Bearing Capacity And Compressibility Characteristics Of Gelan Soils For Shallow Foundation Design: (Illustration And Comparison Using Different Building Codes)

Abstract

Any Engineered Structures Constructed On The Soil Need To Respond Safely For Static And Dynamic Loading To Insure The Bearing Capacity And Compressibility Characteristics Of The Soil. Unbalanced Load Of Soil Leads Excessive Structural Distortion And Mass Collapse Against Shear Failure And Excessive Settlement Which Result, Structural Damage To Building Frames, Cracks, Sticking Of Doors And Windows. The Unbalanced Super Structural Load Is Factored To Account Several Factors Among These Are Soil Types On Which Foundation Laid On, Foundation Shape, Depth And Design Approach Using Different Codes. This Study Tried To Determine The Bearing Capacity And Compressibility Characteristics Of Southern Addis Ababa Sub City (Gelan) Soils With Illustration Of Different Codes And Sofa Software And The Evaluation Of Ethiopian Building Code Compared To Other Codes Including Sofa Software. To Achieve The Objective Of The Study Different Literatures Were First Reviewed And For Laboratory Works, Disturbed And Undisturbed Samples From Four Test Pits At 2m Depth Were Taken. From Disturbed Samples Dry Sieve Analysis, Moisture Content, Specific Gravity, Bulk Density, Atterberg Limits, Unconfined Compressive Strength; Direct Shear Test And Consolidation Tests Were Done Using Undisturbed Samples. From The Test Results, Drained Cohesive Strength Was 10.5-21kn/M??, Angle Of Internal Friction Ranges From 15-23??, Undrained Cohesive Strength Was35.7-68mpa, Swelling Index/Recompression Index And Any Engineered Structures Constructed On The Soil Need To Respond Safely For Static And Dynamic Loading To Insure The Bearing Capacity And Compressibility Characteristics Of The Soil. Unbalanced Load Of Soil Leads Excessive Structural Distortion And Mass Collapse Against Shear Failure And Excessive Settlement Which Result, Structural Damage To Building Frames, Cracks, Sticking Of Doors And Windows. The Unbalanced Super Structural Load Is Factored To Account Several Factors Among These Are Soil Types On Which Foundation Laid On, Foundation Shape, Depth And Design Approach Using Different Codes. This Study Tried To Determine The Bearing Capacity And Compressibility Characteristics Of Southern Addis Ababa Sub City (Gelan) Soils With Illustration Of Different Codes And Sofa Software And The Evaluation Of Ethiopian Building Code Compared To Other Codes Including Sofa Software. To Achieve The Objective Of The Study Different Literatures Were First Reviewed And For Laboratory Works, Disturbed And Undisturbed Samples From Four Test Pits At 2m Depth Were Taken. From Disturbed Samples Dry Sieve Analysis, Moisture Content, Specific Gravity, Bulk Density, Atterberg Limits, Unconfined Compressive Strength; Direct Shear Test And Consolidation Tests Were Done Using Undisturbed Samples. From The Test Results, Drained Cohesive Strength Was 10.5-21kn/M??, Angle Of Internal Friction Ranges From 15-23??, Undrained Cohesive Strength Was35.7-68mpa, Swelling Index/Recompression Index And Foundation, However, This Trend Needs To Be Changed And We Should Take Into Account Design Economy At Least By Using Average Values. Therefore, We Can Conclude That The Ebcs-7 Method Determined Footing Size, Bearing Capacity And Settlement Values Are Conservative And Demands Some Revision To Make It More Economical. The Study Suggests That The Average Bearing Capacity And Settlement Values Of All The Results Obtained From The Methods Seen Must Be Used For Design As A Result Ebcs-7 Method Must Encompass These Revisions In A Way To Lead Average Values.