Shallow foundations are extensively used to support structures of all sizes and derive their support from near surface soils. Thus, they are typically embedded up to a few meters into the soil profile. Designers of shallow foundations are required to meet two limit states: overall failure of the soil beneath the foundation (bearing capacity) and excessive settlement. Existing bearing capacity design methods use an assumed shearing plane within the soil and perfectly plastic soil behavior to estimate the ultimate resistance available. The immediate settlement of a shallow foundation is typically approximated using an elasticity-based method that does not account for actual, nonlinear soil behavior. A load test database was developed from footing load tests reported in the literature to assess the accuracy and uncertainty in existing design methodologies for calculating bearing capacity and immediate settlement. The assessment of uncertainty in bearing capacity and immediate settlement was accomplished through the application of a hyperbolic bearing pressure-displacement model, and the adaptation of the Duncan-Chang soil constitutive model to footing displacements. The prediction of bearing capacity using the general bearing capacity formula was compared to the bearing capacity extrapolated from the load test database using a hyperbolic bearing pressure-displacement model. On average the general bearing capacity formula under-predicts the bearing capacity and exhibits a significant amount of variability. The comparison was used to develop resistance statistics that were implemented to produce resistance factors for an LRFD based design approach using AASHTO load statistics. The Duncan-Chang model was adapted to predict bearing pressure displacement curves for footings in the load test database and used to estimate governing soil parameters. Bearing pressure-displacement curves fitted to the observed curves were used to back calculate soil stiffness. The soil stiffness was used with an elasticity-based displacement prediction method to evaluate the accuracy of the method. Finally, the back-calculated modulus from the fitted Duncan-Chang model was used to assess the accuracy and uncertainty associated with the elasticity-based K-factor, a correlation based stiffness parameter. In general the comparisons indicate that the current design procedures over-predict the bearing pressure associated with a given displacement and exhibit a significant amount of uncertainty. / Graduation date: 2012

Forest soils with low bulk densities are often considered less susceptible to compaction than soils with higher bulk densities. The objective of this study was to determine if soil strength controlled the compression of soils with low bulk density. Four soils were selected for this evaluation. Three of these were andic soils with low bulk density and the fourth soil was a more dense, cohesive soil. Undisturbed samples of saturated and partly saturated soil were compressed in a one-dimensional consolidation test apparatus. Measurements with separate samples were at one of 7 normal stresses between 0.033 and 1.96 MPa. Shear strength of saturated soil was measured in direct shear tests. Primary consolidation of saturated soil was completed in less than one minute at all normal stresses. Shear stress and bulk density increased continuously during shear strain. The compression index of the cohesive soil was significantly larger (p<0.05) than that of the andic soils. The shear strength of andic soils (average cohesion intercept of 0.016 MPa and friction angle of 33.3°) was significantly higher (p<0.05) than the cohesive soil (cohesion intercept of 0.028 MPa and friction angle of 28.9°). When saturated, the cohesive soil was more compressible than the andic soils because of lower soil strength. A nonlinear model of soil compression was developed that accurately predicted the compressed density of saturated and partly saturated soil as a function of normal stress, initial bulk density of undisturbed samples, and degree of saturation. As degree of saturation decreased, the compressibility of the cohesive soil decreased more rapidly than it did for the andic soils. As a result, bulk density of dry cohesive soil increased less than it did for dry andic soils. Differences in the compressibility of soils were attributed to texture and clay mineralogy. The differences in the compressibility of these soils were much smaller than were the differences in bulk density. Decreasing water content affected the compressibility of the cohesive soil more than it affected the andic soils. Because soil strength controls the compressibility of these forest soils regardless of bulk density, it will also determine the susceptibility of soils to compaction by machines. / Graduation date: 1991

Caribbean nations lie within a zone of distinct seismic hazard. While ground motion in the region has been analyzed, the potential for liquefaction has not been evaluated in most cases. In order to evaluate liquefaction, data describing soil composition, surficial geology, and seismic hazard analyses were collected and applied. This allowed for expansion of previously localized liquefaction analysis to be expanded to the extents of two island nations in the Caribbean. This thesis utilizes the Youd and Perkins (1978) qualitative liquefaction susceptibility and Holzer et al. (2011) liquefaction probability methodologies to evaluate the possibility of liquefaction in Trinidad and Jamaica during major seismic events. Maps were developed using geographic information system (GIS) data to compare susceptibility and hazard across the islands at varying levels of magnitude. In this way, the distribution of liquefiable deposits is displayed in a manner that can be used quickly and easily to motivate further study of susceptible regions and mitigation activities to reduce the risk posed by liquefaction in the countries.

