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96 E. H. DAVIS AND H. G. POULOS

NOTATION

A Skempton’s pore pressure co- C’C1 usual coefficient of consolidation

efficient for one-dimensional strain con-
B total breadth of rectangular ditions
footing % c3 coefficients of consolidation for
E’ Young’s modulus of soil skeleton two- and three-dimensional
IB notation for impermeable base strain conditions
beneath soil CV coefficient of consolidation for
IF notation for impermeable footing vertical pore water flow
Ch coefficient of consolidation for
PB notation for permeable base be-
horizontal pore water flow
neath soil
h total layer depth
PT notation for permeable upper
hs depth of sand layer above clay
surface of soil
k permeability of soil
s settlement permeability in vertical direction
k
T, T, dimensionless time factor (see permeability in horizontal direc-
kh
text for appropriate definition) tion
G average degree of pore pressure time
dissipation 24 excess pore pressure
u, degree of settlement UO initial excess pore pressure
on, average degree of differential pore Ut excess pore pressure at time t
pressure dissipation between x, Y, Z Cartesian co-ordinates
centre and edge of strip on Yw unit weight of water
semi-infinite mass 6, volumetric strain
degree of differential settlement l9 bulk stress = uX+ uy+ u,
between centre and edge of strip V Poisson’s ratio of soil
on semi-infinite mass V' Poisson’s ratio of soil skeleton
a radius of circle (also Henkel’s pr, pU,pa displacement in x, y, z directions
pore pressure coefficient) =x9% 0, normal stresses in x, y, z directions
b half-breadth of strip Tact octahedral shear stress

the rate of water loss equal the rate of volume decrease leads to the relationship :

kVu+$O . . . . . . . . .
Yw

where
a2 a2 a2
V2 G -+-+-
a2 ap a22
k = permeability of soil, assumed constant with time and space
yW = unit weight of water
24= excess pore pressure
E” = volume strain in soil due to changes in effective stress (taking compressive strains
as positive).
For an ideal elastic homogeneous isotropic soil, having constant elastic parameters of the

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 RATE OF SETl.LEMENT UNDER TWO- AND THREE-DIMENSIONAL CONDITIONS 97

skeleton E’ and v’, the following consolidation equations may be derived for various strain
and drainage conditions (Gibson and Lumb, 1953).
Under three-dimensional strain and drainage conditions
au
_z-c3v2u+3~
iae . . . . . * * - -
at
where 0 = bulk total stress
= u,+a,+u,
kE’
. . . . . . . . .
c3 = 3yw(l - 2Y’)
= coefficient of consolidation under three-dimensional strain conditions.
Under two-dimensional strain and drainage conditions

g = c@+$) +y(Yp) . . . . . . . (4)

where a,, uX are total stresses in z and x directions

kE’
cz = 2y,(l _2v’)(l+“‘) . . . . . * * . . . . . . . * * (5)
= coefficient of consolidation under two-dimensional strain conditions.
Under one-dimensional strain and drainage conditions
a24 a2u au2
z=qazz
I

at . . . . . . . . . . .

kE’ (1 -v’)
where Cl = y,(l_~v')(l+v') . . . . . . . . .

= c, the usual coefficient of consolidation under one-

dimensional strain conditions.
It will be noted that the form of the preceding consolidation equations is dependent on the
drainage or flow conditions while the value of the coefficient of consolidation depends on the
strain conditions. The different values, between which no distinction was made in the original
theory of Terzaghi (1925) and Rendulic (1937), are related as follows:

c = Cl = 2(1-v’)c2 = 3((;;::;c, . . . . . . .

It can be seen from equation (8) that as v’ tends to 0.5, these three values become identical
but for v’=O, c1=2c,=3c3.
The difference between these values can be important. For example, using the rational
interpretation of the diffusion approach to be described, the theoretical curve relating degree
of consolidation to time factor for a triaxial consolidation test with end-drainage only is
identical with the ordinary curve for the one-dimensional oedometer test. However, the value
of coefficient of consolidation in the definition of time factor for the triaxial test is c3, whereas
that for the oedometer test is cl.
The term aO/at in equation (2), or its equivalent in equation (4), is generally not zero, even
when the foundation load remains constant, since stress redistribution will generally take
place within a soil mass during consolidation. The distribution of total stresses due to the
applied foundation load is that for v = 0.5 at the start but is that for v = V' at the completion of
consolidation. Thus, equations (2) and (4) cannot be solved exactly without at the same time
solving for the changing stress conditions within the soil mass. Hence the forgoing formula-
tion of the theory of consolidation, although correct, is incomplete.

