Prepared By: Engr. M.
Asjad Alam Geo-Technical & Foundation Engineering
Lecture :1
Foundations , Contact Pressure, Allowable bearing Capacity
What is foundation and its types in civil engineering?
In general, all foundations are divided into two categories,
- shallow and deep foundations. The terms Shallow and Deep
Foundation refer to the depth of the soil at which it is placed.
Generally, if the width of the foundation is greater than the depth,
it is labeled as the “Shallow Foundation”.
What are 4 types of foundation?
Types of Foundation and their Uses.
Spread footings or Strip footings and Wall
footings.
Raft or Mat Foundations.
Pile Foundations.
Drilled Shafts or Caisson Foundation
Why foundation is used in civil engineering?
Foundations provide the structure's stability from
the ground: To distribute the weight of the structure
over a large area in order to avoid overloading the
underlying soil (possibly causing unequal settlement).
What is foundation in RCC?
What are RCC footings? They are Reinforced Cement Concrete (RCC) footings, and
are made up of steel bars that act as a reinforcement to the concrete foundation,
which bears the entire weight of the home. The footings transfer the overall weight to
the ground easing the load on your home's structure.
Prepared By: Engr. M. Asjad Alam Geo-Technical & Foundation Engineering
Is footing and foundation same?
Footing vs Foundation
The footing is a formation which is in contact with the ground. Foundation is a structure
which transfers its gravity loads to earth from superstructure. Footing can be analogized
with the feet of the leg. Foundation can be compared with legs.
What is Foundation Contact Pressure? Generally loads from the structure are
transferred to the soil through footing. A reaction to this load, soil exerts an upward
pressure on the bottom surface of the footing which is termed as contact pressure.
What is contact pressure?
The contact pressure is the ratio of the normal load to the true contact area, which
is the sum of the front and rear areas. It may be called the scratch hardness only in
the case of plastic contact. Figure 4 shows the mean contact pressure as a function of
the contact strain for all three types of polymer sample.
What is the significance of contact pressure below foundation?
Definition of contact pressure:
A foundation usually transmit load to soil underneath, a response of which soil will exert
a reaction pressure to the foundation at the contact surface between the soil and
foundation. Thus foundation is media to transfer load between superstructure and
soil.
Important link: [Link]
under-a-rigid-fo--5f85c60193f24ab45d54a6c5
Allowable bearing capacity of soil:
The allowable bearing capacity of soil is the amount of load the soil can take without
experiencing shear failure or exceeding the allowable amount of settlement. This is the
figure that is used in the design of foundations.
What is meant by allowable bearing pressure?
The allowable bearing pressure is the LOWER OF. the maximum load that the
footing can support without failure with appropriate factors of safety; AND. the
maximum load that the footing can support without intolerable settlements
(serviceability)
Prepared By: Engr. M. Asjad Alam Geo-Technical & Foundation Engineering
What is difference between bearing capacity and allowable bearing capacity?
The ultimate bearing capacity is the maximum possible load that can be supported
without failure (e.g., by overturning of a building). Allowable bearing capacity is a
load not to be exceeded without causing settlements too great for a given
structural or operational application
Following are some types of bearing capacity of soil:
Ultimate bearing capacity (qu) ...
Net ultimate bearing capacity (qnu) ...
Net safe bearing capacity (qns) ...
Gross safe bearing capacity (qs) ...
Net safe settlement pressure (qnp) ...
Net allowable bearing pressure (qna)
Types of Bearing Capacity of Soil
Following are some types of bearing capacity of soil:
1. Ultimate bearing capacity (q ) u
The gross pressure at the base of the foundation at which soil fails is called ultimate bearing capacity.
2. Net ultimate bearing capacity (q ) nu
By neglecting the overburden pressure from ultimate bearing capacity we will get net ultimate
bearing capacity.
Where = unit weight of soil, Df = depth of foundation
3. Net safe bearing capacity (q ) ns
By considering only shear failure, net ultimate bearing capacity is divided by certain factor of safety
will give the net safe bearing capacity.
qns = qnu/ F
Where F = factor of safety = 3 (usual value)
4. Gross safe bearing capacity (q ) s
When ultimate bearing capacity is divided by factor of safety it will give gross safe bearing capacity.
qs = qu/F
5. Net safe settlement pressure (q ) np
The pressure with which the soil can carry without exceeding the allowable settlement is called net
safe settlement pressure.
Prepared By: Engr. M. Asjad Alam Geo-Technical & Foundation Engineering
6. Net allowable bearing pressure (q ) na
This is the pressure we can used for the design of foundations. This is equal to net safe bearing
pressure if qnp > qns. In the reverse case it is equal to net safe settlement pressure.
Calculation of Bearing Capacity
For the calculation of bearing capacity of soil, there are so many theories. But all the theories are
superseded by Terzaghi’s bearing capacity theory.
1. Terzaghi’s bearing capacity theory
Terzaghi’s bearing capacity theory is useful to determine the bearing capacity of soils under a strip
footing. This theory is only applicable to shallow foundations. He considered some assumptions
which are as follows.
1. The base of the strip footing is rough.
2. The depth of footing is less than or equal to its breadth i.e., shallow footing.
3. He neglected the shear strength of soil above the base of footing and replaced it with uniform
surcharge. ( Df)
4. The load acting on the footing is uniformly distributed and is acting in vertical direction.
5. He assumed that the length of the footing is infinite.
6. He considered Mohr-coulomb equation as a governing factor for the shear strength of soil.
Prepared By: Engr. M. Asjad Alam Geo-Technical & Foundation Engineering
Prepared By: Engr. M. Asjad Alam Geo-Technical & Foundation Engineering