Shallow Foundation

Slide 7

Definition
Shallow foundations are structural members that convert the concentrated super-structural loads into pressures applied to the supporting soil. Square, circular, strip, and mat foundations are common shapes of shallow foundations. Each of these shapes is suitable for a specic type of structure: A square foundation is used under a column, a circular foundation is used for cylindrical structures such as water tanks, a strip foundation is used under retaining walls, and a mat (raft) foundation is used under an entire building.

Definition

A foundation is considered shallow if Df B as proposed by Terzaghi (1943), where B is the foundation width and Df is the foundation depth, as shown the Figure. Others proposed that foundations with greater depths (up to 4B) can be considered shallow foundations.

Design Requirements
When designing a shallow foundation, two aspects must be considered: (1) The applied foundation pressure should not exceed the bearing capacity of the supporting soil; and (2) The foundation settlement should not be excessive due to the applied foundation pressure

Modes of Failure
There are three possible modes of soil failure, depending on soil type and foundation size and depth. General shear failure, local shear failure, and punching shear failure .

General Shear Failure

The rst mode, general shear failure, is usually encountered in dense sands and stiff clays underlying a shallow foundation.

General Shear Failure

In general shear failure when the load Q is increased gradually, the corresponding foundation pressure, q, will increase. The foundation settlement will also increase, with increasing pressure until the ultimate bearing capacity, qu, is reached. A sudden increase in settlement is noted immediately after reaching qu, indicating severe loss of support. The general shear failure mode is accompanied by the occurrence of a failure surface and the inability to maintain the applied pressure. There is a distinctive peak in the pressure versus settlement curve shown in the gure, which corresponds to the ultimate bearing capacity, qu.

Local Shear Failure

The second failure mode, local shear failure, is encountered in medium-dense sands and medium-stiff clays. It is characterized by the lack of a distinct peak in the pressure versus settlement curve, as shown in Figure.

Local Shear Failure

In the case of local shear failure, determination of the ultimate bearing capacity is usually governed by excessive foundation settlements, as indicated in the gure. The local shear failure mode is accompanied by a progressive failure surface that may extend to the ground surface after qu is reached

Punching Shear Failure

The third mode of failure, punching shear failure, usually occurs in loose sands and soft clays. This type of failure is accompanied by a triangular failure surface directly under the foundation. As in local shear failure, punching failure is also characterized by the lack of a distinctive ultimate bearing capacity. Thus, the ultimate bearing capacity in this case is taken as the pressure corresponding to excessive foundation settlements

Square & Circular Foundation

Example

Effects of Water Table

Causes of Soil Displacements

Soil deformation may occur by change in stress, water content, soil mass, or temperature.
(1) Elastic deformation (2) Consolidation (3) Secondary compression and creep (4) Dynamic forces (5) Expansive soil (6) Collapsible soil

Foundation settlement can be divided into three basic types

Rigid body or uniform settlement Non-uniform settlement

Tilt or distortion

Distortion is an angular measurement (radians) and is often referred to as angular distortion.

Serviceability Limit States

Table 1

Serviceability Limit States

Example: Calculation of Angular Distortion

Maximum Allowable Average Settlement of Some Structures

Allowable Settlements
Depends on many factors, eg. types of buildings: - Masonry walled structures 25-50 mm - Framed structures 50-100 mm - Smokestacks, silos 80-300 mm

http://www.scribd.com/doc/29454865/20/All owable-Settlement

Evaluation of Settlement
The settlement of shallow foundations is divided into three segments immediate or elastic settlement, primary consolidation settlement, and secondary consolidation settlement (creep). Primary consolidation and secondary compression settlements are usually small if the effective stress in the foundation soil applied by the structure is less than the maximum effective past pressure of the soil.

Immediate Settlement
We can use the theory of elasticity to determine the immediate or elastic settlement of shallow foundations. Gazetas et al. (1985) considered an arbitrarily shaped rigid footing embedded in a deep homogeneous soil.

It can be used for shallow foundation as well.

Example: Immediate Settlement

Primary Consolidation Settlement

The method described in Soil mechanics can be used to calculate the primary consolidation settlement of clays below the shallow footing.

However, these equations were obtained for one-dimensional consolidation where the lateral strain is zero.

Footing on/near slopes

Placement of footings on or adjacent to slopes requires that the designer perform calculations to ensure that both the bearing capacity and the overall slope stability are acceptable. The bearing capacity equation should include corrections recommended by AASHTO as adapted from NAVFAC (1986b) to design the footings The ultimate bearing capacity equation:

Footing on Slopes

Footing Near Slopes

Scour Potential
Scour is a hydraulic erosion process that lowers the grade of a water channel or river bed. This erosion is caused by flowing water. Excessive removal of the material around a shallow foundation or undermining of a footing can cause excessive deformation or structure collapse. Foundations for bridges and structures located near rivers, channels and in floodplains should be located below the limits of scour. If the scour depth is too deep for a shallow foundation to be constructed using normal methods, consideration should be given to selection of a deep foundation system for support of the structure.

Scour Potential
Scour is a site-specific process that is a function of the flow velocity and duration, the geometry of the structural elements exposed to the flow of water, the geomorphology of the channel and the properties of the foundation and channel bed materials. The process of scour is complex. A multidisciplinary team of hydraulic, geotechnical and structural engineers should evaluate the risk of scour-induced failure at each structure site. A foundation located in a floodplain should be designed for the worst scour condition that can occur during its life. If lateral stream migration could expose a shallow foundation or abutment, it should be designed for the same scour condition as foundations in the main channel.

Scour Potential
Scour can undermine shallow foundations or remove sufficient overburden to redistribute foundation forces causing foundation displacement and detrimental stresses to structural elements. One of the hazards of placing a structure in a river or channel is the potential for scour around the foundations. For new structures the foundation should be designed deep enough such that scour protection is not required

Scour Design Considerations for Shallow Foundations Spread Footings on Soil

Ensure that the top of the footing is below the sum of the long-term degradation, contraction scour and lateral migration (excluding local scour). Place the bottom of the footing below the total scour line. The top of the footing can act as a local scour arrestor.

Scour Design Considerations for Shallow Foundations Spread Footings on Rock Highly Resistant to Scour
Place the bottom of the footing directly on the cleaned rock surface for massive rock formations (such as granite) that are highly resistant to scour. If footings on massive hard rock surfaces require lateral constraint, steel dowels should be drilled and grouted into the rock below the footing level.

Scour Design Considerations for Shallow Foundations Spread Footings on Erodible Rock
Weathered or other potentially erodible rock formations need to be carefully assessed for scour. An engineering geologist familiar with the area geology should be consulted to determine if rock, soil or other criteria should be used to calculate the support for the spread footing foundation. For deep deposits of weathered rock, the potential scour depth should be estimated and the footing base placed below that depth. Loose rock pieces should be removed and the zone filled with clean concrete. In any event, the final footing should be poured in contact with the sides of the excavation for the full designed footing thickness to minimize water intrusion below footing level. Guidance on scourability of rock formations is given in FHWA memorandum Scourability of Rock Formations, dated July 19, 1991.

AASHTO specification
AASHTO specification requires footings for stream piers and each abutment to be founded at least 1.8 m (6 ft) below the streambed. For existing structures identified as scour susceptible, scour countermeasures are often required to protect foundations from scour conditions not identified at the time of design.

Scour Protection
There are four general types of scour protection: Localized armoring River training Modifications to the foundations Monitoring
Localized armoring techniques include the following: Rock riprap Gabions and slope mattress Pre-cast concrete blocks Grouted riprap

Precast concrete

Riprap