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 98 E. H. DAVIS AND H. G. POULOS

Biot’s theory
The complete theory of consolidation for an ideal soil was derived by Biot (1941a), who gave
the basic equations satisfying not only Darcy’s law for water flow through the soil but also the
requirements of displacement compatibility. Because of the complexity of the Biot equations,
relatively few solutions have been evaluated. Some of the available solutions are:
Uniformly loaded circle on semi-infinite mass-De Jong (1957); McNamee and Gibson
(1960); Schiffman and Fungaroli (1965).
Uniformly loaded rectangle on semi-infinite mass-Gibson and McNamee (1957; 1963).
Uniformly loaded strip on semi-infinite mass-Biot (1941b); Biot and Clingan (1941);
McNamee and Gibson (1960); Schiffman et al. (1969).
Uniformly loaded strip and circle on a finite layer-Gibson et al. (1970).
Sphere subjected to hydrostatic pressure-Cryer (1963).
Concentrated and circular loading of a deep soil mass overlain by a permeable layer-
Mandel(l957; 1961).

Simple diffusion theory

If the term ad/at in equation (2) is assumed, as an approximation, to be zero, the equation
becomes

au=
at
c 3 v2u . . . . . . . . . . .

Correspondingly, equation (4) becomes

$=c@+%) . . . . . . . . (10)

This approximation was implicitly made by Terzaghi (1925) and Rendulic (1937). It can be
shown from the Biot theory that there is no approximation when V’tends to 0.5, since then
&3/at does in fact become zero, and equations (9) and (10) therefore give the correct pore pres-
sures. If these equations are accepted as valid approximations, even when V’ # 0.5, they can
readily be solved as ordinary diffusion equations using numerical finite difference methods
(Gibson and Lumb, 1953). Such solutions may be used, for example, to calculate the average
degree of pore pressure dissipation 0, on any selected vertical line, where

~p=l-;+ . . . . . . . . . (11)
uo 2
where ut = excess pore pressure at time t
u, = initial excess pore pressure; u. is equal to e/3, where 0 is the value given by elastic
theory for v=O*5 and is due to the foundation load.
For a homogeneous soil, it can be shown that oP would be equal to the degree of consolidation
settlement U, on the selected vertical line, if there were no redistribution of the total stresses
within the mass during consolidation. This is indeed the case in the ordinary Terzaghi one-
dimensional theory, the symbol U being used correctly for both U, and op. However,
in two- and three-dimensional problems, some stress redistribution will usually occur (even
when v’=O*5), so that in general the most that can be hoped for is that
u, N up
It should be noted that there appears to be no way of obtaining Us from the diffusion theory
other than by equating it to up.

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 RATE OF SETnEMENT UNDER TWO- AND THRE~E-DI~~ENSIONAL CONDITIONS 99

oe-
Y
% ().G-

04-

02-

(4 0))
Fig. 1. Comparison between pore pressure dissipation, diiusion and Biot theories: strip footing (a) imperme-
able upper surface (b) permeable upper surface

COMPARISON BETWEEN SIMPLE DIFFUSION AND BIOT THEORIES

In view of the fact that numerical finite difference solutions by the diffusion approach can
readily be obtained to problems involving complicated boundary and other conditions, it is
worth investigating the extent to which and the way in which such solutions can be regarded as
satisfactory approximations to the correct Biot theory. In passing it may be remarked that the
theory commonly employed for the analysis of the benefit of sand drains (Barron, 1948) assumes
the validity of the simple diffusion theory for a problem which strictly requires the use of the
Biot theory.

The Mandel-Cryer effect

Comparisons have been made by Cryer (1963) between the solutions given by the two
theories for the consolidation of a spherical soil sample with a drainage surface around the
periphery and subjected to uniform pressure. Cryer showed that, according to the Biot theory,
an increase in excess pore pressure above the initial value occurs early in the consolidation pro-
cess near the centre of the sphere before actual dissipation starts. This phenomenon, which
was also noted by Mandel (1953) and is now generally known as the Mandel-Cryer effect, is
not displayed by the simple diffusion theory.
The Mandel-Cryer effect has been noted in relation to other problems of more direct rele-
vance to foundations (e.g. Schiffman, 1965) and its existence has been verified experimentally
for a consolidating sphere by Gibson et al. (1963) and De Jong and Verruijt (1965).

Dissipation of pore pressure

Although the simple diffusion theory cannot reproduce the early increase in pore pressure of
the Mandel-Cryer effect, the question remains as to whether it gives a sufliciently accurate
approximation to the pore pressures during later stages of consolidation. The indications are
that it does. From comparison with published Biot solutions for pore pressures beneath the
centre of circular and strip loadings, the diffusion theory gives curves in close agreement with
those by the Biot theory for all values of v’ once the early increase of the Mandel-Cryer effect
has disappeared, provided TV is defined in terms of c3 for the three-dimensional axisymmetric
cases and c, for the plane strain cases. This is in accordance with the simple rational inter-
pretation of equation (9). An example of the comparison, using the results of Schiffman et al.
(1969), is given in Fig. 1.

