Tools › Civil and Geotechnical › Foundations › Retaining Wall and Footing › Example
Das's cantilever retaining wall (Example 7.1) and 2 m square footing (Examples 3.1 and 3.2): overturning, sliding, bearing and allowable load
| Tool | Retaining Wall and Footing |
| Source | Das, B. M. (2011). Principles of Foundation Engineering, 7th ed. Cengage Learning, Stamford, CT. Example 7.1 (cantilever wall, Figure 7.11, Rankine active pressure with a sloping backfill) and Examples 3.1 / 3.2 (Terzaghi and general bearing-capacity equations); required factors after U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (1989), Retaining and Flood Walls, EM 1110-2-2502, Table 4-1. |
| Level | Undergraduate |
Problem
A cantilever wall has a 6 m stem (0.5 m at the top, 0.7 m at the base), a 0.7 m base slab with a 0.7 m toe and a 2.6 m heel (B = 4 m), 1.5 m of soil in front of the toe and a backfill sloping at 10°; the backfill has γ = 18 kN/m³ and φ′ = 30°, the foundation soil γ = 19 kN/m³, φ′ = 20°, c′ = 40 kN/m², and the concrete 23.58 kN/m³. Find the factors of safety against overturning, sliding (with the passive resistance) and bearing-capacity failure and the toe and heel pressures. Separately, a 2 m square footing at 1.5 m depth in soil with φ′ = 25°, c′ = 20 kN/m², γ = 16.5 kN/m³ carries a vertical load: find the allowable gross load with FS = 3 by Terzaghi's equation and by the general equation.
Inputs to Enter
- Wall: stem 6 m high, 0.5 / 0.7 m wide, base 0.7 m thick, toe 0.7 m, heel 2.6 m, soil depth at toe 1.5 m; backfill γ 18 kN/m³, φ′ 30°, c′ 0, slope 10°; foundation soil γ 19 kN/m³, φ′ 20°, c′ 40 kPa; concrete 23.58 kN/m³; Rankine, passive included, δ_b = ⅔ φ′, k_2 = ⅔; required FS 2.0 / 1.5 / 3.0
- Footing: 2 × 2 m, D_f 1.5 m, γ 16.5 kN/m³, φ′ 25°, c′ 20 kPa, no water table, V = 1,437 kN, FS 3, general equation (Das); settlement with E_s 30,000 kPa, μ_s 0.3, rigid
Answers
- Wall: K_a = 0.3495 (book 0.350), H′ = 7.158 m, P_a = 161.2 kN/m (book 161.4), ΣV = 470.4 kN/m, ΣM_R = 1,128.9 kN·m/m, M_o = 378.8 kN·m/m (book 379.3) → FS overturning 2.98 (book 2.98)
- Wall: K_p = 2.04, P_p = 215 kN/m, resistance 433.2 kN/m → FS sliding 2.73 (book 2.73); e = 0.405 m < B/6, q_toe = 189.1 kN/m² (book 189.2), q_heel = 46.1 kN/m² (book 45.99); q_u = 571 kN/m² → FS bearing 3.02 (book about 3.0)
- Footing, Terzaghi: N_c 25.13, N_q 12.72, N_γ 8.34; q_u = 1,078 kN/m², q_all = 359.5 kN/m², Q_all = 1,437 kN (book 1,078 / 359.4 / 1,437)
- Footing, general equation: N_c 20.72, N_q 10.66, N_γ 10.88, F_cs 1.514, F_qs 1.466, F_γs 0.6, F_cd 1.257, F_qd 1.233; q_u = 1,374 kN/m², q_all = 458.0 kN/m², Q_all = 1,832 kN (book 1,373.2 / 457.7 / 1,830.8)
- Elastic settlement (tool's own case, not in the book): rigid footing S_e = 21.2 mm under the net pressure 334.5 kN/m²
Notes
The tool's default inputs are these two examples; press Submit. The small differences from the book come from Das rounding K_a to 0.350 and the factors to three figures. The bearing-capacity check of the wall uses the 7th-edition depth factor F_cd = F_qd − (1 − F_qd)/(N_c tan φ′); older editions print 1 + 0.4 D/B′ and a slightly higher q_u.