Bearing Capacity of Shallow Foundations in Homogeneous and Layered Soils under Varying Ground Water Table Conditions by using PLAXIS 2D

Abstract

This present study focuses on the numerical analysis of the UBC of shallow foundations subjected to different soil layers and GWT case. A finite element-based analysis was examined by PLAXIS 2D to study the response of foundations placed on both homogeneous and layered soil profiles. The investigation considered foundation width, soil-layer thickness, clay cohesion, friction angle of sand, and groundwater table depth as the principal variables. Homogeneous sand and clay profiles were first analyzed by considering different groundwater levels and foundation widths of 1 m and 2 m. The influence of clay strength was examined by adopting different cohesion values. In addition, layered profiles comprising sand over clay and clay over sand were modeled with different layer thicknesses and groundwater conditions to evaluate the effect of soil stratification on foundation bearing capacity. The numerical results show that changes in groundwater position, foundation width, soil strength, and layer arrangement can significantly alter the UBC. The interaction between the upper and underlying soil layers also plays a significant role in the bearing response of layered foundations. This study demonstrates the usefulness of finite element analysis for evaluating shallow foundation behavior under complex soil and groundwater conditions and provides a systematic understanding of the parameters governing ultimate bearing capacity