Bearing Capacity of a Group of Stone Columns in Soft Soil Subjected to Local or Punching Shear Failures
Publication: International Journal of Geomechanics
Volume 18, Issue 12
Abstract
The use of stone columns is a viable, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly ground improvement technique. Columns are made of compacted aggregate and installed in soft soil as reinforcements to increase the bearing capacity and to reduce foundation settlement. In the literature, the methods available to estimate the bearing capacity of soil reinforced with stone columns assumed bulging and general shear as the only modes of failure. However, ground reinforced with stone columns may also fail by local or punching shear mechanisms, depending on the soil, columns, and geometry of the system. This paper presents analytical models to estimate the bearing capacity of the foundation on a soft soil reinforced with stone columns that are subjected to local or punching shear failure mechanisms. The models were based on a limit equilibrium technique and the composite soil properties. The proposed theories were validated with experimental and analytical data available in the literature. Design charts are presented for practical purposes.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
Acknowledgments
Financial support from the Natural Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada and Concordia University is gratefully acknowledged.
References
Ambily, A. P., and S. R. Gandhi. 2007. “Behavior of stone columns based on experimental and FEM analysis.” J. Geotech. Geoenviron. Eng. 133 (4): 405–415. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)1090-0241(2007)133:4(405).
Bae, W.-S., Shin, B.-W., An, B.-C. and Kim, J.-S. 2002. “Behaviors of foundation system improved with stone columns.” In Proc., 12th Int. Offshore and Polar Engineering Conf. Golden, CO: International Society of Offshore and Polar Engineers.
Balaam, N. P., and J. R. Booker. 1981. “Analysis of rigid rafts supported by granular piles.” Int. J. Numer. Anal. Methods Geomech. 5 (4): 379–403. https://doi.org/10.1002/nag.1610050405.
Barksdale, R. D., and R. C. Bachus. 1983. Design and construction of stone columns: Volume 1. Rep. No. FHWA/RD-83/026. Washington, DC: Federal Highway Administration.
Bouassida, M., P. D. De Buhan, and L. Dormieux. 1995. “Bearing capacity of a foundation resting on a soil reinforced by a group of columns.” Géotechnique 45 (1): 25–34. https://doi.org/10.1680/geot.1995.45.1.25.
Bouassida, M., B. Jellali, and A. Porbaha. 2009. “Limit analysis of rigid foundations on floating columns.” Int. J. Geomech. 9 (3): 89–101. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)1532-3641(2009)9:3(89).
Caquot, A., and J. Kerisel. 1948. Tables for the calculation of passive pressure, active pressure and bearing capacity of foundations. Paris: Gautier-Villars.
Castro, J., and M. Karstunen. 2010. “Numerical simulations of stone column installation.” Can. Geotech. J. 47 (10): 1127–1138. https://doi.org/10.1139/T10-019.
Costet, J., and G. Sanglerat. 1983. “Cours pratique de mécanique des sols. Paris: Dunod.
Enoki, M., N. Yagi, R. Yatabe, and E. Ichimoto. 1991. “Shearing characteristic of composite ground and its application to stability analysis.” In Deep foundation improvement: Design, construction, and testing, edited by M. I. Esrig and R. C. Bachus, 19–31. Philadelphia: ASTM.
Etezad, M., and A. M. Hanna. 2017. “The ultimate bearing capacity of shallow foundations.” In Proc., GeoOttawa 2017: Canadian Geotechnical Conf., 70 Years of Canadian Geotechnics and Geoscience; 12th Joint CGS/IAH-CNC Groundwater Conf. Richmond, ON, Canada: Canadian Geotechnical Society.
Etezad, M., A. M. Hanna, and T. Ayadat. 2015. “Bearing capacity of a group of stone columns in soft soil.” Int. J. Geomech. 15 (2): 04014043. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)GM.1943-5622.0000393.
Hanna, A. 2001. “Determination of plane-strain shear strength of sand from the results of triaxial tests.” Can. Geotech. J. 38 (6): 1231–1240. https://doi.org/10.1139/t01-064.