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 loo E. H. DAVIS AND H. G. POULOS

Degree of consolidation settlement

Since the diffusion theory essentially only deals with dissipation of pore pressure, and since
the quantity of major engineering interest, the degree of consolidation settlement U,, as given
correctly by the Biot theory, is in general different from the average degree of pore pressure
dissipation &, it is worth considering whether, by a suitable adjustment to the time scale, &
from the diffusion theory can be fitted so as to approximate lJ, for a wide range of problems.
It has been found that this is most simply done by defining TV in terms of c1 for all cases, one-,
two- or three-dimensional. (Th’IS is in contrast to the definition of TV for comparison of pore
pressure by the two theories described in the previous paragraph.) The evidence is as follows.
Using the mathematical approach to the Biot theory given by McNamee and Gibson (1960),
the rate of settlement U, and average pore pressure dissipation l& versus T, = cl t/h2 have been
evaluated for the centre of a uniformly loaded circle on a semi-infinite elastic mass, for both
Y’= 0 and 0.5, and for both a permeable and an impermeable upper surface. The solution for
UP for v’ = O-5 is the only rigorous solution that could have been obtained from the simple
diffusion theory. Similar results have been evaluated for a uniformly-loaded strip on a semi-
infinite mass, again from the approach of McNamee and Gibson (1960). Because the final
consolidation settlement of the strip is theoretically infinite, it is now convenient to consider
the degree of differential settlement between the centre and the edge of the strip, &,a,
and the degree of dissipation of the difference between the average excess pore pressure verti-
cally beneath the centre and the edge, TfDp.The solution for &, for v’=O*5 again is the only
rigorous solution that can be obtained from the diffusion theory. The mathematical expres-
sions for the two degrees of consolidation for circles and strips are given in the Appendix.
The results of the evaluations from the approach of McNamee and Gibson are given for a
circle in Figs 2 and 3. Examination of these figures shows that the curve for average pore pres-
sure dissipation for v’=O*5 (which could have been obtained from relatively simple numerical
finite difference solution of the diffusion equation) is never outside the two extreme curves for
degree of settlement given by the exact Biot theory for v’=O*5 and v’=O. It can also be seen
that, with TV defined in terms of cl, the effect of v’ on the degree of settlement is not very great,
amounting to a maximum of 0.18 in Us. Very similar results are obtained for a strip.
The curves in Figs 2 and 3 may be considered as the limiting ones for infinite depth of soil in a
series for varying depths (h/a or h/b) of layer. For the other limiting condition, when h/a or
h/b tends to zero, all curves for Us and UP tend to the same curve for one-dimensional condi-
tions, whatever the value of v’. Thus the curve for up, obtained from the simple diffusion theory
and plotted against TV defined in terms of cl, can be expected to be a reasonable practical
approximation to the curve for Us for all values of v’ and depths of layer, the accuracy of the
approximation increasing with decreasing layer depth. For deep layers, Figs 2 and 3 can be
used to estimate a correction if the value of v’ is known.
Further evidence of the reasonable nature of the suggested approximation is given in Fig. 4
in which the solutions (Gibson et al., 1970) for U&v’= 0) for a finite layer by the Biot theory are
compared with &(v’=O.5) obtained by numerical solution using the simple diffusion theory.
Again the agreement appears adequate for most practical purposes when TV is defined in terms
of Cl.

SOLUTIONS FOR A FINITE LAYER

A series of curves for UP for circular and strip footings, for v’=O*5, has been obtained by
numerical finite difference solution of the diffusion equation. The initial pore pressure distri-
bution was calculated from the relation for an ideal elastic two-phase material, u. = 9/3, and

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 RATE 0F SEQUENT UNDER TWO- AND THREE-DIMENSIONAL CONDITIONS 101

v'=0.5 (AlsoDiffusion Solution) _

ltp0.6 -
d
s
0.8 -

1.0
I

Fig. 2. Circle on semi-infinite mass: permeable upper surface, solution by

Biot theory

- iip v’= 0.5( Also Olffusim

Solution)

s
,$ 0.6-
cd
s
0.6 -

1.0

Fig. 3. Circle on a semi-infinite mass: impermeable upper surface, solution

by Biot theory

T=c!J
”
lo* h’ ,O’ 1 IO

Blot 50,“. ior u, \I’= 0

(Gibson ot al. 1967)

d 0,6-

0.6-

Fig. 4. Comparison between Biot and diffusion theories for finite layers

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 102 E. H. DAVIS AND H. 0. POULOS

Fig. 5. Circular footing, case PTPB

be- dimensional)

Fig. 6. Circular footing, case PTIB

Fig. 7. Circular footing, case IFPB

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 RATE OF SETTLEMENT UNDER TWO- AND THREE-DIMENSIONAL CONDITIONS

Fig. 8. Circular footing, case IFIB

TV==*
16 ld’ lb 16’ lb

Fig. 9. Strip footing, case PTPB

(One-dtmonsioml)

0.

r”
jb
0

Fig. 10. Strip footing, case PTIB

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 104 E. H. DAVIS AND H. 0. POULOS

