for Square, Circular, and Rectangular Foundations

 Ultimate Bearing Capacity qu in Purely Cohesion-less and

Cohesive Soils Under General Shear Failure:

 For cohesion-less soil (for c = 0) and cohesive soils (for ɸ = 0) as follows.

 Circular Footing

 Rectangular Footing

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 Bearing Capacity of
Shallow Foundations
 Groundwater Effects
Groundwater Table Effect
Groundwater Table Effect;
Case I
1. Modify s′zD
2. Calculate ′ as follows:

   b   w
Groundwater Table Effect;
Case II
1. No change in s′zD
2. Calculate ′ as follows:

  Dw  D  
      w 1    
  B 
Groundwater Table Effect;
Case III
1. No change in s′zD
2. No change in ′


Minimum Factor of Safety
 Solved Example:
 A strip footing of width 3 m is founded at a depth of 2 m below the
ground surface in a (c - ɸ) soil having a cohesion c = 30 kN/m2 and
angle of shearing resistance ɸ = 35°. The water table is at a depth
of 5 m below ground level. The moist weight of soil above the water
table is 17.25 kN/m3.
 Determine (a) the ultimate bearing capacity of the soil, (b) the net
bearing capacity, and (c) the net allowable bearing pressure and
the load/m for a factor of safety of 3. Use the general shear failure
theory of Terzaghi.

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55
 If the water table in Ex. 12.1 rises to the ground level, determine
the net safe bearing pressure of the footing. All the other data
given in Ex. 1 remain the same. Assume the saturated unit weight
of the soil ɣsat= 18.5 kN/m3.

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57
 Example: Sand
P Find Pall for FS = 3.0

0
1
qult  cN c f c  qN q f q  B N  f 
Df = 5’ 2
L = 10’
Check water table:
B = 6’ Sand (c = 0) Dw (13) > Df + B (11) so no effect
Dw = 13’  = 110 pcf
From Vesic (1973): for  = 33 deg.
 = 33
Nq = 26.1
N = 35.2
Correction factors:
Pall  qall A B
Fqs  1  tan   1.39
L
qnet  Df 
qall  2
Fqd  1  2 tan  1  sin      1.22
FS  B 
qnet  qult  D f B
Fs  1  0.4  0.76
L
Fd  1
 P
Find Pall for FS = 3.0

0
1
Df = 5’ qult  cN c f c  qN q f q  B N  f 
L = 10’
2
1
B = 6’ qult  D f N q Fqs Fqd  BN  Fs Fd
Dw = 13’ Sand (c = 0) 2
 = 110 pcf qult  110526.11.391.22
 = 33 1
  6 11035.2 0.761
2
qult  24334  8826  33160 psf
qnet  33160  1105  32610
qnet 32610
qall    10870
FS 3
Pall  qall A  10870 psf 6'10'  652 kips
 Example: Clay
P

Dw = 0 • Find Pall for FS = 3.0

• Assume undrained (rapid) loading ( = 0, su)
Df = 6’ • This is the critical case (weakest soil)
L = 10’
B = 6’
Clay
 = 100 pcf t

Results from UU tests on Clay:

Test s3f (psi) s1f (psi) Undrained Shear Strength
su = 8.7 psi = 1250 psf
A 10 27
B 20 38
s (psi)
C 40 57
 1
P qult  su N c f c  qN q f q  B N  f 
2
Dw = 0 From Vesic (1973), for  = 0:
Nq = 1.0
Nc = 5.14
Df = 6’
N = 0
L = 10’
B = 6’ No need to check water table (N = 0)

Clay Correction Factors:

 = 100 pcf
D 
Fcd  1  0.4 f   1.4
 B 
0
2 Df 
Fqd  1  2 tan  1  sin      1.0
 B 
B  Nq 
Fcs  1     1.2
L  Nc 
B 0
Fqs  1  tan   1
L
 P

Dw = 0 0
1
Df = 6’
qult  su N c f c  qN q f q  B N  f 
2
L = 10’
qult  1250 5.14 1.4 1.2   100 6 11
B = 6’
qult  11394 psf
Clay
 = 100 pcf qnet  11394  100 6   10794 psf
qnet 10794
qall    3598 psf
FS 3
Pall  qall A  35986 10   216 kips
 Home Assignment
 A rectangular footing of size 10 x 20 ft is founded at a depth of 6 ft
below the ground surface in a homogeneous cohesionless soil
having an angle of shearing resistance ɸ = 35°. The water table is
at a great depth. The unit weight of soil 7= 114 lb/ft3. Determine:
(1) the net ultimate bearing capacity, (2) the net allowable bearing
pressure for Fs = 3, and (3) the allowable load Qa the footing can
carry. Use Terzaghi's theory.

 A rectangular footing of size 10 x 20 ft is founded at a depth of 6 ft

below the ground level in a cohesive soil (ɸ = 0) which fails by
general shear. Given: ɣsat =114 lb/ft3, c = 945 lb/ft2. The water
table is close to the ground surface. Determine qu , qnu and qna by
Terzaghi's method,

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