How to design concrete structures using Eurocode 2

6. Foundations
R Webster CEng, FIStructE O Brooker BEng, CEng, MICE, MIStructE

Eurocode 7: Geotechnical design

Scope
All foundations should be designed so that the soil safely resists the actions applied to the structure. The design of any foundation consists of two components; the geotechnical design and the structural design of the foundation itself. However, for some foundations (e.g. flexible rafts) the effect of the interaction between the soil and structure may be critical and must also be considered. Geotechnical design is covered by Eurocode 71, which supersedes several current British Standards including BS 59302, BS 80023 and BS 80044. The new Eurocode marks a significant change in geotechnical design in that limit state principles are used throughout and this should ensure consistency between the Eurocodes. There are two parts to Eurocode 7, Part 1: General rules and Part 2: Ground investigation and testing. Guidance on the design of retaining walls can be found in Chapter 9. The essential features of Eurocode 7, Part 1 relating to foundation design are discussed in this chapter. It should be emphasised that this publication covers only the design of simple foundations, which are a small part of the scope of Eurocode 7. Therefore it should not be relied on for general guidance on this Eurocode.

Limit states
The following ultimate limit states (ULS) should be satisfied for geotechnical design; they each have their own combinations of actions. (For an explanation of Eurocode terminology please refer to Chapter 1, originally published as Introduction to Eurocodes5.) EQU Loss of equilibrium of the structure. STR Internal failure or excessive deformation of the structure or structural member. GEO Failure due to excessive deformation of the ground. UPL Loss of equilibrium due to uplift by water pressure. HYD Failure caused by hydraulic gradients. In addition, the serviceability limit states (SLS) should be satisfied. It will usually be clear that one of the limit states will govern the design and therefore it will not be necessary to carry out checks for all of them, although it is considered good practice to record that they have all been considered.

Geotechnical Categories
Eurocode 7 recommends three Geotechnical Categories to assist in establishing the geotechnical design requirements for a structure (see Table 1).

How to design concrete structures using Eurocode 2

It is anticipated that structural engineers will take responsibility for the geotechnical design of category 1 structures, and that geotechnical engineers will take responsibility for category 3 structures. The geotechnical design of category 2 structures may be undertaken by members of either profession. This decision will very much depend on individual circumstances.

to be applied to the actions for these combinations of partial factors are given in Table 2 and the partial factors for the geotechnical material properties are given in Table 3. Combination 1 will generally govern the structural resistance, and Combination 2 will generally govern the sizing of the foundations. The partial factors for soil resistance to sliding and bearing should be taken as 1.0 for both combinations. The partial factors to be applied to the actions at the EQU limit state are given in Table 4; the geotechnical material partial factors are given in Table 3. For the SLS, Eurocode 7 does not give any advice on whether the characteristic, frequent or quasi-permanent combination should be used. Where the prescriptive method is used for spread foundations (see page 3) then the characteristic values should be adopted. For

Methods of design and combinations

There has not been a consensus amongst geotechnical engineers over the application of limit state principles to geotechnical design. Therefore, to allow for these differences of opinion, Eurocode 7 provides for three Design Approaches to be used for the ULS. The decision on which approach to use for a particular country is given in its National Annex. In the UK Design Approach 1 will be specified in the National Annex. For this Design Approach (excluding pile and anchorage design) there are two sets of combinations to use for the STR and GEO ultimate limit states. The values for the partial factors Table 1
Geotechnical categories of structures Category 1 2 3 Description Small and relatively simple structures Conventional types of structure and foundation with no difficult ground or loading conditions All other structures

Risk of geotechnical failure Negligible No exceptional risk Abnormal risks

Examples from Eurocode 7 None given Spread foundations Large or unusual structures Exceptional ground conditions

Table 2
Design values of actions derived for UK design, STR/GEO ultimate limit state persistent and transient design situations Combination Expression reference from BS EN 1990 Permanent actions Unfavourable Favourable Leading variable action Accompanying variable actions Main (if any) Others

