Bearing capacity of strip footing on top of slope: Numerical parametric study

Abstract

A parametric study is conducted using the finite element method to investigate the bearing capacity and the associated failure mechanisms of strip footings on top of slope with cohesionless soil. The developed and validated numerical model was used to analyze 57 slopes with different design parameters, footing dimensions, and soil properties. Findings of the study quantified the variations in bearing capacity due to changes in setback distance, internal friction and dilatancy angles, footing embedment depth, and footing width. The observed variations in failure mechanisms are used to explain the behavior and stability of slope-footing system. A multilinear equation is developed to predict the bearing capacity of the footing on the top of slope based on the slope-footing design parameters and Meyerhof bearing capacity equation. The developed equation was able to predict the bearing capacity of a footing on slope with reasonable accuracy.

Keywords

• Soil slope
• Strip footing
• Bearing capacity
• Numerical models
• PLAXIS