Experimental and Numerical Investigation of Strip Footing Behavior on Sand with a Weak Layer of Varying Thicknesses and Overburden Loads

The behavior of strip footings under varying soil conditions is a crucial research area in foundation engineering. In this study, the effect of weak layers on the bearing capacity of strip footings resting on a layered soil mass was investigated through small-scale model tests. The experimental program consisted of laboratory tests performed on a rigid strip footing situated on a sand mass foundation. The results indicated that even a thin weak layer can significantly decrease the ultimate bearing capacity of the soil-foundation system. The extent of this effect was shown to be dependent on the thickness of the weak layer. Asymmetrical overburden loading were also found to be a critical factor in achieving the ultimate bearing capacity of the foundations. The primary aim of this research was to evaluate the general behavioral pattern of strip footings resting on sand masses with weak layers and to quantify the effect of various parameters on the ultimate bearing capacity. The comparison of experimental with numerical and analytical analysis results confirmed the similar trends of these two methods under different conditions of the model tests. The results suggest that by increasing the overburden amount, the bearing capacity of the foundation can be improved.