Combination 1 (Application of combination 1 (BS EN 1997) to set B (BS EN 1990)) Exp. (6.10) Exp. (6.10a) Exp. (6.10b) 1.35 Gka 1.35 Gka 0.925d x 1.35 Gka 1.0 Gka 1.0 Gka 1.0 Gka 1.5b Qk 1.5b Qk 1.5 co,1c Qk 1.5b co,ic Qk,i 1.5b co,ic Qk,i 1.5b co,ic Qk,i

Combination 2 (Application of combination 2 (BS EN 1997) to set C (BS EN 1990)) Exp. (6.10)
Key a b c d

1.0 Gka

1.0 Gka

1.3b Qk,1

1.3b co,i c Qk,i

Where the variation in permanent action is not considered significant Gk,j,sup and Gk,j,inf may be taken as Gk Where the action is favourable, gQ,i = 0 and the variable actions should be ignored The value of c o can be obtained from Table NA.A1.1 of the UK NA to BS EN 1990 (or see Table 3 of Chapter 1) The value of j in the UK NA to BS EN 1990 is 0.925

Table 3
Partial factors for geotechnical material properties Angle of shearing resistance (apply to tan h) Symbol Combination 1 Combination 2 EQU gh 1.0 1.25 1.1 Effective cohesion gc 1.0 1.25 1.1 Undrained shear strength gcu 1.0 1.4 1.2 Unconfined strength gqu 1.0 1.4 1.2 Bulk density gg 1.0 1.0 1.0

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6. Foundations

direct methods of calculation the frequent combination can be used for sizing of foundations and the quasi-permanent combination can be used for settlement calculations. Further information on design combinations can be found in Chapter 1, originally published as Introduction to Eurocodes5.

Spread foundations
The geotechnical design of spread foundations (e.g. strip and pad foundations) is covered by section 6 of Eurocode 7, Part 1 and this gives three methods for design: Direct method calculation is carried out for each limit state. Indirect method experience and testing used to determine serviceability limit state parameters that also satisfy all relevant limit states (included in Eurocode 7 mainly to suit French design methods, and is not discussed further here). Prescriptive method in which a presumed bearing resistance is used. For most spread foundations in the UK, settlement will be the governing criterion; traditionally allowable bearing pressures have been used to limit settlement. This concept of increasing the factor of safety on bearing resistances to control settlement may still be used with the prescriptive method. The exception is for soft clays where Eurocode 7 requires settlement calculations to be undertaken. When using the direct method, calculations are carried out for each limit state. At the ULS, the bearing resistance of the soil should be checked using partial factors on the soil properties as well as on the actions. At the SLS the settlement of the foundations should be calculated and checked against permissible limits. The prescriptive method may be used where calculation of the soil properties is not possible or necessary and can be used provided that conservative rules of design are used. Therefore reference can continue to be made to Table 1 of BS 8004 (see Table 5) to determine presumed (allowable) bearing pressures for category 1 structures and preliminary calculations for category 2 structures. Alternatively, the presumed bearing resistance to allow for settlement can be calculated by the geotechnical designer and included in the geotechnical design report.

Geotechnical design report

A geotechnical design report should be produced for each project, even if it is only a single sheet. The report should contain details of the site, interpretation of the ground investigation report, geotechnical design recommendations and advice on supervision, monitoring and maintenance of the works. It is likely that this report will require input from more than one consultant, depending on whether the project is in Geotechnical Category 1, 2 or 3. The foundation design recommendations should include bearing resistances and characteristic values for soil parameters. It should also clearly state whether the values are applicable to SLS or ULS and whether they are for Combination 1 or Combination 2. Table 4
Design values of actions derived for UK design, EQU ultimate limit state persistent and transient design situations Combination Permanent actions Expression reference Unfavourable Favourable Exp. (6.10)
Key a Where the variation in permanent action is not considered significant Gk, j, sup and Gk, j, inf may be taken as Gk b Where the action is favourable, gQ, i = 0 and the variable actions should be ignored c The value of co can be obtained from Table NA.A1.1 of the UK NA to BS EN 1990

