BUILDING

CONSTRUCTION
TOPIC - FOUNDATION
WHAT IS FOUNDATION ?
• It is that part of structure which is
in direct contact with the ground.

• It is the base of any structure

• Increases the stability of the

structure by taking it deep into the
ground
• It transfers the load of the structure
to the soil below

•It prevents the differential settlement

by evenly loading the substrata.
Important topics in foundation

Design of foundation
Types of foundation

Type of soil
Few Terminologies
Total settlement – Total downward movement of
the foundation unit under the load
Differential settlement - There is chances of
different settlements of different parts of the same
foundation.

•Bearing capacity- Ability of the soil to carry

the load safely
Understanding of Allowable bearing capacity

soil sand
wooden piece

sponge
ULTIMATE BEARING CAPACITY OF SOIL -

The intensity of loading, at the base of foundation, at which

soil support fails in shear.
It is the loading intensity which causes soil rupture (shear
failure) and displacement of the soil below resulting in
rapid sinking of the loaded area into the ground.

SAFE BEARING CAPACITY or ALLOWABLE

BEARING CAPACITY –

The max. Intensity of loading that the soil will safely carry
without risk of shear failure is called safe bearing capacity
It is the net intensity of loading that the soil
safely carry without the risk of failure either
due to shear or due to excessive settlement

Ultimate baring capacity

Suitable factor of safety
FACTOR OF SAFETY –
To keep the settlements small, an adequate factor of
safety must be applied to the ultimate bearing
capacity, and the value of this factor of safety to some
extent depend upon the type of the building. On the
experience, factor of safety
 for bldgs. In ordinary case is taken as 2 but for
heavy buildings it can be taken as 2.5 – 3
Allowable bearing pressure – Maximum pressure
which can be applied to the soil taking into
account shear failure and max. settlement expected
Tumbling tower of China: A newly built 13-storey residential
building collapsed in Shanghai yesterday, killing one
worker.
By Daily Mail Reporter, 28th June 2009
Bearing capacity of soil depends on
(i) Physical properties of soil
eg.- size, shape, power to retain
moisture, frictional resistance)
(i) Moisture content
(ii) Changes in soil properties with the
change in atmospheric agencies like
heat, rain etc.
TYPES OF SOIL
Rocks –
i. Provide best foundation
ii. Possess high safe bearing capacity except when decomposed
iii. On sloping surfaces, dangerous conditions may arise
SAND AND GRAVEL -
i. Provide good foundation surface for buildings
ii. Do not show shrinkage and swelling properties
iii. Bearing capacity of soil increases under heavy loads
iv. Settlement in sand occurs immediately after the
application of load
SILTS -

i. It is grained soil
ii. Impervious
iii. Exhibits the slight tendency of swelling and shrinkage
iv. Provides a foundation which is neither poor nor good
as a foundation in sandy soil
CLAYEY SOILS -
i. Soils containing greater proportion of clay
ii. Expand in bulk when wetted and contract on drying
iii. Change in volume causes horizontal and vertical
movement both
iv. Settlement on foundation of clayey soils increases
with the size of the footings
v. The clay have poor load bearing capacity
vi. Black cotton soils are heavy clay soils
vii. They are most unreliable for any structure
viii. Possess high bearing capacity when dry
ix. On wetting, these soils lose bearing capacity power. They
swell and become soft.
x. On drying they contract by 20% - 30% in volume resulting
in the splitting up the area and development of large
cracks on the surface.
Types of Foundation

1. Open foundation or Shallow foundation

2. Deep foundation
1.Open Foundation
 Most common type
 Open excavation is done
 Practicable for a depth up to 5 mtr.
 The base of foundation is enlarged
 Good for structure of moderate height built on
sufficiently dry ground
 Convenient above the water table
Types of Open Foundation
i. Wall footing
ii. Isolated footing
iii. Combined footing
iv. Inverted arch footing
v. Continuous footing
vi. Cantilever footing
vii. Grillage footing
i. Wall footings
 It can be simple or stepped
 Base course is of concrete
 Used for light structures
 Min.width of concrete base = 2x width of the wall
 Depth of concrete bed > or = to the projection
 In general projection = 15 cm.
 5 cm.

15 cm.

SIMPLE WALL FOOTING STEPPED WALL FOOTING

ii. Isolated Column Footings
 Used to support individual column

 Either stepped or can have projections in concrete base.

 In heavy loaded columns, steel reinforcement is provided in

both the directions in conc. bed.
iii. Combined Footings
 Supports two or more columns in a row
 Can be rectangular if loads in both the columns are the same
 Can be trapezoidal if loads in the two columns are unequal.
 Generally they are constructed of reinforced concrete resting
on homogeneous ground
 CG of column loads and CG of footing should coincide.
iv. Inverted Arch Footings
 This type of construction is used on soft soil
 Used to reduce the depth of the foundation
 Loads above an opening are transmitted from supporting
walls through inverted arches to the soil
v. Continuous Footings
 This type of construction , a single R.C. slab is provided as
foundation of 2 or 3 or more columns in a row
 Suitable for earthquake prone areas
 Prevents differential settlements
 For better stability, a deeper beam is constructed in bet. the
columns.
vi. Strap or Cantilever Footing
 Two or more footings connected by a beam called strap
 Good where dist. bet. the column is so great that the
trapezoidal footing becomes quite narrow with high bending
moment.
 The strap do not remain in contact with the soil. Hence it
does not transfer any load but distributes the load equally on
both the columns.
vii. Grillage Footing
 Used to transmit heavy loads from steel columns to the soil
having low bearing capacity.
 Avoids deep excavations
 It is made up of rolled steel joists known as grillage beams
provided in single or double tiers
 In double tier arrangement, the top tier is laid perpendicular
to the lower tier.
Grillage Footing
Tumbling tower of China: A newly built 13-storey residential
building collapsed in Shanghai yesterday, killing one
worker.
By Daily Mail Reporter, 28th June 2009
ix. Raft foundation
 Also called mat foundation
 Covers entire area beneath a structure and supports all the
columns.
 Good for marshy land
 When allowable soil pressure is low and str. Loads are heavy
 When spread footings cover more than half of the area and it
becomes economical to construct raft foundation.
 When hard soil is not found within 1.5 m to 2 m. then Raft
foundation is adopted
2. Deep Foundation
 carries loads from the structure through weak
compressible soils or fills on to a less compressible soils
or rocks at depth
Types of Deep Foundation

1. Pile Foundations

2. Well foundations and Caissons

 1. Pile Foundation

Based on function Based on materials and composition

i. Bearing Piles i. Cement concrete piles
ii. Friction piles ii. Timber piles
iii. Screw piles iii. Steel Piles
iv. Sand piles
v. Composite piles
BEARING PILE –
 Penetrate through soft soil

 The tip rest on hard stratum

 Gains lateral support from soft soil

FRICTION PILE –
 When loose soil extends to a great depth,
foundation is driven up to such a depth that
frictional resistance developed is equal to the
load coming on the piles
 The frictional resistance can be increased by
increasing the dia. of the pile
 By increasing the length of the pile

 By making the surface of the pile rough

 By grouping the pile

SCREW PILES –
 Consists of hollow cast iron or steel cylinder
with one or more blades at the bottom

 Useful when the ground consists of sand or clay

 Good for sand mixed gravel ground

COMPACTION PILES –
 Used to compact the loose granular soil

 Used to increase the bearing capacity of loose

granular soils
CEMENT CONCRETE PILES –

 PRE CAST CONCRETE PILES

 CAST IN SITU PILES