06-

Fig. 11. Strip footing, case IFPB

Fig. 12. Strip footing, case IFIB

the distribution of 0 for v=O*5 in an elastic layer on a rough rigid base was obtained from the
analysis given by Poulos (1967).
Four combinations of hydraulic boundary conditions which are likely to be encountered in
practice were considered. For convenience, these combinations are referred to as PTPB,
PTIB, IFPB and IFIB,
where PT denotes a permeable upper surface
PB denotes a permeable base
IF denotes an impermeable footing (but an otherwise permeable surface)
IB denotes an impermeable base.
For various ratios of the depth of layer, h, to the radius a of the circular footing, the curves
for iip are plotted in Figs 5 to 8 for the four different combinations of boundary conditions
considered. The corresponding curves of & for a strip footing, for various values of h/b
(where b is the half-breadth of the strip), are plotted in Figs 9 to 12. The time factor TV is
defined as clt/h2, i.e. in terms of the one-dimensional coefficient of consolidation. In all cases
the accuracy of the numerical analysis appears to be quite adequate in that the curves tend to

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 RATE OF SElTLEMENT UNDER TWO- AND THREE-DIMENSIONAL CONDITIONS 105

the correct one-dimensional result as h/a or h/b tends to zero, and tend to the analytical answer
for np for v’=O*5 as h/a or h/b tend to infinity.
As stated in the preceding Section, these curves may be used to estimate the rate of settlement
of the circle or the strip for all values of v’, with, if necessary, some modification on the basis
of the evidence provided by Figs 2 and 3.
Although only the curves for the centre of the circle and the strip are presented, similar curves
were obtained for the edge of each shape. Comparisons show that there is little difference
between I!& for the centre and the edge and suggest that the main set of curves in Figs 5-12
could be applied to rigid footings with reasonable accuracy.
An examination of Figs 5-12 reveals that both the hydraulic boundary conditions and the
relative depth of the soil layer may profoundly affect Up. The influence of the relative layer
depth h/a (or h/b) is readily apparent from the Figures. Since the time factor TV is defined in
terms of the layer depth h, the Figures can be regarded as showing the effect of changing the
footing size for a layer of constant depth. As the footing size decreases, the three-dimen-
sional effects become increasingly apparent and the ability of the pore pressures to dissipate
laterally as well as vertically results in a considerable increase in the average rate of pore pres-
sure dissipation, even for relatively shallow layers.
It is interesting to note that the layer depth has a much greater influence on &, for circular
footings than for strip footings. For example, for the circular footings marked three-dimen-
sional effects occur for h/a=2, whereas for the strip footings the curve for h/b=2 is little dif-
ferent from that for the one-dimensional case.
Examination of Figs 5-12 also shows that the influence of the hydraulic boundary conditions
is very marked. For example, for a circular footing with h/a = 1, there is a ten-fold difference
in the value of TV for up = 0.5 between the two extreme cases, PTPB and IFIB.
Consideration will now be given to the effects on Dr, of various factors that may arise in
practical problems.

THE INFLUENCE OF FOOTING SHAPE

Consideration of the influence of footing shape will be generally confined to the influence of
the length to breadth ratio L/B on the rate of settlement of a rectangle. An analytical solution
to the problem of a rectangle on the surface of a semi-infinite mass has been obtained by Gib-
son and McNamee (1957, 1963), who presented curves for the degree of settlement U, for
rectangles with length to breadth ratios L/B ranging between 1 and 5, using the correct Biot
theory. It has been found that, if these curves are plotted with TV defined as ct/BL (i.e.
et/area) rather than ct/L2, the U, - TV curves for the L/B ratios considered are almost coinci-
dent (Fig. 13). This Figure gives the degree of settlement of the corner of the rectangle but by
superposition the degree for other positions may easily be obtained.
It has further been found that the Biot type solution of Gibson and McNamee for a square
(L/B= 1) is almost identical with the Biot type solutions of De Jong (1957) and McNamee and
Gibson (1960) for a circle of the same area as the square. The two curves are shown in Fig. 14.
From Figs 13 and 14, it may be concluded that for very deep layers and for footing proportions
which are not extreme (e.g. L/B< 5 for a rectangle), the rate of settlement of a footing is depen-
dent primarily on the area of the footing and is virtually independent of the shape. Thus, for
such cases, an analysis for the exact shape of footing is unnecessary and the available curves
for the rate of settlement of a circle of the same area as the footing may be used.
For footings on a relatively shallow finite layer, the forgoing simple approximate method to
account for the effect of shape may not be valid. Although the rate of settlement of a square
and a circle of the same area will obviously be similar, there may be considerable differences

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 106 E. H. DAVIS AND H. G. POULOS

L*
c,t
Am of looting
0.01 0.1 f 10 _
0 I b I I
1. Squoro~GibsontTd t.4womw,~n _
P.Cirrlo (Jouolin da Jo lS?SZMcNmaP
0.2 - O2- ‘\\ cod ab5m l&j,
Area of c,rc!u=&.A ‘.?I Fsq.Im
including footing. - Top strima pmnwabkinduding tatim$
0.4 - 0.4
FcoiIw leaded unilaml~.
us - US
0,6- 0.6