Leading Accompanying variable variable actions action Main Others (if any) 1.5b Qk 1.5b co,i c Qk,i

1.1 Gka

0.90 Gka

Table 5
Presumed allowable bearing values under static loading (from BS 8004) Category Noncohesive soils Type of soil Dense gravel, or dense sand and gravel Medium dense gravel, or medium dense sand and gravel Loose gravel, or loose sand and gravel Compact sand Medium dense sand Loose sand Cohesive soils Very stiff boulder clay and hard clay Stiff clay Firm clay Soft clay and silt Very soft clay and silt
Note These values are for preliminary design purposes only.

Presumed allowable bearing value (kN/m2) > 600 < 200 to 600 < 200 > 300 100 to 300 < 100 300 to 600 150 to 300 75 to 150 <75 Not applicable

Remarks Width of foundation not less than 1 m. Groundwater level assumed to be below the base of the foundation.

Susceptible to long-term consolidation settlement

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How to design concrete structures using Eurocode 2

A flow chart showing the design process for shallow foundations is given in Figure 1. Where there is a moment applied to the foundation, the EQU limit state should also be checked. Assuming the potential overturning of the base is due to the variable action from the wind, the following combination should be used (the variable imposed action is not considered to contribute to the stability of the structure): 0.9 Gk + 1.5 Qk,w EQU combination where: Gk is the stabilising characteristic permanent action (Use 1.1 Gk for a destabilising permanent action) Qk,w is the destabilising characteristic variable wind action Figure 1
Procedures for depth of spread foundations

Partial factors for the soil parameters used to determine the resistances can be obtained from Table 3 above (Combination 2). The pressure distribution under the base should be assessed to ensure that the maximum pressure does not exceed the bearing resistances obtained from the geotechnical design report at both EQU and GEO ultimate limit states (see Figure 2). If the eccentricity is greater than L/6 at SLS, then the pressure distribution used to determine the settlement should be modified because tension cannot occur between the base and the soil. In this case the designer should satisfy himself that there will be no adverse consequences (e.g. excessive rotation of the base). It should also be noted that the ULS pressure distribution diagram will be rectangular and not trapezoidal.

Reinforced concrete pads

Where the pad foundations require reinforcement the following checks should be carried out to ensure: Sufficient reinforcement to resist bending moments. Punching shear strength. Beam shear strength. The moments and shear forces should be assessed using the STR combination: 1.35 Gk + 1.5 Qk STR combination 1 (Exp. (6.10)) However, there may be economies to made from using Expressions (6.10a) or (6.10b) from the Eurocode. The critical bending moments for design of bottom reinforcement are located at the column faces. Both beam shear and punching shear should then be checked at the locations shown in Figure 3. For punching shear the ground reaction within the perimeter may be deducted from the column load (Expression (6.48), Eurocode 2116). It is not usual for a pad foundation to contain shear reinforcement, therefore it is only necessary to ensure that the concrete shear stress capacity without shear reinforcement (vRd,c see Table 6) is greater than applied shear stress (vEd = VEd/(bd)). If the basic shear stress is exceeded, the designer may increase the depth of the base. Alternatively, the amount of main reinforcement could be increased or, less desirably, shear links could be provided. (See Chapter 4, originally published as Beams8 for an explanation of how to design shear reinforcement.)

START

Obtain soil parameters from Ground Investigation report

Yes

Design using direct method?

No

Size foundation (geotechnical design) using the worst of Combinations 1 or 2 (ULS) for actions and geotechnical material properties. Combination 2 will usually govern.

Use prescriptive method. Size foundation (geotechnical design) using SLS for actions and presumed bearing resistance

Is there an overturning moment?

Yes

Check overturning using EQU limit state for actions and GEO Combination 2 for material properties.

