Effect of Spatial Variability on Buried Footings

Abstract

Natural soil is one of the most variable materials as a result of physical and chemical changes. The variation in soil properties significantly affects the failure mechanism and bearing capacity of a footing. This effect is further complicated by considering the spatial correlation of the soil properties. The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of the spatial variability of a clay on the bearing capacity of a buried footing. The spatial variation of undrained shear strength of a clay is modelled by random fields. The random fields are generated and mapped into a non-linear finite element analysis. The failure mechanism and bearing capacity of a footing in a spatially random..