0,8

Fig. 13. Degree of settlement beneath the Fig. 14. Comparison between the consolida-
corner of a uniformly loaded rectangle on the tion curves for the centre of a circular and a
surface of a semi-infinite elastic medium square footing on a semi-inikdte medium
(after Gibson and McNamee, 1957)

between the rate of settlement of a square and a rectangle, the latter tending to behave as a
strip footing rather than as an equivalent circle if the layer is very shallow. In order to
examine the influence of L/B, solutions have been obtained by numerical methods, using the
diffusion theory, for the general three-dimensional cases L/B= 2 and L/B= 5, for a number of
different layer depths h/B, and for the four boundary conditions PTPB, PTIB, IFPB and IFIB.
In addition, solutions for the cases L/B=co (a strip footing) and LIB= 1 (taken to be a circle of
equal area to the square) are available (Figs 5-12). It has been found that the shapes of the
curves for all the rectangular footings are similar, so that, by a suitable shift on the logarithmic-
time scale, they can be made to coincide approximately with the curves for the square and
strip. Thus, although the entire U-T, curves for these four values of L/B are too numerous to
present in detail, the general influence of the footing proportion may be conveniently examined
by plotting the ratios of the time for 50% consolidation for the rectangle and for a square of the
same width. The ratios are plotted in Fig. 15 against the dimensionless layer depth h/B, for
the four boundary conditions.
It can be seen from Fig. 15 that, even when the depth of layer is five times the breadth of the
rectangle, the consolidation behaviour is considerably different from that of a rectangle on an
infinite depth, in that the approximate equivalence on the basis of equal area demonstrated in
Fig. 14 does not hold. The difference is particularly marked for the cases IFPB and IFIB
(Figs 15(a) and(b)). F or all except the case IFIB, the effect of shape vanishes as h/B tends to
zero, since the consolidation behaviour then becomes one-dimensional (vertical). For the case
IFIB, the limiting solution for h/B=0 is obtained by considering the case of an infinitely thin
layer with permeable boundaries at the edges of the rectangle. The solution to this problem
is a well-known solution in the theory of heat conduction (see for example Carslaw and
Jaeger, 1947).
FOOTINGS ON SAND OVERLYING CLAY
Numerical solutions have been obtained for the rate of settlement of a circular footing
resting on a permeable sand layer overlying a clay layer. In calculating initial excess pore pres-
sures, the elastic properties of the sand and clay have been assumed to be identical. The ratio
of the times for 50% consolidation of the buried clay layer, tSO,and 50% consolidation for one-
dimensional consolidation, (t,o)l_n, are plotted against relative thickness of sand, h,/h, in
Figs 16 and 17 for various values of total thickness to circle radius, h/a. Both a permeable and
an impermeable lower boundary are considered. The effect of the sand is to decrease the rate
of settlement of the clay by causing a more uniform distribution of stress, and hence initial

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 RATE OF SETI’LEMENT UNDER TWO- AND THREE-DIMENSIONAL CONDITIONS
107

1 I I I
0 1 2 h3 4 5
E

Fig. 15 (a)-(d). Rate of consolidation of a finite layer beneath a rectangular footing

I
0’0 02
I

0.4 06
I

06 1.0

hvh hYh

F2.e ;$Pinfluence of overlying sand layer, Fig. 17. Influence of overlying sand layer,
case PTIB

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 108 E. H. DAVIS AND H. G. POULOS

Fig. 18. Rate of settlement of circle on sand overlying infinite

depth of clay (Mandel, 1961)

excess pore pressure gradients. As the thickness of the sand layer increases, one-dimensional
consolidation conditions are approached. For a relatively deep total soil thickness (e.g.
h/a=5), one-dimensional consolidation is achieved with a smaller relative thickness of sand,
h,/h, than is the case for thinner soil layers. The curves in Figs 16 and 17 may be used as a
correction to the rate of settlement predicted from a one-dimensional analysis.
For very deep clay layers, however, the preceding approach cannot be used. Recourse may
then be made to the solutions of Mandel(1957 ; 1961) who used the Biot theory to obtain the
rate of settlement of a circular footing on sand overlying an infinitely thick clay layer. For
convenience, a set of curves derived from Mandel’s results are given in Fig. 18, which shows
that the effect of the sand layer is to markedly decrease the rate of settlement, this effect be-
coming more pronounced as the thickness of the sand layer increases.

THE INFLUENCE OF ANISOTROPIC PERMEABILITY

The problem of the rate of settlement of a footing on a mass with anisotropic elastic proper-
ties has been considered rigorously by Biot (1955), but the solution of the basic equations pre-
sents a formidable task. The effects of the soil anisotropy, in permeability only, may be more
easily evaluated and the work of Rowe (1964) in relation to the effect of anisotropic permea-
bility (arising from minute silt laminations) on the results of oedometer tests suggests that this
form of soil anisotropy may well predominate over anisotropy of soil deformation moduli.
Hence attention is confined to a soil which has a permeability kh in the horizontal direction
which is different from the permeability k, in the vertical direction. For a soil skeleton that is
isotropic with respect to its elastic properties

G k
-=v . . . . . . . . . * (12)
ch k,

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 RATE OF SElTL!3vfENT UNDER TWO- AND THREE-DIMENSIONAL CONDITIONS 109