No Design foundation (structural design) using the worst of Combinations 1 and 2 (ULS) for actions and geotechnical material properties.

Figure 2
Pressure distributions for pad foundations
M P 1 L P 6e L or 2P 1.5 L 3 e P P 6e 1+ L L e e = M/ P L = width of base P e P e P P L 2e P M M

SLS pressure distributions

ULS pressure distribution

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6. Foundations

Design for punching shear

Eurocode 2 provides specific guidance on the design of foundations for punching shear, and this varies from that given for slabs. In Eurocode 2 the shear perimeter has rounded corners and the forces directly resisted by the ground should be deducted (to avoid unnecessarily conservative designs). The critical perimeter should be found iteratively, but it is generally acceptable to check at d and 2d. Alternatively, a spreadsheet could be used (e.g. spreadsheet TCC81 from Spreadsheets for concrete design to BS 8110 and Eurocode 2 7). The procedure for determining the punching shear requirements is shown in Figure 4. Table 6
vRd,c resistance of members without shear reinforcement, MPa

Figure 4
Procedure for determining punching shear capacity for pad foundations

START

Determine value of factor ( =1.0 when applied moment is zero; refer to Expressions (6.38) to (6.42) from BS EN 199211 for other cases)

Determine value of vEd,max (design shear stress at face of column) from: vEd,max = (VEd DVEd) (from Exp. (6.38)) (u0deff) where u0 is perimeter of column (see Clause 6.4.5 for columns at base edges) deff = (dy + dz)/2 where dy and dz are the effective depths in orthogonal directions

rl

Effective depth, d (mm) 300 400 0.43 0.51 0.58 0.64 0.69 0.73 0.77 0.80 1.707 500 0.40 0.48 0.55 0.61 0.66 0.70 0.73 0.77 1.632 600 0.38 0.47 0.53 0.59 0.63 0.67 0.71 0.74 1.577 700 0.36 0.45 0.52 0.57 0.62 0.65 0.69 0.72 1.535 800 0.35 0.44 0.51 0.56 0.60 0.64 0.67 0.70 1.500 900 0.35 0.44 0.50 0.55 0.59 0.63 0.66 0.69 1.471 1000a 0.34 0.43 0.49 0.54 0.58 0.62 0.65 0.68 1.447

0.25% 0.50% 0.75% 1.00% 1.25% 1.50% 1.75% 2.00% k

Key

0.47 0.54 0.62 0.68 0.73 0.78 0.82 0.85 1.816

Determine value of vRd,max (refer to Table 7)

No Is vEd,max < vRd,max? Yes Determine value of vEd, (design shear stress) from: vEd = (VEd DVEd) (u1deff) where u1 is length of control perimeter (refer to Figure 5). For eccentrically loaded bases, refer to Exp. (6.51). The control perimeter will have to be found through iteration; it will usually be between d and 2d Redesign foundation

a For depths greater than 1000 calculate vRd,c directly. Notes 1 Table derived from: vRd,c = 0.12 k (100r I fck)(1/3) 0.035 k1.5 fck0.5 where k = 1 + (200/d) 2 and r I = (rIy +r Iz) 0.02, r Iy = Asy/(bd) and r Iz = Asz/(bd) 2 This table has been prepared for fck = 30; where r l exceed 0.40% the following factors may be used:

Determine concrete punching shear capacity vRd (without shear reinforcement) from 2dvRd,c/a (Refer to Table 6 for vRd,c)

fck Factor

25 0.94

28 0.98

32 1.02

35 1.05

40 1.10

45 1.14

50 1.19
Is vEd < vRd at critical perimeter? No Either increase main steel, or provide punching shear reinforcement required. (Not recommended for foundations.)

Figure 3
Shear checks for pad foundations

Yes No shear reinforcement required. Check complete.

