Well Foundation Well foundations have their origin in India & have been used for hundreds of years for providing deep foundation to important buildings and bridges. Well foundations were freely used during the Moghal Period for bridges across the major rivers. Moghal monuments including Taj Mahal are built on well foundations. Well foundations provide a … Read more
Selection of Type of Foundation The selection of a particular type of foundation is often based on a number of factors, such as: 1. Adequate depth The foundation must have an adequate depth to prevent frost damage. For such foundations as bridge piers, the depth of the foundation must be sufficient to prevent undermining by … Read more
Piled Raft Foundation Between the geotechnical design parameters of bearing capacity and settlement, which are independent, if the design just satisfies bearing capacity, settlement will be over satisfied (i.e. settlement less than permissible), and vice versa, if the design satisfies settlement, bearing capacity will be over satisfied (i.e. factor of safety against bearing capacity failure … Read more
Failure of Shallow Foundation & Preventive Measures The major causes of foundation failures are as follow Unequal settlement of sub soil Unequal settlement of masonry Presence of expansive soil below foundation Presence of mature trees Seasonal changes 1. Unequal Settlement of Sub Soil This is one of the most important reasons for foundation failure. Unequal … Read more
Durability of Building Foundation A foundation is that part of the structure which is in direct contact with ground. Therefore foundations are subjected to attack by chemicals present in soil, water and by mechanical abrasion and erosion. The extent of deterioration depends on the concentration of chemicals, the level of and fluctuations in the ground … Read more
Black Cotton Soil Black cotton soil has a tendency to shrink and swell excessively. When these type of soil come in contact with water, they swell and when becomes dry, it shrinks. This alternate process of swelling and shrinking results in the differential settlement of foundation which in turn causes cracks in building. The cracks … Read more
Deciding the right depth of foundation for a building structure is an important step in the process of building design. Information given in this post will help you decide the proper depth of foundation for a building. After reading this post you will be able to answer the following questions. What is a foundation? What … Read more
PLT (Plate Load Test) Plate load test is a field test which is commonly adopted to determine the bearing capacity and settlement of soil under a given condition of loading. In this test a square or circular rigid plate of standard dimension (generally 300 mm2 for square or 300 mm dia for circular) is placed … Read more
Values of Safe Bearing Capacity The safe bearing capacity of soil should be determined on the basis of soil test data or by performing some field test such as Standard penetration test or Plate load test etc. However, in the absence of soil test data, the values of safe bearing capacity (S.B.C) as given in … Read more
For economic consideration, the depth at which the foundation is located (i.e. Df) is kept as small as possible. Typically it is in the range of 0.5 to 1.5 m below the ground surface for buildings that do not have a basement. For those building having a basement, Df can be 3.5 m or more. … Read more