1 I I

10' 102 103 104

ch
cv

Fig. 19. Effect of anisotropy, permeable Fig. 20. Effect of anisotropy, impermeable
upper surface, circular footing circular footing

Numerical solutions have been obtained for a wide range of values of k,/k, (from 0.1 to 1000)
for a circle on a finite layer and for a circle on a semi-infinite mass. It is found that the con-
solidation curves for all values of k,/k, are of similar shape, so that a convenient method of
representing the influence of k,/k, is to plot it against the ratio of tbOfor the isotropic case with
k= k, to tsO for the anisotropic case. This ratio may be taken to hold approximately for
earlier and later times. Furthermore, this leads to a simple method of modifying the basic
isotropic results to allow for anisotropy, which should be sufficiently accurate for U, as well as
up, and also for shapes other than circles.
Results are plotted in this form in Fig. 19 for the case h/u= 1 and a semi-infinite mass (h/a =
a) with a permeable upper surface while the corresponding relationships for an impermeable
footing are shown in Fig. 20. It will be seen from Figs 19 and 20 that the effect of layer depth
in this context is not great and that, for an impermeable base, it is virtually non-existent.

THE INFLUENCE OF DEPARTURES FROM THE IDEAL INITIAL PORE PRESSURE

DISTRIBUTION
For an ideal saturated soil with an elastic skeleton, the initial pore pressure u,, is given by
8
z&J=- . . . . . . . . . * (13)
3
where 19is the bulk stress for v=O*5.
However, for real soil, it is generally accepted that the following equation, as suggested by
Henkel(1960), is a better approximation
e
ug = -+a.T& . . . . . . . . * (14)
3
where roCt is the octahedral shear stress and a is Henkel’s pore pressure coefficient. The

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 110 E. H. DAVIS AND H. G. POULOS

lime (min.)
lO-’ 1 10 xx)
0, I I I 1

(4

Timo (min)

- Exp2rimantal
---_ Predictad
06-

(b)
Fig. 21 (a) and (b). Comparisons between predicted and observed rate
of settlement in model footing tests

coefficient a is related to Skempton’s pore pressure coefficient A determined from ordinary

triaxial compression tests by the equation:
a2/2 = A-Q . . . . . . . . . (15)
In order to determine the effect on the rate of consolidation of using equation (14) rather
than equation (13), diffusion solutions were obtained for a circular footing on a layer of depth
equal to the radius of the footing and for the boundary conditions of an impermeable footing
and a permeable base (Case IFPB) using values of a of 3, 0 and -$. These correspond to
values of A of approximately 1, 3 and 0.
It was found that the value of a within the range examined had a completely insignificant
effect on the rate of consolidation, despite the considerable difference in initial pore pressure
distribution. It appears reasonable to conjecture that modifications to the general theory to
take into account non-elastic effects on the initial pore pressures are not worthwhile for prac-
tical purp0ses.l
1 This conjecture, although reasonable in relation to the rate of settlement of footings, may not be valid for other
types of consolidation problem. For example, Gibson (1969) has found that the value of A has a very important effect
in the interpretation of in situ permeability tests.

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 RATE OF SE’ITLEMENT UNDER TWO- AND THREE-DIMENSIONAL CONDITIONS 111

Legend o Test on Hurrrvllle Clay. Case PTPB

,a
. Test on Hurrrville Clay. Case PTIB
ij A Test on Kaolin. Case PTPB
2
A Test on Kaolin. Case PTIB

*
.
.

Fig. 22. Summary of comparisons between predicted and observed rates of

settlement in model footing tests

Time (minutes)
0.1 1 10 100
0
21”. dia. footing on Baton Blue
L ,Cby (Alvoroz - Stolllng
,1966).

0.6 -- - Predicted
- Experimental
Curve o:Lood = 29% of ult.
0.8 CWVD b: Load = 40% of “It. bc.

Fig. 23. Comparison between predicted and

observed rate of settlement in model footing tests

OTHER FACTORS
Various other factors which may arise have been examined by other investigators, but only
in relation to one-dimensional consolidation. Such factors include time-dependent loading
(Schiffman, 1958; 1960), non-linear consolidation (Davis and Raymond, 1965; Gibson et al.
1967), and layered systems (Gray, 1945; Davis and Lee, 1969). Because of the large number of
variables associated with these problems, no attempt has been made to obtain approximate
numerical solutions for three-dimensional situations. Reference to the one-dimensional solu-
tions should, however, give some indication of the relative influence of these factors.

MODEL FOOTING TESTS

In order to determine the order of accuracy with which rates of settlement can be predicted
under conditions as close as possible to ideal, a series of model footing tests was carried out.
These experiments are described in detail by Davis and Poulos (1968). In the tests, the geo-
metry, the hydraulic boundary conditions, the initial stress state, and the homogeneity of the
soil could be controlled with much greater precision than they can be assessed for any actual
foundation in the field.

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 112 E. H. DAVIS AND H. G. POULOS

Two remoulded soils were used in the tests, a commercial Kaolin (LL = 55, PL = 33, c1 =
0.054 sq. in./min) and a brick earth, Hurstville clay (LL = 43, PL = 27, c1 = 0.00175 sq. in./min).

