Muğla Sıtkı Koçman University, Department of Civil Engineering, Fall 2021

CE3509 SOIL MECHANICS II

HOMEWORK II: BEARING CAPACITY
1. A 30m by 50m mat foundation is to be built as shown in figure below. Compute the ultimate bearing capacity using
Vesic’s method.

2. A 2.5mx1.5m rectangular footing will be constructed on a sandy clay layer. Unit weight of soil is 16 kN/m3 and cohesion
is 24kN/m2 , friction angle is 20 degree, the foundation depth Df=1.5m, and FS=3. Determine the allowable soil bearing
capacity using Mayerhof’s theory.

3. The column loads, wall loads and the pertinent soil data for a proposed structure are given below. Determine the allowable
bearing capacity of the square column (B=2.0m) and wall footings (B=2.0m) for a permissible settlement of 25 mm,
using Peck & Hanson & Thornburn charts.

Depth (m) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
N 8 14 11 16 18 11 9 13 18 20 50/11 50/7
 Muğla Sıtkı Koçman University, Department of Civil Engineering, Fall 2021

4. A building will be constructed on a clay deposit. The building will rest on a mat foundation at 2m depth and has 10m x
10m dimensions in plan. The clay deposit is 20m deep and overlies a rock layer. The bulk unit weights are 18kN/m3 and
20kN/m3 above and below water table respectively. The clay has c'=5 kN/m2, '=20º, cu= 48kN/m2, u=0. Take w=10
kN/m3.
Determine the ultimate bearing capacity of the foundation in the short term (Skempton) and long term (Terzaghi) for
the following cases,
a) The ground water level is at ground surface.
b) The ground water level is at 2m depth.
c) The ground water level is at 8m depth.
d) The ground water level is at 15m depth.

5. The result of a plate load test is shown in the graph. If the plate dimensions are 0.75m*0.75m, calculate the safe bearing
capacity of soil for 2m*2m footing, taking factor of safety as 2.5.

a) If the soil is clay

b) If the soil is sand

Load (kN/m2)
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700
0

20
Settlement (mm)

40

60

80

100

6. For the foundation shown in the figure calculate ultimate net bearing capacity when the groundwater is located;
a) at 5m below from the ground surface
b) at the ground surface
c) at the bottom of the footing
d) at 1m below the base
 Muğla Sıtkı Koçman University, Department of Civil Engineering, Fall 2021

7. A footing of 4mx4m can carry a uniform gross pressure of 300 kN/m2 at a depth of 1.5 m in a sand. The saturated unit
weight of the sand is 20kN/m3 and the unit weight above the water table is 17 kN/m3. Ground water table is 1.5m below

the surface and the shear strenght parameters are c’=0,  '  32  .Determine the factor of safety with respect to shear
failure.

8. A machine foundation having an area of 5m x 5m in plan is shown in the figure below. The foundation soil is uniform
sand extending to great depths. The standard penetration resistance of the sand increases with depth according to the
following relationship:
N = 5 + 1.5 * z, where “z” is the depth from ground surface.
N values are corrected values for overburden pressures and the energy delivered to the rods during SPT is 30%. Calculate
the total vertical load including the weight of the foundation and the machinery for a permissible settlement of 40mm
using Peck&Hanson&Thornburn criteria:

(qall)net =11N60(avg) Cw for 2.5cm settlement

(qall)net =22N60(avg)Cw for 5.0cm settlement
Cw=0.5+0.5Dw/(Df+B)

Q=?
 = 18 kN/m3
3m

5m  = 20 kN/m3
 Muğla Sıtkı Koçman University, Department of Civil Engineering, Fall 2021

9. A chimney structure, having a diameter of 4m is supported by a 2m thick circular foundation of diameter 7m and the
total weight of the structure including the foundation is 17500 kN. The ground water table is 2m below the ground
surface. If the foundation is seated at 5m below the ground surface, determine the net foundation pressure. Drained and
saturated unit weights of the soil are 17 kN/m3 and 21 kN/m3, respectively; and the unit weight of concrete is 24 kN/m3.
a) Calculate the net foundation pressure under the rigid mat.
b) Assuming the ground water table is at the ground surface, calculate the factor of safety against uplift.
 water  10kN / m 3

10. Find the depth of exploration from the ground level for the 10-storey building.
Show the boring locations on the plan view.
1 '
(Hint: De Beer’s rule : P0  P )
10

q=138kN/m2
20m
Df=5m
 = 18 kN/m 3

30m
Plan view of foundation

11. Determine the allowable gross load on the foundation shown in figure with a factor of safety of 3.

Due date: 16.11.2021 - 09.30 pm