Hanna, A. M., M. Etezad, and T. Ayadat. 2013. “Mode of failure of a group of stone columns in soft soil.” Int. J. Geomech. 13 (1): 87–96. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)GM.1943-5622.0000175.
Hijab, W. A. 1956. “A note on the centroid of a logarithmic spiral sector.” Géotechnique 6 (2): 66–69. https://doi.org/10.1680/geot.1956.6.2.66.
Hu, W. 1995. “Physical modeling of group behavior of stone column foundations.” Ph.D. dissertation, Univ. of Glasgow.
Hughes, J. M. O., and N. J. Withers. 1974. “Reinforcing of soft cohesive soils with stone columns.” Ground Eng. 7 (3): 42–49.
Kumbhojkar, A. S. 1993. “Numerical evaluation of Terzaghi’s Nγ.” J. Geotech. Eng. 119 (3): 598–607. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9410(1993)119:3(598).
Lee, J. S., and G. N. Pande. 1998. “Analysis of stone-column reinforced foundations.” Int. J. Numer. Anal. Methods Geomech. 22 (12): 1001–1020. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1096-9853(199812)22:12%3C1001::AID-NAG955%3E3.0.CO;2-I.
Madhav, M. R., and P. P. Vitkar. 1978. “Strip footing on weak clay stabilized with a granular trench or pile.” Can. Geotech. J. 15 (4): 605–609.
McCabe, B. A., G. J. Nimmons, and D. Egan. 2009. “A review of field performance of stone columns in soft soils.” Proc. Inst. Civ. Eng. Geotech. Eng. 162 (6): 323–334. https://doi.org/10.1680/geng.2009.162.6.323.
McKelvey, D., V. Sivakumar, A. Bell, and J. Graham. 2004. “Modelling vibrated stone columns in soft clay.” Proc. Inst. Civ. Eng. Geotech. Eng. 157 (3): 137–149. https://doi.org/10.1680/geng.2004.157.3.137.
Meyerhof, G. G. 1963. “Some recent research on the bearing capacity of foundations.” Can. Geotech. J. 1 (1): 16–26. https://doi.org/10.1139/t63-003.
Najjar, S. S. 2013. “A state-of-the-art review of stone/sand-column reinforced clay systems.” Geotech. Geol. Eng. 31 (2): 355–386. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10706-012-9603-5.
Priebe, H. J. 1995. “The design of vibro replacement.” Ground Eng. 28 (10): 31–37.
Shahu, J. T., and Y. R. Reddy. 2011. “Clayey soil reinforced with stone column group: Model tests and analyses.” J. Geotech. Geoenviron. Eng. 137 (12): 1265–1274. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)GT.1943-5606.0000552.
Stuedlein, A. W., and R. D. Holtz. 2013. “Bearing capacity of spread footings on aggregate pier reinforced clay.” J. Geotech. Geoenviron. Eng. 139 (1): 49–58. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)GT.1943-5606.0000748.
Tan, S. A., S. Tjahyono, and K. K. Oo. 2008. “Simplified plane-strain modeling of stone column reinforced ground.” J. Geotech. Geoenviron. Eng. 134 (2): 185–194. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)1090-0241(2008)134:2(185).
Terzaghi, K. 1943. Theoretical soil mechanics. New York: John Wiley and Sons.
Vesić, A. S. 1973. “Analysis of ultimate loads of shallow foundations.” J. Soil Mech. Found. Div. 99 (1): 45–73.
Wood, D. M., W. Hu, and D. F. T. Nash. 2000. “Group effects in stone column foundations: Model tests.” Géotechnique 50 (6): 689–698. https://doi.org/10.1680/geot.2000.50.6.689.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
International Journal of Geomechanics
Volume 18 • Issue 12 • December 2018
Copyright
© 2018 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Aug 10, 2017
Accepted: May 25, 2018
Published online: Oct 2, 2018
Published in print: Dec 1, 2018
Discussion open until: Mar 2, 2019
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.