Comparisons between predicted and observed rates of settlement

In order to compare theory with experiment on the basis of degree of consolidation settle-
ment against time, it was necessary to estimate the beginning and end of the primary consolida-
tion process for the footing test results. The start was estimated by plotting the settlement read-
ing using a square root scale of time, fitting a straight line to the earlier experimental points,
and extrapolating this straight line to zero time. This straight line assumption is not only a
very close approximation for the ordinary analytical solution for one-dimensional consolida-
tion, but is also a close approximation for the analytical solutions for a circle on a semi-infinite
mass. The experimental value of the settlement at the end of primary consolidation was esti-
mated in the usual manner as occurring at the intersection of the secondary consolidation line
and the tangent to the point of inflexion of the curve of settlement plotted against the logarithm
of time.
The corresponding theoretical relationships between degree of consolidation settlement and
time were derived from the curves in Figs 5-8 using the experimental values of cl.
Typical comparisons between observed and predicted rates of settlement for the model foot-
ing tests are given in Figs 21(a) and (b). Although there are some minor differences in shape
between the theoretical and experimental curves, the overall agreement is remarkably good.
The reproducibility of the experiments is indicated by the closeness of the two experimental
curves for h/a=4-8 shown in Fig. 21(a). A summary of the comparisons between predicted
and observed rates of settlement for all footing tests is shown in Fig. 22 in which the ratio of
predicted to observed degree of settlement halfway through the consolidation process is plotted
against the ratio of layer depth to footing radius. For all tests the agreement between theory
and experiment is satisfactory. The theoretical curves in Figs 5-8 were also used to predict the
rate of settlement of a model footing on Boston Blue clay (Alvarez-Stelling, 1966) and, as shown
in Fig. 23, the agreement between theory and experiment is again good.

CONCLUSIONS
The theoretical and experimental work described in this Paper demonstrates that three-
dimensional effects are of practical importance and that rates of settlement calculated on the
conventional one-dimensional basis may frequently be seriously in error.
Although the use of the Biot theory to obtain solutions to three-dimensional problems is
logically more correct, it appears that a simple diffusion approach usually gives answers of ade-
quate engineering accuracy. The latter approach has the added advantage that it is more
readily adapted to problems involving such complications as soil inhomogeneity.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The work described in this Paper forms part of a general programme of research into the
settlement of all types of foundation being carried out in the School of Civil Engineering at the
University of Sydney. The work was supported by the Australian Research Grants Com-
mittee. The Authors would like to acknowledge the help of Dr J. R. Booker in some aspects
of the analytical work.

REFERENCES
Alvarez-Stelling, J. (1966). M.Sc. thesis, Massachusets Institute of Technology.
Barron, R. A. (1948). Consolidation of fine-grained soils by drain wells. Trans. Am. Sot. Civ. Engrs 113,
718.