Beam shear faces

Punching shear perimeters, (load within deducted from V Ed)

Figure 5
Typical basic control perimeters around loaded areas
2d 2d u1 2d

u1

bz d Bends may be required d

by

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How to design concrete structures using Eurocode 2

Raft foundations
The basic design processes for rafts are similar to those for isolated pad foundations or pilecaps. The only difference in approach lies in the selection of an appropriate method for analysing the interaction between the raft and the ground so as to achieve a reasonable representation of their behaviour. For stiffer rafts (i.e. span-to-thickness greater than 10) with a fairly regular layout, simplified approaches such as yield line or the flat slab equivalent frame method may be employed, once an estimation of the variations in bearing pressure has been obtained from a geotechnical specialist. Whatever simplifications are made, individual elastic raft reactions should equate to the applied column loads. Thinner, more flexible rafts or those with a complex layout may require the application of a finite element or grillage analysis. For rafts bearing on granular sub-grades or when contiguous-piled walls or diaphragm perimeter walls are present, the ground may be modelled as a series of Winkler springs. However, for cohesive sub-grades, this approach is unlikely to be valid, and specialist software will be required.

flexure reference should be made to Chapter 4, originally published as Beams 8. Alternatively, a truss analogy may be used; this is covered in Sections 5.6.4 and 6.5 of Eurocode 211. The strut angle y should be at least 21.8 to the horizontal; note that y should be measured in the plane of the column and pile. Both beam shear and punching shear should then be checked as shown in Figure 6. For beam shear, the design resistances in Table 6 may be used. If the basic shear stress is exceeded, the designer should increase the depth of the base. Alternatively, the amount of main reinforcement could be increased or, less desirably, shear links could be provided. Care should be taken that main bars are fully anchored. As a minimum, a full anchorage should be provided from the inner face of piles. Large radius bends may be required. When assessing the shear capacity in a pile cap, only the tension steel placed within the stress zone should be considered as contributing to the shear capacity (see Figure 7). Figure 6
Critical shear perimeters for piles

Piled foundations
For the purpose of this chapter it is assumed that the pile design will be carried out by a specialist piling contractor. The actions on the piles must be clearly conveyed to the pile designer, and these should be broken down into the unfactored permanent actions and each of the applicable variable actions (e.g. imposed and wind actions). The pile designer can then carry out the structural and geotechnical design of the piles. Where moments are applied to the pilecap the EQU combination should also be used to check the piles can resist the overturning forces. These EQU loads must also be clearly conveyed to the pile designer and procedures put in place to ensure the piles are designed for the correct forces. A pilecap may be treated as a beam in bending, where the critical bending moments for the design of the bottom reinforcement are located at the column faces. For further guidance on designing for Table 7
Values for vRd, max fck 20 25 28 30 32 35 40 45 50 vRd,max 3.68 4.50 4.97 5.28 5.58 6.02 6.72 7.38 8.00
hF

f /5

Beam shear 5 d from column face

f /5

Punching shear 5 2d from column face f

Figure 7
Shear reinforcement for pilecaps

A s contributing to shear capacity

Stress zone 45
o

Figure 8
Dimensions for plain foundations

bF

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6. Foundations

Plain concrete foundations

Strip and pad footings may be constructed from plain concrete provided the following rules are adhered to.
In compression, the value of acc, the coefficient taking account of

Table 8
Minimum percentage of reinforcement required fck 25 28 30 32 35 40 45 50
Key a Where fyk = 500 MPa.

fctm 2.6 2.8 2.9 3.0 3.2 3.5 3.8 4.1

Minimum % (0.26 fctm /fyka ) 0.13% 0.14% 0.15% 0.16% 0.17% 0.18% 0.20% 0.21%

long-term effects applied to design compressive strength (see Cl. 3.1.6), should be taken as 0.6 as opposed to 0.85 for reinforced concrete. The minimum foundation depth, hF, (see Figure 8) may be calculated from:

where: sgd = the design value of the ground bearing pressure fctd = the design concrete tensile strength from Exp. (3.16) For many situations this is unlikely to offer any savings over the current practice of designing for hf a. The possibility of splitting forces, as advised in Clause 9.8.4 of Eurocode 211, may need to be considered. Eurocode 2 allows plain concrete foundations to contain reinforcement for control of cracking.

