Kinematics and bearing capacity of strip footings on reinforced foundation beds over soft non-homogeneous ground

This paper presents a method to estimate the bearing capacity of a strip footing on the surface of a reinforced foundation bed over soft non-homogeneous clay. The model considered for study consists of a two layered system of granular fill over soft non-homogeneous deposit whose undrained strength increases linearly with depth, with a single horizontal layer of geosynthetic reinforcement placed in the granular fill. The method considers kinematics, i.e., the effect of transverse resistance in addition to that of axial resistance of the reinforcement, shear resistance of the granular fill and the non-homogeneous strength profile of soft ground to arrive at the ultimate bearing capacity of the reinforced two layer foundation system. A parametric study quantifies the contributions of various parameters to the bearing capacity.