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Foundation Engineering: CE-2086 Habtamu F. 2012

The document provides an introduction to foundation engineering. It discusses the history of foundation design evolving from empirical rules to a more scientific rational basis. It describes the main uncertainties in foundation design. The types of shallow and deep foundations are defined. The key performance requirements of foundations are outlined regarding strength, serviceability, constructability and economics. Factors to consider in selecting an appropriate foundation type are presented. Building codes that govern foundation design are also mentioned.

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Shita Alemie
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34 views12 pages

Foundation Engineering: CE-2086 Habtamu F. 2012

The document provides an introduction to foundation engineering. It discusses the history of foundation design evolving from empirical rules to a more scientific rational basis. It describes the main uncertainties in foundation design. The types of shallow and deep foundations are defined. The key performance requirements of foundations are outlined regarding strength, serviceability, constructability and economics. Factors to consider in selecting an appropriate foundation type are presented. Building codes that govern foundation design are also mentioned.

Uploaded by

Shita Alemie
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Foundation Engineering

CE-2086
Habtamu F.
2012
Lecture 1
Introduction
• The foundation is the part of an engineered system
that transmits to, and into, the underlying soil or rock
the loads supported by the substructure and its self-
weight.
• The term superstructure has particular significance for
buildings and bridges; however, foundations also may
carry only machinery, support industrial equipment
(pipes, towers, tanks), act as sign bases, and the like.
• For these reasons it is better to describe a foundation
as that part of the engineered system that interfaces
the load-carrying components to the ground.
Some History and Modern Practice
• Early foundation design were based solely on
precedent ,intuition and common sense.
• Through trial and error, builders developed empirical
rules of thumb for sizing and constructing foundations
• Load bearing masonry walls built on compacted gravel
shall be supported on spread footing 1.5 times width of
the wall
• Those built on clay and silt shall be supported on
spread footing 3 times the width of the wall
(Powell,1884) New York
Some History and Modern Practice
• Eiffel Tower, Paris France (1889)
Some History and Modern Practice
• From Empiricism to Rationalism
– Fredrick Baumann (1879) Recommended that the
base area of foundation should be proportional to
the load they support
– And forwarded allowable bearing capacity for soils in
Chicago area
• After 1920 soil mechanics grew in leaps and bounces
and allowed a more rational practice based on
scientific theories and soil exploration
• It is know possible to build reliable, cost effective high
capacity foundation for all types of structures
Uncertainties in Foundation Design
• The greatest uncertainties in Foundation
design are;
• Limited Knowledge of soil condition
• Limitation in understanding structure-soil interaction
• Difficulty in predicting service loading ( Live Loads)
• Due to these and other uncertainties the test results
and analysis results need to be tampered with
precedent, common sense, and engineering judgment
• Hence Foundation Engineering is both Science and Art
Types of Foundations
• Foundations are generally classified into two
groups as in
• Shallow Foundation
• Deep Foundation
• Bases of classification is that the depth to width
ratio (D/B<1) must be less or equal to 1.
• Shallow foundations spread the concentrated load
from the superstructure laterally hence known as
spread footings
• Deep foundation spread the same load vertically
Shallow Foundations
• Isolated
Footing
• Continuous
Footing
• Combined
Footing
• Strap footing
• Mat
Foundations
Deep Foundation
• Pile Foundations
• Drilled Shaft
Foundations
• Caissons
• Auger Piles
• Under reamed
piles
Performance Requirements
• Expected Performance of foundation can be
summarized in to
– Strength Requirements
• Geotechnical strength requirement
• Structural strength requirements
– Serviceability Requirements
• Settlement, Heave, Tilt, Lateral Movements, Vibration and Durability
– Constructability Requirements
– Economic Requirements
Bowles Table 1-1
Appropriate Foundation Type
• Any chosen foundation type should satisfy the
aforementioned strength and serviceability requirements
in an economical manner and it should be possible to
construct it using the current technology
• More Specifically the appropriateness of a foundation type
is determined by
– Loading requirements
– Site specific Geological conditions
– Site accessibility
– Overhead clearance
– Existence of utility lines
– Closeness of existing structure
– Limitations on Noise and vibration levels
Building Codes EBCS 7
• Building codes govern the design and
construction of all foundations.
• Building codes represent the minimum design
requirements. Simply meeting code
requirements does not produces satisfactory
design especially in foundation design.
• In Ethiopia the code that governs foundation
design and construction is EBCS 7

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