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 RATE OF SETTLEMENT UNDER TWO- AND THREE-DIMENSIONAL CONDITIONS 113
Biot, M. A. (1941a). General theory of three-dimensional consolidation. Jnl Appl. Phys. 12, 155.
Biot, M. A. (1941b). Consolidation settlement under a rectangular load distribution. JnZ Appl. Phys. 12,
426.
Biot, M. A. (1955). Theory of elasticity and consolidation for a porous anisotropic solid. Jnl Appl. Phys.
26, 182-185.
Biot, M. A. & Clingan, F. M. (1941). Consolidation settlement of a soil with an impervious top surface.
Jnl Appl. Phys. 12, 578.
Cryer, C. W. (1963). A comparison of the three-dimensional theories of Biot and Terzaghi. JnZ Mech.
Appl. Math. 16, 401-412.
Davis, E. H. & Lee, I. K. (1969). One-dimensional consolidation of layered soils. Proc. 7th Znt. Conf. Soil
Me&, Mexico 2, 65-12.
Davis, E. H. & Raymond, G.IP. (1965). Anon-linear theory of consolidation. Ge’otechnique 15, No. 2, 161.
Davis, E. H. & Poulos, H. G. (1968). The use of elastic theory for settlement prediction under three-
dimensional conditions. Geotechnique 18, No. 1, 67-91.
De Jong, G. J. (1957). Application of stress functions to consolidation problems. Proc. 4th Znt. Conf. Soil
Mech., London 1, 320.
De Jong, G. J. & Verruijt, A. (1965). Primary and secondary consolidation of a spherical clay sample.
Proc. 6th Znt. Conf. Soil Mech., Montreal 1, 254.
Gibson, R. E. (1961). The progress of three-dimensional consolidation of an anisotropic clay stratum.
Indian Inst. Sci. Symp. Fndn Engng.
Gibson, R. E. (1969). An extension to the theory of the constant head in situ permeability test. Geotechnique
20, No. 2, 193-197.
Gibson, R. E., England, G. L. & Hussey, M. J. L. (1967). The theory of one-dimensional consolidation of
saturated clays. I. Finite non-linear consolidation of thin homogeneous layers. Geotechnique 17, No. 3,
261-273.
Gibson, R. E., Knight, K. & Taylor, P. W. (1963). A critical experiment to examine theories of three-
dimensional consolidation. Proc. Eur. Conf. Soil Mech., Weisbaden 1, 69-76.
Gibson, R. E. & Lumb, P. (1953). Numerical solution of some problems in the consolidation of clay. Jnl
Znstn Civ. Engrs 1,Part 1, 182.
Gibson, R. E. & McNamee, J. (1957). The consolidation settlement of a load uniformly distributed over a
rectangular area. Proc. 4th Znt. Conf. Soil Mech., London 1, 297.
Gibson, R. E. & McNamee, J. (1963). A three-dimensional problem of the consolidation of a semi-infinite
clay stratum. Q. Jnl Mech. Appl. Math. 16, Part 1, 115-127.
Gibson, R. E., Schiffman, R. L. & Pu, S. L. (1970). Plane strain and axially symmetric consolidation of a
clay layer on a smooth impervious base. Jnl Mech. Appl. Math. 23, Part 4, 505-520.
Gray, H. (1945). Simultaneous consolidation of contiguous layers of unlike compressible soils. Trans.
Am. Sot. Civ. Engrs 110, 1327.
Henkel, D. J. (1960). The shear strength of saturated remoulded clays. Proc. Am. Sot. Civ. Engrs, Res.
Conf. Shear Strength Cohesive Soils, p. 533.
McNamee, J. & Gibson, R. E. (1960). Plane strain and axially symmetric problems of the consolidation of
a semi-infinite clay stratum. Q. Jnl Mech. Appl. Math. 13, Part 2,210-27.
Mandel, J. (1953). Consolidation des sols (etude mathematique). Geotechnique 3, No. 7, 287-299.
Mandel, J. (1957). Consolidation des couches d’argiles. Proc. 4th Znt. Conf Soil Mech., London 1,
36&367.
Mandel, J. (1961). Tassements produits par la consolidation d’une couche d’argile de grande epaisseur.
Proc. 5th Znt. Conf. Soil Mech., Paris 1,733-736.
Poulos, H. G. (1967). Stresses and displacements in an elastic layer underlain by a rough rigid base.
Geotechnique 17, No. 4, 378-410.
Rendulic, L. (1937). Porenziffer und Porenwasserdruck in Tonen. Bauingenieur 17, 559.
Rowe, P. W. (1964). The calculation of the consolidation rates of laminated, varved or layered clays, with
particular reference to sand drains. Geotechnique 14, No. 4, 321.
Schiffman, R. L. (1958). Consolidation of soil under time-dependent loading and varying permeability.
Proc. Highw. Res. Bd 37, 584-617.
Schiffman, R. L. (1960). Field applications of soil consolidation: time-dependent loading and varying
permeability. Highw. Res. Bd Bull. No. 248.
Schiffman, R. L. (1965). Discussion. Proc. 6th Znt. Conf. Soil Mech., Montreal 3, 394-397.
Schiffman, R. L., Chen, A. T-F. & Jordan, J. C. (1969). An analysis of consolidation theories. JnZ Soil
Mech. Fdns Div. Am. Sot. Civ. Engrs 95, SMl, 285-312.
Schiffman, R. L. & Fungaroli, A. A. (1965). Consolidation due to tangential loads. Proc. 6th Znt. Conf.
Soil Mech., Montreal 2, 188-192.
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 114 E. H. DAVIS AND H. G. POULOS

APPENDIX
Analytical solutions for footings on a half-space
These solutions are given in Table 1.

Table 1

Drainage condition v’ iip for circle US for circle

CLDpfor strips UDS for strips
1 I
Permeable upper surface 0.5 F,+Fz ~FI+Fz-Fs
I_
j 0 / F4 FI+F,
Impermeable upper surface 0.5 F4 F,+F,
0 F5 FS
/

Functions F for circular loading

FI = 2d?(l - e-1l4T)/2/i
Fa = erfc(l/21/‘T)
F3 = 2Terf(l/2.\/T)-21/Te-114T/~~
Fq = 1- dGe-l’BT [Z0(1/8T)+Z,(1/8T)]/4~\/T
FS and Fa obtained by numerical integration of integrals derived from McNamee and Gibson (1960)
T = et/a2
a = radius of loading
lo, Z1 are the Modified Bessel Functions of the first kind
Functions F for strip loading
FI = z/z [2 erf(l/2d/T)-erf(l/d/T)]/ log. 4
Fa = [E1(1/4T)-E,(l/T)1/1og. 4
F3 = [4T(l -e-lf4’) - T(1 -e-“‘)]/log. 4
F, = = {[2D(1/2%?)- @l/V?)]/%‘?)dT/log, 4
s
F5 andoF, obtained by numerical integration of integrals derived from McNamee and Gibson (1960)
T = ct/ba
b = half-breadth of strip loading
E,(x) = m ems/s ds (the first exponential integral)
sx
x
D(x) = eWxa es’ ds (Dawson’s integral)
s0

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