**Pile-caps01: Design a pile cap for a 9-pile cluster.

Design a pile cap footing to support an 18 square column subjected to a live load reaction of 180 kips and a dead load reaction of 160 kips at service loads. The testing laboratory recommends an ultimate pile load of 70 kips per pile, and a service pile load of 42 kips per pile. The vertical steel in the column consists of 12 No.7 bars. Use c = 3000 psi, y = 40,000 psi, and 12 diameter piles. Solution. Since the footing weight will be about 3 kips/pile, the net service load per pile is 42.0-3.0 = 39.0 kips/ pile. The number of piles required in N=W/P = 340/39 = 8.7, or 9 piles. Use a pile pattern as shown in Fig. 1. The net ultimate load is used to design the footing; thus Wu = (1.4) (160) + (1.7) (180) = 530 kips, and the load per pile is Pu = 530/9 = 58.9, say 59.0 kips/pile, which is less than the maximum ultimate load, 70 kips/ pile. Punching shear around a single pile often governs the footing depth determination, except in cases in which the loads are small. In this case, it will be shown that beam shear governs. Referring to Fig. 2, we calculate the punching shear stress. After several trials, assume d = 19.5 . The shear perimeter is bo = (12 + d) = 99.0 . The permissible shear force around the pile will be, Vc = 4 f c bod = 4 3000 (99) (19.5) / 1000 = 423 kips Since the actual shear force is the nominal pile reaction, Pn = Pu/ = 59.0/0.85 = 69.4 kips < 423 kips, the pile will not punch through the pile cap (footing).

Figure 1

Figure 2

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Figure 3

Figure 4

Perimeter shear (punching shear) must now be checked around the column in a similar manner. In this case, all of the nominal pile reactions outside of the critical section plus any partial reactions outside of the critical section will contribute to punching shear for the column. Refer to Figure 3. Assuming No. 6 bars will be used, clearance above the pile butts will be 3 and embedment of the piles will be 6 . The total dept required will be 28.75 . For practical reasons use 29 ; this furnishes an effective depth d = 19.625 . Thus c = a + b = 18.0 + 19.625 = 37.625 and bo = 4(37.625) = 150.0 . Hence, Vou = 472 kips on 8 piles outside of the critical section as shown on Fig. 3. The permissible punching shear force (c = 18/18 < 2) is given by (6.12) as Vc = 4 3000 (150) (19.625) / 1000 = 644.9 kips The force to be resisted is Vn = Vou/ = 472/0.85 = 555.3 kips; therefore the pile cap (footing) is satisfactory for punching shear. Beam shear must now be checked. Refer to Fig. 4. Three piles exist beyond the critical section, so Vu = (3) (59.0) = 177.0 kips. Since b = B= 8 -6 = 102 , the permissible beam shear (one-way shear) force on the critical section is Vc = 2 c bd = 2 3000 (102) (19.625) / 1000 = 219.3 kips The force to be resisted is the nominal shear force, Vn = Vu / = 177/ 0.85 = 208.2 kips. Hence the footing is satisfactory for beam shear. The bending moment about the face of the column must now be investigated. Refer to Fig. 4 Mu = (177) (27/12) = 398.3 ft-kips

Ru = Mu / bd2 = 398.3 x 12,000 / (102)(19.625)2 = 121.67 psi

Table 5.2 for c = 3000 psi and y = 40,000 psi, discloses the fact that the steel ration required is less than the minimum steel ration, min = 200 / y = 0.005. Further, if the steel ration required is increased by 1/3, it will still be less than min. It would appear that 4/3 times the required steel ration would satisfy the 1983 ACI Code. However, the Code does not permit un-reinforced (plain concrete) pile caps. Since any section having less than minimum reinforcement is usually considered to be un-reinforced, the minimum are of steel will be provided. Thus,

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As = (200/y) bd = (200/ 40,000) (102) (19.925) = 10.0in.2 Use seventeen No. 7 bars (As = 10.2 in.2). The 1983 ACI Code is not explicit concerning minimum steel for footings. Hence, some structural engineers use 0.002bh for minimum steel area if y 40,000 psi and 0.0018bh if y = 60,000 psi. This corresponds to temperature and shrinkage reinforcement requirements. The assumed footing weight must finally be checked. The total weight is WF = (8.5) (8.5) (29) (12.5) / 1000 = 26.2 kips And the weight per pile is 26.2/ 9 = 2.91 kips / pile. The assumed weight of 3.0 kips / pile is most satisfactory. The final details are shown in Fig. 5.

Figure 5

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