CE 151 – Geotechnical Engineering 1

Stresses in Soils: Stresses Due to Surface Loads

STRESSES IN SOILS
Stresses Due to Surface Loads

To determine the distribution of surface stresses within a soil, the following

ASSUMPTIONS have to be made:

- soil is semi-infinite: bounded on one side (horizontal surface) and

extends infinitely in all directions
- soil is homogeneous: uniform or of the same kind
- soil is linear: of uniform breadth
- soil is isotropic: same material properties and in all directions and also
the same loading in all directions
- soil is elastic: return to their original configuration on unloading and
obey Hooke’s Law

STRESSES CAUSED BY POINT LOAD

Figure 1. Stresses in an elastic medium due to a point load.

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Stresses in Soils: Stresses Due to Surface Loads

BOUSSINESQ (1885) presented a solution to the distribution of stresses for a

point load applied on the soil surface.

The increases in stresses on a soil element due to point load P in the x, y and z
directions are:

P  3x 2 z  x2  y 2 y 2 z 
σ x   (1 - 2 ) 2  3 2 
2  L5  Lr ( L  z ) L r 

P  2y 2 z  y 2  x2 x2 z 
σ y   5 (1 - 2 ) 2  3 2 
2  L  Lr ( L  z ) L r 

3P z 3 3P z3
σ z  
2 L 5
2 (r 2  z 2 )5 / 2

3P  rz 2 
 rz 
2  (r 2  z 2 )5 / 2 

where: r  ( x 2  y 2 ) ; L  ( x 2  y 2  z 2 )  (r 2  z 2 )

and  = Poisson’s Ratio

radial (or lateral) strain   r

Poisson’s Ratio, : =
vertical strain  z

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Stresses in Soils: Stresses Due to Surface Loads

STRESSES CAUSED BY VERTICAL LINE LOAD

Figure 2. Line load over the surface of a semi-infinite soil mass.

With the application of a line load q per unit length (force/length), increases in
stresses are:

2qz 3
 z 
 (x 2  z 2 ) 2
2qx 2 z
 x 
 (x 2  z 2 ) 2

2qxz2
 zx 
 (x 2  z 2 ) 2

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Stresses in Soils: Stresses Due to Surface Loads

STRESSES CAUSED BY UNIFORMLY LOADED AREAS

A. Vertical Stress below the Center of Uniformly Loaded Circular Area

Figure 3. Vertical stress below the center of uniformly loaded flexible circular area

  1  
3/ 2

 z  q 1    
2 
  1  R / z   

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Stresses in Soils: Stresses Due to Surface Loads

B. Vertical Stress below the Uniformly Loaded Rectangular Area

Figure 4. Vertical stress below the corner of uniformly loaded flexible rectangular area.

Many structural foundations are rectangular or approximately rectangular in

shape. The increases in the stresses below the corner of a rectangular area of
width B and length L are:

q  1 LB LBz  1 1 
 z  tan  
  2 
2  zR3 2
R3  R1 R2 

q  1 LB LBz  q  1LB LBz 

 x   tan  2   y  tan  2 
2  zR3 R1 R3  2  zR3 R2 R3 

q B z2B 
 zx    2 
2 R 2 R1 R3 

where: 
R1  L2  z 2 1 2 , 
R2  B 2  z 2  1
2
, 
R3  L2  B 2  z 2 
1
2

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Stresses in Soils: Stresses Due to Surface Loads

Another method:

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Stresses in Soils: Stresses Due to Surface Loads

SAMPLE PROBLEMS:

1. Determine the increase in vertical stress at point A caused by the two

line loads on the ground surface shown in the figure.

2. The plan of a uniformly loaded rectangular area is shown in the figure.

Determine the vertical increase below point A’ at a depth of z = 4 m.

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