Selected symbols
Symbol Ac As As, prov As, req d deff fcd fck fctm Gk h leff M Qk Qk,w VEd vEd VRd,c vRd,c vRd,max x xmax z acc Definition Cross sectional area of concrete Area of tension steel Area of tension steel provided Area of tension steel required Effective depth Average effective depth Design value of concrete compressive strength Characteristic cylinder strength of concrete Mean value of axial tensile strength Characteristic value of permanent action Overall depth of the section Effective span of member Design moment at the ULS Characteristic value of a variable action Characteristic value of a variable wind action Design value of applied shear force Design value of applied shear stress Design value of the punching shear resistance without punching shear reinforcement Design value of the punching shear stress resistance without punching shear reinforcement Design value of the maximum punching shear resistance along the control section considered Depth to neutral axis Limiting value for depth to neutral axis Lever arm Coefficient taking account of long term effects on compressive strength and of unfavourable effects resulting from the way load is applied (From UK National Annex) Factor for determining punching shear stress Ratio of the redistributed moment to the elastic bending moment Partial factor for material properties Reference reinforcement ratio Required tension reinforcement at mid-span to resist the moment due to the design loads (or at support for cantilevers) Factor for combination value of a variable action Factor for frequent value of a variable action Factor for quasi-permanent value of a variable action fck/1000 As l bd 0.85 for flexure and axial loads, 1.0 for other phenomena (d z)/0.4 (d 0.4)d where d 1.0 See Section 5.3.2.2 (1) 0.30 fck2/3 for fck C50/60 (from Table 3.1, Eurocode 2) (dy + dz) /2 acc fck /gc Value bh

Rules for spacing and quantity of reinforcement

Crack control
Refer to Chapter 2, originally published as Getting started 9.

Minimum area of principal reinforcement

The minimum area of reinforcement is As,min = 0.26 fctm bt d/fyk but not less than 0.0013bt d (see Table 8).

Maximum area of reinforcement

Except at lap locations, the maximum area of tension or compression reinforcement, should not exceed As,max = 0.04 Ac

Minimum spacing of reinforcement

The minimum spacing of bars should be the greater of: Bar diameter, Aggregate size plus 5 mm, or 20 mm.

b d gm r0 rl

Deep elements
For deep elements the advice in Eurocode 2 for the side faces of deep beams may be followed. The UK National Annex recommends that 0.2% is provided in each face. The distance between bars should not exceed the lesser of twice the beam depth or 300 mm. For pile caps the side face may be unreinforced if there is no risk of tension developing.

c0 c1 c2

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6. Foundations

References
1 BRITISH STANDARDS INSTITUTION. BS EN 1997: Eurocode 7: Geotechnical design. BSI (2 parts). 2 BRITISH STANDARDS INSTITUTION. BS 5930: Code of practice for site investigation. BSI, 1999. 3 BRITISH STANDARDS INSTITUTION. BS 8002: Code of practice for earth retaining structures. BSI, 1994. 4 BRITISH STANDARDS INSTITUTION. BS 8004: Code of practice for foundations. BSI, 1986. 5 NARAYANAN, R S & BROOKER, O. How to design concrete structures using Eurocode 2: Introduction to Eurocodes. The Concrete Centre, 2005. 6 BRITISH STANDARDS INSTITUTION. BS EN 199211, Eurocode 2: Design of concrete structures. General rules and rules for buildings. BSI, 2004. 7 GOODCHILD, C H & WEBSTER R M. Spreadsheets for concrete design to BS 8110 and Eurocode 2, version 3. The Concrete Centre, 2006. 8 MOSS, R M & BROOKER, O. How to design concrete structures using Eurocode 2: Beams. The Concrete Centre, 2006. 9 BROOKER, O. How to design concrete structures using Eurocode 2: Getting started. The Concrete Centre, 2005.

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