Tez (Yüksek Lisans) - Süleyman Demirel Üniversitesi, Fen Bilimleri Enstitüsü, Jeofizik Mühendisliği Anabilim Dalı, 2009. / Kaynakça var.

published_or_final_version / abstract / toc / Civil Engineering / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

No description available.

No description available.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Carleton University, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 138-146). Also available in electronic format on the Internet.

Thesis (M.App.Sc.) - Carleton University, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 151-155). Also available in electronic format on the Internet.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:26:15Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2012-06-01Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T19:54:23Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 pedrini_raa_me_bauru.pdf: 2655839 bytes, checksum: 6769e49bc7943af86a850b8e28a25b9e (MD5) / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) / Este trabalho apresenta o sistema e metodologia para realização e interpretação de ensaios sísmicos up-role durante uma sondagem de simples reconhecimento (SPT). Este ensaio híbrido, conhecido também como S-SPT, incorpora a medida de velocidade de propagação de ondas de cisalhamento (Vs) ao ensaio SPT, visando uma melhor investigação do subsolo. A possibilidade de se medir, ao mesmo tempo e no mesmo furo, os valores de N do SPT e Vs, permitem calcular o módulo de cisalhamento máximo (Go), abrindo uma nova perspectiva para investigação de solos tropicais colapsíveis, a partir da relação Go/N, similar a relação Go/qc. O sistema é composto por um hardware (geofones, trigger e sistema de aquisição de dados) e softwares, um para registro dos sinais sísmicos e outro para sua interpretação. A metodologia de execução dos ensaios foi aperfeiçoada, a partir da realização de várias campanhas de ensaios de campo. Para a interpretação dos sinais e cálculo das velocidades foi elaborado um software, que possibilita definir os perfis de Vs sem a necessidade de outras ferramentas. Esse software possibilita o processamento e visualização dos registros, além de permitir aplicar um método específico para cálculo das velocidades de onda considerando a refração das ondas durante sua propagação através das diversas camadas do meio, conforme a Lei de Snell. Foram realizadas campanhas de ensaios S-SPT em um campo experimental localizado na cidade de Bauru, interior do estado de São Paulo, Brasil, para desenvolver o sistema e validar sua aplicação. Os resultados desses ensaios foram comparados com valores de Vs referência, determinados através de ensaios sísmicos down-hole, tipo SCPT. O ensaio S-SPT mostrou ser uma técnica interessante e aplicável, uma vez que a diferença entre os valores de Vs medidos com os de referência foi baixa, com um valor médio inferior a 10% para as áreas investigadas. Deste modo, pode ser / This work presents a system and methodology for performing and interpreting up-hole seismic tests together with the Standard Penetration Test (SPT). This hybrid test, also known as S-SPT, incorporates the measurements of shear waves velocity propagation (Vs) in the SPT, for a better site investigation. The possibility of measuring simultaneously in the same borehole, the N SPT and the Vs values which allows calculating the maximum shear modulus (Go), opens new perspectives for the investigation of collapsible tropical soils, from Go/N ratio, similar to Go/qc. The system consists of a hardware (geophones, trigger and data aquisition system) and software, one to record of the seismic signals and the other for its interpretation. The methodology for carrying out the tests was improved after several field trials. A software was developed for interpretation of records and calculating velocities, which allows to define the Vs profiles without the need of additional tools. This software enables processing and displaying records, and also allows applying a specific method for calculating velocities considering the waves refraction during their propagation through the various layers of the soil mass, according to the Snell's Law. The S-SPT campaigns were carried out in an experimental field located in the city of Bauru, São Paulo, Brazil, to develop the system and validate its application. The results of these tests were compared with Vs reference values, which were determined by the down-hole seismic test, SCPT type. The S-SPT test proved to be an interesting applicable technique, since the differences to the Vs reference values were small, wich and average lower than 10% for the investigated site. The S-SPT test can be considered as an option for determining the maximum shear modulus, with the advantage of being performed together with the most widely used test for site investigation, the SPT