SE 181-242 Foundation Engineering

Spring 2016

Assignment #3. Bearing Capacity of Shallow Foundations

1. A masonry structure will be constructed in Mexico City on a soft clay deposit. The
walls will be founded on strip footings that are 8 feet wide and bear on the ground
surface. The clay has been divided into two layers. The very soft top layer is 3 feet
thick and has an undrained shear strength of cu1 = 250 psf. The stiffer bottom layer is
more than 20 feet thick and has an undrained shear strength of cu2 = 500 psf. Develop
a spreadsheet to answer the following problems, and write a brief report that includes
sample calculations, figures, and a summary table as noted below. Do not submit the
spreadsheet (but make sure it is well-labeled and organized if you ask for help).
a. Sketch the problem, and derive a general relationship between the bearing
pressure and the geometry variables for the case of 2 layers. Use the undrained
shear strength of the upper layer as the reference strength to combine the bearing
capacity factors for each soil layer into a single bearing capacity factor (i.e., Nc =
Nc1 + Nc2cu2/cu1).
b. Develop a summary table comparing the relevant variables from the three
following analyses:
i. First assume that the top layer is very thick (that is, there is no bottom layer)
and that the load is applied to the center of the footing. Find the location for
the center of the critical circle using the Solver function and calculate both
the bearing capacity factor and the ultimate bearing capacity (the minimum
value of the bearing pressure). Compare your result to the value we derived
in class for this case.
ii. Now include the second layer in your calculations. Use the Solver
function to find the location for the center of the critical circle and calculate
both the bearing capacity factor and the ultimate bearing capacity. Discuss
how these results compare to those from part (i).
iii. Graduate Only Due to construction tolerances, assume that the wall load
bears up to 0.5 feet off from the center of the footing (e = 0.5 ft). Use the
Solver function to find the location for the center of the critical surface
and calculate both the bearing capacity factor and the ultimate bearing
capacity. Discuss the effect of the eccentricity in terms of its effect on the
geometry of the critical failure surface and on the bearing capacity factor.
c. Graduate Only Assume that the circular failure surface is centered at one edge of
the footing and passes through the other edge. For the first two scenarios
mentioned in the part b (i and ii), plot the bearing pressure versus the height of the
center of the failure surface from the ground surface up to 12 feet above the
ground surface on the same plot. Discuss the difference in the minimum bearing
pressure for each scenario.
d. List three alternatives to increase the ultimate bearing capacity of this structure.
Discuss advantages and disadvantages for each alternative.

2. A footing shown in the picture below has dimensions of 4 ft by 4 ft, and a thickness
of 12 inches is placed beneath a 5 inch floor slab. The values of N60 for different
depths below ground surface (bgs) are not corrected for overburden. The soil has a
total unit weight above the water table of 110 pcf and a total unit weight of 112.4 pcf
below the water table. The charts below are from the book of Peck, Hanson, and
Thornburn (1974), whose method is commonly used to calculate the bearing capacity
of shallow foundations on sand. Use the chart which has the closest Df/B ratio, and
the lines of N are for N1,60 which are corrected for overburden. Using the average
N1,60 within the zone of soil that experiences a change in stress of 10% of the applied
change in stress below the footing, calculate the allowable bearing pressure of the
foundation (i.e., which incorporates a factor of safety). Note that the charts provide
the net allowable bearing pressure, not the allowable bearing pressure.
N60

3. A multi-story steel frame structure will be constructed on a stiff clay.

The clay is uniform and saturated with a water content of 29%, a liquid limit of 62, a
plastic limit of 28, a specific gravity of solids of 2.70, and an average unconfined
compressive strength of 5,200 psf in the upper 20 feet. The columns will supported by
square footings founded 3 feet below the ground surface. The design column load is
50 tons. A factor of safety against bearing capacity failure of 3 is specified.
a. Based on undrained conditions, determine the minimum footing width required to
achieve a factor of safety of at least 3. Use the Prandtl solution of Skempton
(1951) and any necessary corrections. Assume that footing widths are specified in
intervals of 0.5 feet (for example, 2.5 feet, 3.0 feet, 3.5 feet, etc.).
b. As a design check, check the factor of safety against a bearing capacity failure
under drained conditions using the minimum footing width from part (a), and
compare with that used for undrained conditions in part (a). Use the general
equation and correction factors given on the Concept of Net Bearing Pressure
slide of Lecture 4. Based on a set of direct shear tests (which are always drained)
performed with normal stresses in the range of the applied footing pressure, the
tangent Mohr-Coulomb parameters for this clay are = 25 and c = 50 psf.
4. Graduate Only A 2-foot diameter circular footing will be founded in a sand deposit.
a. With the footing founded at the surface, plot the net ultimate bearing capacity
versus the effective friction angle for values ranging from 30 to 45. Consider
two water table locations, one very deep and one at the ground surface and show
them on the same plot. Use an average value of unit weight that is representative
of the range of friction angles considered. Discuss the role of the water table.
b. Plot the net ultimate bearing capacity versus the depth of the footing for depths
from 0 to 20 feet and for equal to 35 for both water table depths (both on same
plot). Discuss the role of depth on the bearing capacity.