BEARING CAPACITY AND SETTLEMENT OF FOOTINGS IN UNSATURATED SANDS

Abstract

The focus of the study in this paper is directed towards understanding the influence of three parameters; namely, (i) matric suction, (ii) overburden stress, and (iii) dilation, on the bearing capacity and settlement behavior of surface and embedded model footings in unsaturated sands. The results show that the bearing capacity and settlement behavior of unsaturated sands are significantly influenced by all the three parameters. In addition, comparisons are provided between the predicted and measured bearing capacity and estimated and measured settlement values using the proposed modified Terzaghi’s equation and modified Schmertmann’s CPT-based method, respectively. There is a good comparison between the predicted/estimated and measured bearing capacity and settlement values for the laboratory and field tests using the proposed modified methods.