Undrained bearing capacity of a skirted strip foundation using upper-bound limit analysis

Abstract

Skirted foundations are assumed to be a wise selection in offshore geotechnical engineering. In this paper the bearing-capacity factors for a vertically loaded skirted strip foundation resting on uniform c-φ soil were obtained using an upper-bound limit analysis. The analysis is performed by choosing a kinematically admissible failure mechanism comprising multiple triangular rigid blocks. The effect of the embedment depth of the skirts on the bearing capacity is studied based on the dimensionless embedment ratio Df/Bf. A detailed parametric study is carried out by varying the Df/Bf ratio and φ for both the smooth and rough surface of the skirts. The results obtained from the present theoretical analysis are compared with the available theoretical and experimental data reported in the literature. Priyanka Ghosh (corresponding author) Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, Department of Civil Engineering Kanpur – 208 016, India E-mail: priyog@iitk.ac.in Alok Pal Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, Department of Civil Engineering Kanpur – 208 016, India E-mail: alok.besu2188@gmail.com