Case histories of tank settlement and damage are examined to determine which factors control the magnitude of differential settlements of tanks. The available data are used to assess the accuracy of conventional settlement analysis procedures as applied to steel tanks on compressible foundation soils and to determine the magnitudes of differential settlement that tanks can tolerate without damage. New criteria for tolerable settlements of tanks are recommended. These new criteria apply to the three settlement profile shapes found to develop in actual tanks. The new criteria are easier to apply than some of the criteria proposed previously, because they do not require determination of the distance from the tank edge to the point of maximum settlement, a quantity that cannot be calculated using any simple analytical procedure. The influence of this distance, important in determining the distortion of the tank bottom, is incorporated in the new criteria through use of different magnitudes of tolerable settlement depending on the shape of the settlement profile.

Dredged seabed sand and hill‐cut soil are economical fill materials for coastal land reclamation. Wherever these materials are scarce, the possibility of using other available materials such as marine clay should be studied. Hydraulically placed marine clay would pose problems related to sedimentation and long‐term settlement in the fill. By providing thin sand layers interbedded with marine clay, the settlement of the fill could be accelerated and the strength improved. A field test carried out on a recently reclaimed area shows the feasibility of reclaiming land using hydraulically placed clay and sand to form a layered clay‐sand fill. The main feature of this scheme is the ability to form thin horizontal sand layers on top of sedimented clay. The procedure is described in detail, and the performance of the fill is examined.

The writer presents seepage charts for calculating the quantity of flow Q and critical points on the phreatic surface, A and B, for homogeneous and zoned embankments on an impervious foundation. The charts are basically a practitioner's tool for rapidly estimating seepage quantities for both homogeneous and zoned embankments. The charts will also aid in the actual flownet construction. The charts were developed from a computer program developed by the writer using the method of fragments. In comparison to flownet solutions, the charts give an average error for seepage quantity of $+5\%\text{.}$ For points on the phreatic surface A and B), an average error of $-8$ and $+4\%\text{,}$ respectively, are attained. Input variables are upstream and downstream core slopes, downstream shell slope, permeability of core and shell, pool elevation, and crest width. A method is also presented to estimate the seepage quantity for upstream sloping core embankments.

An investigation is made of the inclination factors for estimating the ultimate bearing capacity of shallow strip footings under central load inclined in the direction of footing length. The corresponding theoretical inclination factors are found to be generally larger than the previous factors for a load inclined in the direction of the footing width. The theoretical values of the present inclination factors are compared with some experimental results of model footings on clay and sand.

A comprehensive analysis is made of the harmonic rocking response of massless, rigid, ring foundations supported at the surface of a homogeneous elastic half‐space. The parameters considered include the thickness‐to‐radius ratio for the ring, the frequency of the exciting force and the resulting steady state response, and Poisson's ratio for the supporting medium. The response quantities examined include the stiffness and damping coefficients of the system in an equivalent spring‐dashpot representation of the supporting medium, the rotation of the foundation, and the normal pressure at the foundation‐medium interface. The results in each case are compared with those obtained for a solid disk foundation having the same radius as the outer radius of the ring. The reported data are computed by a method of analysis which takes account of the mixed boundary conditions at the surface of the half‐space and are believed to be of high accuracy.

The purpose of this research was to determine the frictional characteristics of various bedrocks and construction materials against sand under cyclic loading. Laboratory testing was conducted using a direct shear device which cyclically strained the sand-material interface. The results indicate that the skin friction is a function of the surface roughness of the solid member against the soil. The apparent skin friction approaches the internal angle of friction of the sand as the surface roughness increases. The behavior of sand as tested in a cyclic direct shear test resembles the behavior of sand when tested in small-amplitude dynamic testing devices. No relationship seems to exist between skin friction and the damping ratio. More additional work will be necessary to verify this finding.

Both nonlinear P-y curves and nondimensional methods for lateral load pile design require the evaluation, measurement, or calculation of a soil horizontal modulus value. Current researchers and foundation design engineers frequently use different notations and procedures that do not make clear the transfer mechanism. This note attempts to clarify the mobilized resistance mechanisms for a laterally loaded pile by considering both side shear and front pressures. No currently popular methods attempt to quantify the contribution of side shear, but it has been shown that side shear is the major contributor to equilibrium at working loads. Any modulus value which expresses the soil reaction as an equivalent uniform pressure across the pile face (diameter) is conservative, if based solely on measured pressures alone.

The active length of single free-head vertical piles, subjected to lateral pulse loadings at the pile head was analyzed by using the method of direct analysis. Direct analysis employs the numerical approach based on the principle of beam on elastic foundation. Piles with different materials and soil conditions were analyzed for various load durations. Results of the analysis show a relationship between the active pile length and the load duration. Knowledge of this relationship may be useful for designing a safe and economical pile foundation subjected to pulse lateral loadings.

In cantilever retaining walls, sliding often requires widening of the base or development of the key under the base; widening brings additional expenses, while the key is fully efficient only in very firm soil. The alternate solution is the sloped base bottom. The weight of the wall and soil produces normal pressure on the sloped base and a force acting along the bottom surface. Force acting along the surface represents additional resistance to the sliding. It can not be developed to a point greater than the sliding resistance along the horizontal line through the lowest point of the base in the soil under the retaining wall. The sloped base is most effective when the coefficient of friction for concrete cast against soil is relatively low, or when limited excavation is required. However, these conditions are common enough to provide for the sloped base broad application.