VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY - HCMC
HO CHI MINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
FACULTY OF CIVIL ENGINEERING
Foundations
Course Leader : Dr Huynh Nhat Minh
Visiting Professor : Ir Dr Patrick Quek
E-Mail :
[email protected] Foundation Failure
Inadequate foundation design and
snow load resulting in structural failure “Differential settlement”
on sandy silt
Combined Building Loads
Foundations - background
“The foundations of buildings should be designed to sustain and
transmit the loadings to the ground ... [to ensure] no ground
movement which will impair the stability of the building. All
aspects of the ground should be considered, including:
•Swelling, shrinkage or freezing of the subsoil
•Landslip
•Subsidence (eg from mining or quarrying)”
(Scottish Building Standards Section 1 - Structure)
Functions of foundations
• Interface between building and ground
• Transmit loads safely without overloading soil
• Cope with point or “eccentric” loads
• Relate to the complexities of the building design
– Form and type of building
– Direction and magnitude of loads
• Relate to the ground conditions
– Bearing capacity of ground
– Depth of bearing strata
– Deal with sloping sites
• Water control during construction
Example -
Consider our small framed office building:
1
Floor slabs
350mm thick 3.0m
masonry
cavity wall A B
6.0m Foundations
6.0m
Beam AB supports 151kN DL and 45kN IL = 196kN
Column A supports 196/2 = 98kN
Plus DL of 3m of r.c. column 300x300mm = 6.36kN
Each storey generates 104.4kN
Say 6 storeys means total load = 626.4kN
Example - 2
Over what area of soil must 626.4kN be spread?
Soil type Permissible (kN/m2 ) Foundation area (m2)
Dense sand and gravel 300 2.09
Loose sand and gravel 150 4.2
Loose sand 75 8.4
Stiff clay 200 3.13
Firm clay 100 6.27
Soft clay <75 >8.35
Hence we have to choose a foundation type to suit the loading at
foundation level and the geometry of the building.
Foundation types - 1
Strip footings
For low-rise domestic etc
Normally uses unreinforced concrete cast Excavated
directly on the level bottom of the trench ontrench
backfilled
firm soil beneath topsoil
Foundation types - 2
Mass concrete pad
For lightly loaded columns Recommended dimensions:
Concrete must
be thick enough
to resist shear
failure
Foundation types - 3
Reinforced concrete pad
Reinforcement resists bending
loads imposed by column
BM distribution
under column
Combined
When pads need to be big to
spread loads far enough it is easier
to join them together
BM distributions
Foundation types - 4
Reinforced concrete raft
Useful for light loads on very weak soils.
Raft ‘floats’ on soil.
Concrete being
placed by pump
Mesh of reinforcement
Foundation types - 5
Basement
Spreads loads deeper in the soil, which is harder at depth,
having been compacted.
Rule of thumb:
wt of excavated soil = wt of building
(Basement is often useful for car parking and plant rooms
etc.)
Basement with raft
Retaining wall
of excavation
Columns
cast in raft
Foundation types - 6
Piled
Piles take loads down to strong
strata.
Bored piles – concrete poured into
a drilled hole
Driven piles – precast concrete or Friction along sides
steel hammered into the ground
End bearing
Piles resist loads by end-bearing
and friction on the sides
Bored piling
Excavated
Note proximity of soil Steel reinforcement
existing building cages ready for
Truck delivering ready insertion
-mixed grout and
pumping into the hole
Driven piling
Pile driving
machine
Piles awaiting
installation
Piles driven to
depth and trimmed
Ground beams
• Ground beams span over
weak ground conditions
• Usually used with piled
(deep) foundations
• Design the beam as a
reinforced concrete beam to
support the wall loads
between the piles.
Inadequate water control – oops!
12 storey building collapsed
in China due to 4.6m
excavation on south side
and spoil heaped on north,
leading to unequal soil
pressures which moved the
building laterally and
caused it to tilt and fall into
the hole.
Settlement
• Settlement is the gradual subsiding of a
structure as the soil beneath its foundation
consolidates under loading.
• As a building is being constructed, some
consolidation is expected as the load on the
foundation increases and causes a reduction
in the volume of soil voids containing air or
water (compaction effect).
Ground Settlement
• Uniform settlement over • Differential settlement, is
the whole area of the when a building's
building is normal and foundation settles
provided that it is not unequally.
severe, will do the • Differential
superstructure little settlement can result in
harm. damage to the structure,
and is therefore, of
concern. Differential
settlement occurs when
the soil beneath the
structure expands,
contracts or shifts away.
Uniform Settlement
Differential Settlement
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9J7TtDbj2n4
What Causes Foundation Settlement?
Poor Compaction
Changes in Moisture Content
Weak Bearing Soils
Maturing Trees and Vegetation
Differential settlement
The damage occurs when the
foundation sinks in different
areas at different times.
Types of foundations
Spread and pile foundations
Spread foundations
Slab foundations
Raft foundations
Pad foundations
Continuous or combined column foundations
Combined column foundations
Raft foundations
Pile foundations
Pile foundation
• Pile foundations can be loosely defined as columns set in the
ground. They work by transferring the load exerted by the building
to strata deep in the ground. Piles are used when:
a) The load imposed by a building cannot be spread over the soil
without overstressing it. Piles are thus used to transfer the load to a
deeper strata in the ground where the load can be carried.
b) Where settlement is unpredictable in strata near the surface but
bedrock is available.
c) On shrinkable soils.
d) To underpin existing inadequate foundations.
e) To anchor down buildings when wind pressure, water pressure or
upward ground pressure tend to lift a building.
Remember the KLCC tower construction?
Pile foundation
Two types of pile foundation:
• Displacement pile – friction pile
• Replacement pile – end-bearing pile
Loading and Driving a 30
metre long Pile
Pile Installation
Pile foundations
Displacement piles
Pre-cast shell piles
Cast in-situ piles
Replacement piles
Bored piles
Pile Caps
Economic and construction considerations when selecting
an appropriate foundation system
The selection of the most appropriate system is a bit of a ‘balancing
act’. All of the engineering options can be juggled until an optimum is
identified.
Case Study
Shanghai Building Collapse
Conclusion
• Foundations are designed to spread the load of a building over
a sufficient area of soil so that the bearing capacity (stress) is
not exceeded.
• There are various types of foundations, which are appropriate
for different buildings and soils.
What did we learn last week ?
Recap of Last Lecture
Learning from international construction industry :
• Function of Foundation
• Types of Foundation
• Ground Settlement – Uniform and Differential
• Causes of Settlement
• Pile Foundations
• Types of Pile
• Case Study – Shanghai Building Collapse
